News & Events

Cork County’s Division 1 fixture with WIT at the Mardyke last Sunday had to be abandoned in unusual circumstances after the motorised heavy roller broke down on the wicket while it was being rolled between innings. After WIT batted first and were bowled out for 143 the Cork County stand in captain Ross Durity requested that the pitch be rolled between innings however the machine seized up just off the wicket after blowing a starter motor thus preventing any further play for the day forcing the umpires to abandon the fixture. The match will be refixed for later in the season.

Leinster League Division 2

(up-to-date to weekend beginning 26th June)

Recent Results:
Rush (0) lost to Phoenix (25) by 170 runs, Kenure, 5 June.
Phoenix 313-8 (50.0 overs, C Kelly 75, C Dickeson 67, R Flanagan 54, L Jansen 3-35)
Rush 143 (34.3 overs, S Gull 44, D Langford-Smith 4-27)

Pembroke (25) beat Old Belvedere (0) by 9 wickets, Sydney Parade, 5 June.
Old Belvedere 193 (48.0 overs, S Sharma 56, S Singh 38, B Whaley 4-36, B McCarthy 3-23)
Pembroke 194-1 (49.1 overs, T Lawson 108*, S Moreton 71*)

Terenure (25) beat Trinity (0) by 137 runs, Terenure, 5 June.
Terenure 383-5 (50.0 overs, C Morgan 121, S Mott 72*, Das 45)
Trinity 246-8 (50.0 overs, I Page 47, E Delany 43)

Upcoming Fixtures:
Saturday 26th June
Phoenix v Rush
Terenure v Old Belvedere

Sunday 27th June
Pembroke v The Hills 2

Saturday 3rd July
Old Belvedere v Rush
Terenure v Pembroke

Sunday 4th July
Phoenix v The Hills 2

DIVISION ONE:

*Docked 5 points for failing to fulfil a fixture.

As many of you are aware the renovations and upgrade of the old Pavilion and Long Room at the Mardyke are nearing completion. The Club’s committee wish to ask any current, former or non members that may have memorabilia, photos, etc relating to Cork County, Bohemians or Wanderers throughout the years that they think would be a nice addition to the newly renovated Pavilion could they contact committee member John Power or Project Manager Matt Reed in the coming weeks or if they prefer they can just leave the items behind the bar for the attention of both John and Matt.

John Power: 0863826032 or JohnPower@ANGLOIRISHBANK.ie
Matt Reed: 0879086280 or mattbillreed@gmail.com

Yours in Cricket,
Committee, Cork County Cricket Club.

Cork County continued their quest to regain the Munster Division 1 title and remain on top of the Division 1 table by welcoming newcomers Limerick Raiders to the Mardyke on Sunday. Both sides had previously met during a pre-season friendly in April when the Raiders inflicted a heavy defeat on a under strength County XI. On this occasion a strong County side took the field with only one change from last weekend’s game against Midleton with Matt Reed coming in and Michael John Wycherley unavailable due to personal reasons. Conditions were overcast and damp with the forecast of heavy showers throughout the afternoon.

Cork County skipper Robert Duggan won the toss and decided to have a bowl hoping his bowlers could take advantage of the early moisture in the pitch. However, the Limerick Raiders batsman had other ideas by taking the attack to the County bowlers. Opener Shani Alam was out early caught at first slip by Bruce Koch off the bowling of Parvez Ali and he was replaced by skipper Mosh Tayyab who soon got into his stride with some powerful shots down the ground off the bowling of James Duggan. In partnership with the other Azeem Khan, both he and Tayyab put on almost 90 runs for the second wicket with an array of shots around the ground aided by some sub standard Cork County fielding. Tayyab was eventually bowled by Robert Duggan and he was soon followed by Zia Khan who was caught LBW by young off-spinner Brad Morgan. Farrukh Bhagat joined Azeem Khan at the wicket and he took up the attack with some powerful shots to the leg-side in particular. Azeem reached his half century but was run out by Mirza and he was followed in close proximity by middle order batsmen Sajid Javid and Rizwan Aslam. With the dismissal of Farrukh for 50 after being caught behind by Chris Banon off the bowling of Bruce Koch, Cork County hoped to wrap up the Raiders innings however a brief cameo from tail-ender Usman Khan (30 runs) frustrated the County bowlers as their hopes of limiting the winning target to under 200 were dashed. Usman was clean bowled by Parvez Ali and the remaining two wickets followed in close succession leaving the home side with a daunting target of 244 runs to win in deteriorating conditions.

With 243 runs on the board the Limerick Raiders side were quietly confident of causing an upset particularly with conditions not ideal for a big run chase. Cork County openers Robert Duggan and Mirza Baig knew they must provide a solid opening partnership to allow their in-form middle order with a platform to chase down the large Raiders total. The first over from opener Usman Khan was a sign of things to come for the County batsman. The County skipper found himself on the receiving end of a barrage of short balls and balls rising off a length with the now damp wicket beginning to cut up. Mirza Baig didn’t last long as he fished outside his off stump at a short wide ball from Farrukh and was caught behind. Cork County’s Guyanese all rounder Andrew Saul batted at number 3 and was determined not to be dominated by the Limerick Raiders attack by playing some imposing drives over the top and down the ground. Saul was intelligent with his shot selection in the difficult conditions, dismissing anything over pitched or too short of length. Usman and Farrukh attempted to get the most of the conditions by bowling short of a good length hoping the pitch would provided some variable bounce. Saul and Duggan took some blows to the body as they attempted to dampen the early enthusiasm of the Limerick Raiders players. With the Cork County total on 70 for 1 Duggan played at a short wide delivery from Shani Alam which left him slightly and was caught behind by the keeper Rizwan for 25 runs. With the dismissal of skipper Duggan, in-form South African all rounder Bruce Koch joined Andrew Saul at the crease and was soon into his stride and continuing this excellent form by timing shots to both sides of the wicket with effortless ease.

With the conditions deteriorating and poor light becoming an issue for the umpires, run rate would potentially become critical to the final outcome of the game. Saul and Koch entertained the County supporters with beautiful shots to all sides of the ground which were all the more impressive given the batsman unfriendly conditions. Saul provided the power while Koch provided the finesse as their partnership grew and once 20 over’s had been completed meaning the match was now officially a game, the County run rate was almost 6.5 runs per over in comparison to Limerick’s 4.8 runs per over. Limerick knew now knew they must try and bowl out Cork County if they were to win the game. With Cork County total on 193, Andrew Saul mistimed a booming drive and spooned it up in the air to be dismissed for a hugely impressive 76 runs. The warm reception he received from the County supporters on his return to the clubhouse was justly deserved after his super innings. In-form youngster Chris Banon joined Koch at the crease with just over 40 runs required to win. Banon intelligently looked to get Koch on strike as the South African soon began to eye up his second century of the season. With the early energy of the Limerick Raiders attack now diminished, Banon and Koch eased the County total towards victory and with the total on 239 Koch played a booming on-drive from the Mardyke end deep into the adjoining tennis club car park for 6 to give County an empathic 7 wicket victory after chasing down the 244 target in just 37 over’s. Koch finished on 91 not out. As was noted by one or two of the experienced onlookers ‘it was one of the most exciting and impressive run chases seen at the Mardyke for many years’.

Cork County Team: Robert Duggan*, Bruce Koch, Chris Banon†, James Duggan, Andrew Saul, Parvez Ali, Matt Reed, Ciarán Healy, Brad Morgan, Mirza Baig & Kevin Bray.

Sunday May 30th:
Cork County 245-3 beat Limerick Raiders 243 all out by 7 wickets at the Mardyke. scorecard

Cork County returned to local action after last weekend’s double header in Dublin as they took on Midleton in Munster League Division 1 at the Mardyke. County were in confident mood after a well deserved emphatic win against Dublin University on the previous Sunday and with temperatures reaching the mid twenties and not a cloud in the sky conditions were almost perfect for cricket at the Mardyke. County were still without the services of vice Captain Ross Durity (broken finger) and lost middle order batsman Matt Reed to a back problem, however, opening bowler Parvez Ali was returning to the fold after his own injury problems.

Midleton skipper Clinton Laverty won the toss and decided to have a bat with conditions seemingly set fair for batting. With the return of Parvez Ali, the Cork County bowling attack was looking quite strong as he complimented in form Bruce Koch along with James Duggan, Ciarán Healy and skipper Robert Duggan. The Cork County opening bowlers Duggan and Ali bowled with great control and aggression as they gave the Midleton opening pair Mohammadi and Finn a torrid time limiting the Midleton run-rate to less than two runs an over after 6. Duggan deservedly took the wicket of Mohammadi as he drove a ball directly into the hands of Ciarán Healy at mid-off. Midleton danger man Dean Wilson soon followed after being caught LBW by Duggan. The other opening batsman Finn continued to frustrate the County bowlers as he played and missed regularly however he was eventually caught in his crease by a Yorker from Parvez Ali and was adjudged LBW. After the introduction of some off-spin from Ciarán Healy, the wickets of Whittaker and Gomesz soon followed as they both holed out to mid-off and long-on, respectively. A brief cameo from young Midleton batsman Liam Noone (26 runs) provided some rest bite and pushed the Midleton total towards 100 but with the introduction of South African paceman Bruce Koch into the attack he soon was caught behind by Chris Banon. The Midleton tail soon capitulated Koch taking a further three wickets to bring his tally to 4 for the match and skipper Duggan took the final wicket of Managuruge to leave County chasing a target of 103 runs to win.

Without regular openers, Ross Durity and Andrew Wootton, County kept faith with Mirza Baig at the top of the order after his impressive knock against Trinity the previous week and also gave young all-rounder Kevin Bray a go at opening the innings. The early conditions proved difficult with the Midleton bowlers, Laverty in particular, getting a lot of swing movement and also some variable bounce from the foot marks of Cork County’s James Duggan. Baig some found his rhythm and played some lovely shots off his legs and down the ground off the bowling of Dean Wilson. Bray was providing solid defence at the other end but he fell to an inside edge off the bowling of Laverty. Robert Duggan replaced Bray at the crease and took his time to get used to the bowler friendly conditions. Mirza Baig let his confidence get the better of him as he tried to play another shot down the ground off the bowling of Midelton first change Managuruge and was bowled. Bruce Koch replaced Baig at the crease and set about closing off the game in partnership with Duggan. Koch’s good form continued as he soon started timing some lovely shots to both the off and leg sides but early on was unfortunate enough to pick out the fielders. Duggan departed for just 13 after he was caught behind off the bowling of Managuruge after he played at a short ball which rose off the pitch a bit more then he thought. Young in form batsman Chris Banon replaced the skipper and was soon into his stride with some great shots off his legs and down the ground. Koch soon joined in and managed to reverse sweep a ball from young leg spinner Oliver Ind for 4. With County closing in on a convincing win against the East Cork side Koch was determined to finish the match off in style by smashing medium pacer John Noone into the clubhouse for a huge 6. Koch finished the match on 37 not out and Banon finished on 15 not out resulting in a 7 wicket victory for the Mardyke side as they returned to the top of the Division 1 table.

Cork County team: R. Duggan*, B. Koch, C. Banon†, J. Duggan, P. Ali, M.J. Wycherley, C. Healy, M. Baig, B. Morgan, K. Bray & R. Durity.

Sunday May 23rd:
Cork County 106-3 beat Midleton 102 all out by 7 wickets at the Mardyke. scorecard

Saturday 15th May – Phoenix v Cork County

Cork County made their long awaited debut in Leinster League Division 2 on Saturday at Phoenix Park to take on promotion chasing Phoenix CC. It was Cork County’s first competitive league fixture in Leinster in over a decade and was the culmination of a lot of hard work both on and off the field by players and committee alike. However, in their opening fixture they were up against a strong looking Phoenix side led by former Irish opening bowler David Langford-Smith and containing consistent Leinster League performers such as Conor Kelly, the Flanagan brothers and the familiar face of Morne Bauer.

Cork County skipper Robert Duggan won the toss and decided to have a bowl on a wicket which looked like it would offer a little to the seamers and hoped to take advantage of any moisture in the wicket. The County openers James Duggan and Andrew Wootton appeared rusty at first allowing the Phoenix opening batsmen to get off to a steady start racing to almost 6 runs per over after the first six overs. A change in bowlers at both ends with the introduction of Bruce Koch and Ciarán Healy brought a halt to the run rate and provided County with the scalp of Rory Flanagan who was caught behind off the bowling of Koch. Healy’s spell of 10 overs provided much needed control and pressure on a slow wicket. The reintroduction of Wootton provided County with the important wickets of overseas player Larkin and Conor Kelly. Danger man David Langford-Smith was trapped LBW by Matt Reed for just 17 and skipper Robert Duggan took 3 wickets with a spell controlled swing bowling to subdue any end of innings barrage from the Phoenix lower order. Phoenix finished their innings on 240-7 after 50 overs providing County with a stiff challenge if they were to record their first victory in Division 2.

County’s fortunes relied heavily on seeing off the new ball partnership of Langford-Smith and Bauer who would probably provide the toughest opening attack in Division 2 this season. However, County lost an early wicket of James Duggan and he was soon followed by Andrew Wootton who spooned one off Bauer straight to Rory Flanagan at extra-cover. Skipper Duggan and Bruce Koch aimed to consolidate and see of the opening attack, the task was made slightly tougher with Duggan subject to a barrage of abuse from the Phoenix gulley fielder. The two County batsmen provided brief rest bite by seeing off Bauer’s opening spell until Duggan was undone by a well disguised slower ball from Langford-Smith. Banon followed after being trapped LBW on the back foot by Conor Kelly for 0. He was soon followed by Matt Reed who also fell victim to Kelly. Mirza Baig and Michael John Wycherley joined each other at the crease and took the attack to the Phoenix bowlers with Wycherley in particular striking some lusty blows off Langford-Smith and Masood Amend in particular. It was Wycherley’s first game back for Cork County after two years away from the game. With Wycherley closing in on his half century, he was controversially bowled by Amend after it appeared that the keeper had hit the stumps rather than the ball hitting the stumps. Unfortunately the umpires felt that he was bowled and so Wycherley had to walk with 48 runs to his name. The County innings soon fizzled out after his departure and the Mardyke side finished their innings on 132 all out. It was a disappointing finish to the game but in the circumstances and without some key players Cork County could use the experience to take into their crunch tie with Dublin University the following day.

Cork County 132 all out lost to Phoenix 240-7 by 108 runs at Phoenix Park. scorecard

Sunday 16th May – Dublin University v Cork County

Sundays match at College Park against Dublin University was crucial to Cork County’s effort to secure safety in Leinster League Division 2. The picturesque setting provided a fitting backdrop to this crucial showdown. Dublin University skipper Eoin Delaney won the toss and decided to have a bowl in suitable conditions for seam bowling. Cork County got off to a slow start with the Dublin University openers losing opener Andrew Wootton for 0 after being yorked by Amir. Skipper Robert Duggan soon followed in unfortunate fashion after slicing a short of a length ball down onto his stumps. Bruce Koch joined Mirza Baig at the crease and they both consolidated the County innings and steadily increased the County run rate as their partnership developed. Koch and Baig put on just over a 100 until Mirza was bowled just short of his half century for 48 runs by Gunnell. Young County starlet Chris Banon joined Koch at the crease and they both took the attack to the University bowlers. Koch soon got into his stride inflicting some big blows towards the Nassau Street end and he was soon joined by Banon who smashed a big 6 towards the same end. Koch soon reached his richly deserved first century on Irish soil in the 45th over to a rousing reception from his County teammates. The all rounder from Natal showed great patience and skill throughout his innings to reach his ton. Banon departed for 43 runs in the 47th over and the Mardyke side finished their innings on 265 for 7.

With a good total on the board Cork County set about their task of bowling out the University side in determined fashion. Opener Keith Banks, who was the only change from Saturday’s side, put immediate pressure on the Trinity opening batsmen with his customary tight and probing line and length. This early pressure led to the run out of opener Richard Forest by some sharp work at cover-point by Matt Reed. The key wicket of Carl Hosford soon followed after he was trapped LBW by Banks. James Duggan took the wicket of Page as the Trinity batsmen failed to build any meaningful partnerships. Trinity skipper Eoin Delaney entered the crease and after a shaky start he gradually consolidated the Trinity innings and played some lovely shots down the ground. However, none of his teammates could provide any worthwhile support due to some tight bowling from the Cork attack and some excellent out fielding which eventually led to the run out of skipper Delaney after an excellent pick and throw from Mirza Baig. The Trinity innings soon lost its momentum with some excellent tight bowling from Koch and Wootton and towards the end by skipper Duggan. The Trinity reply was brought to an end when number 11 Gunnell was clean bowled first ball by Koch and the County players celebrated a first well deserved victory in Leinster and manner of the victory will give the squad a great confidence boost ahead of their return to Leinster League action in July.

Cork County 265-7 beat Dublin University 147 all out by 118 runs at College Park. scorecard

The Cork County 2nd XI cruised to comfortable victory over County Clare at the Mardyke in the First Round of the Munster Junior Cup. Cork County supplied a solid bowling performance at the Mardyke to help them progress at the hands of so called pre-season favourites, Co. Clare. Four wickets from the wrist-spin of Nicky Murphy severely dented Clare’s chances of posting any sort of competitive total, and the westerner’s innings never gained any real momentum with wickets falling with regularity. Clare were eventually out in the 27th over for a mediocre total of 103, only Raju (23) making any meaningful contribution.

Cork County’s reply got off to a slow start as opener Brian Scott was back in the pavilion without troubling the scorers, however, a knock of 33 from in form batsman Hassan Shoman and a useful innings of 18 from Des O’Leary was enough to help the home side to a comfortable six wicket victory. Of the Co. Clare attack, skipper Rob Loxton was the most impressive on display finishing with figures of 2 for 8 off his five including three maidens.

Source: Munster Cricket Blog http://munstercricket.com

Cork County made the long trip to Belfast last Friday to take on Civil Service North (CSN) in the second round of the Bob Kerr Irish Senior Cup. The fixture took place at Stormont which acts as one of Ireland’s international grounds and will be hosting West Indies A and Bangladesh this coming summer. CSNI are the NCU ClubTurf Ulster Cup holders and had finished third in the NCU Premier League in 2009. They welcomed their skipper, Nigel Jones, back from World Twenty20 competition in the Caribbean and overseas professional Kieran Noema-Barnett was settling into his second full season with the club.

Cork County knew they had a huge task if they were to cause an upset against one of the premier sides in NCU cricket but with a good pre-season under their belts they hoped to provide a competitive opposition to the Stormont side. However due to injuries to vice captain Ross Durity (broken finger) and opening bowler Parvez Ali (stitches), the unavailability of Keith Banks due to personal reasons, Matt Reed who was on holidays and Andrew Saul who had work commitments; the Mardyke side’s chance took a sharp dip and increased the onus on the remaining senior players.

The day started under unbroken sunshine at Stormont with CSN skipper Nigel Jones winning the toss and electing to ‘have a bat’ on what looked like a perfect batting deck. Stephen Dyer and Hamilton Coulter opened the batting for CSN. Hamilton went in the 5th over adjudged LBW while stepping down the pitch to a ball which kept low from Cork County opener James Duggan. Duggan’s opening spell was one of the positives to be taken from the day with the young seamer showing great maturity and control on a wicket which offered little to the bowlers.

CSN skipper Nigel Jones entered the crease and seemed a little jet lagged and required a number of overs to reacclimatize to Irish conditions after his time with the Ireland squad in the West Indies. Two chances went down in the early overs, one difficult snick high past the diving wicketkeeper Des O’Leary, which would have been a great take, and another put down by Andrew Wootton in the slips.

After these early chances went down, both batsmen soon found their timing and rhythm with opener Stephen Dyer, in particular, taking most of the strike. As the batsmen closed in on both their centuries they matched each other shot for shot. Both seemed to be timing the ball nicely and they reached 80 and then 90 within a few balls of each other. With 9 overs to go both batsmen were on 94, CSN on 206. Nigel Jones’ century (119b 10×4s 3×6s) came with a single off the penultimate ball of the following over, and a single by Stephen Dyer from the next ball brought up the 200 partnership. Dyer brought up his century (125b 11×4s 2×6s) with a single from the last ball of the 43rd over.

Stephen Dyer reached 130 with a 6, taken by Nicky Murphy at deep mid-off, who unfortunately stepped back over the boundary rope. However, Dyer was bowled with the very next ball, trying another shot. Jones innings came to an end off the first ball of the last over. At the end of the innings Kieran Noema-Barnett and Allen Coulter were the not out bats, and the score was 295. The Cork County bowlers had not bowled badly, but after the couple of chances that were not taken, they faced a couple of determined and experienced batsmen, who were able to deal with their attack with few alarms.

Chasing a mammoth total of 295 at just under 6 runs per over, the Cork County batting line-up required a great start from openers Andrew Wootton and Des O’Leary but unfortunately Wootton was caught behind early on from CSN opener J. Costain. Cork County captain, Robert Duggan, joined O’Leary at the crease hoping to consolidate and also attempt to chase down the mammoth CSN total. O’Leary followed Wootton for 17 after being run out superbly by CSN overseas professional Kieran Noema-Barnett. Bruce Koch joined Duggan at the crease and both batsman provided County with their main partnership of the innings. The CSN bowlers maintained excellent line and length throughout the innings denying the County batsmen any chance to free their arms and gain any momentum.

Having reached drinks at 25 overs, both Duggan and Koch attempted to accelerate the run rate with the third and fourth choice bowlers entering the CSN attack. Koch, while attempting to make a lofted sweep against the off-spin of Andrews, had the misfortune of losing his footing and mistimed the shot resulting in a straightforward catch by Noema-Barnett. Duggan followed Koch a number of overs later after being trapped LBW on the back foot by slow left-arm bowler Coulter. The County innings soon lost its momentum with wickets falling at regular intervals. Young County batsman, Oliver Creedon, provided brief rest bite with a well work 16 not out showing great maturity and shot selection against the CSN attack. The CSN bowlers took nearly 45 overs to end the Cork County innings.

Cork County now turn their attention to Leinster League Division 2 where they take on Phoenix and Dublin University on the 15th and 16th May, respectively. The Mardyke side will be hoping for alot better fortune and improved performances throughout the side if they are to come away with a win from the weekend.

Saturday May 8th:
Civil Service North (CSNI) 295-3 beat Cork County 113 all out by 182 runs at Stormont. scorecard

Cork County has announced their squad for their upcoming Bob Kerr Irish Senior Cup 1st Round fixture against Civil Service Northern Ireland (CSNI) at Stormont. Cork County will be missing some key figures as they will be without vice captain Ross Durity due to a broken finger sustained against Laois CC recently, Keith Banks due to personal reasons, Andrew Saul due to work commitments and Matt Reed who will be away on holidays. However they will be sending up a strong side to take on CSNI in the hope of springing a surprise against the NCU ClubTurf Ulster Cup holders at the headquarters of the Northern Cricket Union.

The Cork County squad will be departing by coach from the Rochestown Park Hotel on Friday afternoon and will be staying at the Wellington Park Hotel in Belfast on both Friday and Saturday night. The match against CSNI will be starting at 12 noon at Stormont cricket ground on the Upper Newtownards Road.

The Cork County Irish Senior Cup squad is as follows:

1. Robert Duggan*
2. Bruce Koch
3. Chris Banon
4. James Duggan
5. Parvez Ali
6. Andrew Wootton
7. Des O’Leary+
8. Ciarán Healy
9. Darren Fogarty
10. Oliver Creedon
11. Nicky Murphy
12. Brad Morgan