Disappointment as Fox Lodge edge home

On both occasions Coleraine batted first, getting off to a poor start with the loss of early wickets leaving them in immediate difficulties. On Saturday, they managed to post a target of just 173 in their 50 overs, with three batsmen making solid contributions of 32 for Rishi Chopra, 31 for Steven Harper and 31, not out, for Wilson Torrens. This total was to prove to be too little however, as, despite a magnificent five wicket haul for Coleraine’s Johnny Martin, Fox Lodge got home in 46 overs with three wickets in hand.

This pattern was repeated on Sunday, as Coleraine’s batsmen at first struggled to score fluently, with only captain Peter Wallace (48) and Steven Harper(36) keeping them in the game. A late partnership between first Harper and then Johnny Martin with number nine batsman, Matthew Smyth took Coleraine from 137 for 7 to finish on a remarkable 242 in their 50 overs. Smyth batted fearlessly as he scored quickly, hitting 7 fours and 4 sixes in his unbeaten 71. He reached his 50 in the final over as he hit 26 runs from the last six balls of the innings, leaving the bowler devastated by this onslaught. The tragedy though was that this total again proved to be just a few runs too few, as Fox Lodge, this time with just 3 balls to spare, reached the target.