Newbuildings won the Premier title for the first time – a remarkable achievement for a club just formed in 2011. They needed to win with two bonus points to leapfrog Bready, and when they posted 251 – increased to 263 with penalty runs for a slow over rate, it looked a forgone conclusion. The champagne was on ice as Ardmore slumped to 11 for 4 in the chase, but the noisy crowd was all but silenced as Tyron Koen (75) and Rachit Gaur shared a fifth wicket stand of 140. Both however fell in the space of three balls as the decibels increased. Conor Brolly (27) hit a few early blows, but Newbuildings closed out the 37-run win which got them three bonus points. Jared Wilson – who had top-scored with 52 for the home side – collected the trophy from NW President Connie McAllister to spark huge celebrations among the home faithful.

This match had a real end of season feel to it, with batting orders reversed and unfamiliar names on both sides. Mike Erlank - whose return for 2023 was confirmed during the week - top-scored with 51 as the villagers posted 147. Gary McBride ending the innings with a hat-trick. Brian Allen in a rare bowl also took three wickets, while skipper Aaron Heywood picked up two. Heywood and Craig Doherty both made 34 in the chase, but Robbie Millar's leg-spin proved unplayable as he took 4 for 18 to seal an 18-run win.

Newbuildings won the Premier title for the first time – a remarkable achievement for a club just formed in 2011. They needed to win with two bonus points to leapfrog Bready, and when they posted 251 – increased to 263 with penalty runs for a slow over rate, it looked a forgone conclusion. The champagne was on ice as Ardmore slumped to 11 for 4 in the chase, but the noisy crowd was all but silenced as Tyron Koen (75) and Rachit Gaur shared a fifth wicket stand of 140. Both however fell in the space of three balls as the decibels increased. Conor Brolly (27) hit a few early blows, but Newbuildings closed out the 37-run win which got them three bonus points. Jared Wilson – who had top-scored with 52 for the home side – collected the trophy from NW President Connie McAllister to spark huge celebrations among the home faithful.

This match had a real end of season feel to it, with batting orders reversed and unfamiliar names on both sides. Mike Erlank - whose return for 2023 was confirmed during the week - top-scored with 51 as the villagers posted 147. Gary McBride ending the innings with a hat-trick. Brian Allen in a rare bowl also took three wickets, while skipper Aaron Heywood picked up two. Heywood and Craig Doherty both made 34 in the chase, but Robbie Millar's leg-spin proved unplayable as he took 4 for 18 to seal an 18-run win.

Brigade ended what has been a disappointing season by their high standards on a winning note as they edged out Donemana by one run in a last ball thriller at Beechgrove. Jordan McGonigle was run out from the final ball going for the single that would have tied the game. Ryan Barr was the hero as he took three wickets, including two in the final over to deny The Holm side as they chased 175. Joe Robinson (60), Gary McClintock (36) and Levi Dougherty (30) were all in the runs before they collapsed – three wickets too for Ryan Macbeth. David Barr had scored 55 for the home side as they posted 175 for 8 in a game reduced at the start to 35 overs because of thunder/rain.

Ian Young struck a last-ball boundary to seal a one-wicket win for Bready against a make-shift Eglinton side, but the destiny of their title is out of their hands after failing to gain any bonus points. The composition of the villagers side, containing two ladies players and thirds players was a major factor in Davy Scanlon inserting them – a decision that was to backfire. Tommy Orr hit 11 fours and 4 sixes in an unbeaten even time 130, sharing an opening stand of 131 with Andy Millar (56) as they posted an impressive 247 for 2. Gavin Roulston (43) and Jamie Magee (25) got the chase off to a solid start, but the run out of Irosh – one of four in the innings – dented their hopes of bonus points. Ian Young’s run-a-ball 62 (7 fours) ensured the win, with excellent support given by James McKillop (34), Robert Spence (31), and skipper Scanlon (23). Will it be enough? We will know next Saturday.

Newbuildings bounced back from their cup final disappointment to beat Fox Lodge by 63 runs and in the process give themselves a great opportunity of securing the Premiership title. They piled up 282 for 6 at Ballymagorry, with half centuries for Ryan Hunter (69), skipper Jared Wilson (59*), and Gareth McKeegan (52). Hunter shared a second wicket stand of 78 with opener Leroy McKeegan (40), while Wilson and McKeegan hit a combined 11 sixes in their punishing 5th wicket stand of 75 in seven overs. Fox Lodge made a fist of the chase initially, and with Brian Allen hitting 12 fours in a top-score of 82, there was a bit of deja-vu around. However, Newbuildings gradually took full control with three wickets for Jason Dunn and Gary Mitchell, plus two for Wilson in a win that sees them have one hand on the Premiership trophy.

Ardmore travelled to Coleraine and the return journey will have been a pleasurable one as they edged out the Bannsiders by two runs in a thriller at Sandel Lodge. Stephen Hutchinson (3-32) had the Bleachgreen side in early trouble, but a century stand between Harry Zimmermann (66) and Man-of-the-Match Tyron Koen (50) put them back on track. RachIT Gaur chipped in with 24 and Mark Chambers a run-a-ball 13 in their 183 for 6. Koen then took four quick wickets to leave the hosts on 39 for 4. Varun Chopra (52) and Rory Knox (38) shared a fifth wicket stand of 89 to leave the game in the balance. Caolan Young then broke the stand, Harry Zimmermann (2-30) kept it tight along with Dharm Singh, while Koen claimed his fifth as Ardmore held their nerve in a nail-biter.

Bready are on the brink of retaining their Premiership title after beating title rivals by four wickets at Magheramason. Chasing 133, the home side were wobbling at 93 for 6, but Davy Scanlon again proved the man for the occasion, as he and Ian Young (17*) steered their side over the line. Both attacked the bowling getting the runs needed in just four overs, with Scanlon’s 41 not out taking just 27 balls (6 fours, 1 six). Earlier, it was teenage spinner Gavin Roulston who did the damage, taking four wickets for 28 runs, including top-scorer Ryan Hunter, who made 40. Bready will clinch the title in two weeks’ time providing they beat Eglinton and secure more bonus points than Newbuildings.

Fox Lodge warmed up for the Senior Cup final with a nail-biting one-wicket win at home to Coleraine. The Bannsiders posted 209 with the foundations laid in a third wicket stand of 72 between top-scorer Varun Chopra (56) and in-from opener Scott Campbell (46). There were 20s too for Matthew Hutchinson, Marcus Poskitt, and Archie Block in their 209, while in the bowling, there were two wickets apiece for Ali Doherty, Jamie McIntyre, and Adam Walker. Runs from Dean McCarter (49), Craig Doherty (38), Brian Allen (30), and Jason Milligan (28) looked to have the Foxies well in control at 130 for 3 and 191 for 5, but they wobbled with the finishing line in sight with Stephen Hutchinson taking three wickets. It was left to Adam Walker to hit the winning runs from the first ball of the last over to seal the victory.

Brigade warmed up for Sunday’s Faughan Valley Cup with victory at Eglinton in a high-scoring game. Adam McDaid scored a century against one of his former clubs, making 117 from 101 balls (11 fours, 4 sixes). He shared a third wicket stand of 176 with Kyle Magee, who made 81 from 88 balls (7 fours, 3 sixes). There were late runs too for Graeme McCarter (29) and Andy Britton (22*) as Brigade made 279 for 6 – three wickets for Richard Wylie. Eglinton made a valiant fist of the chase, with skipper Andy Millar leading the way with 95 from just 91 balls (6 fours, 4 sixes), just missing out on a deserved century. He shared a second wicket stand of 102 with Mike Erlank (38), but the huge total proved just beyond the, losing by 32 runs.

Closest game of the day was at the Bleachgreen, where Donemana edged out Ardmore by just two runs. William McClinctock hit 5 sixes and 3 fours in a quickfire 58 from just 36 balls, while openers Jamie Huey (33) and Mohammed Sarwar (28) also made runs. Dhram Singh brought Ardmore back into contention with five wickets as the visitors slipped from 137 for 3 to 163 for 9. The game was halted after a Donemana player collapsed in the changing room, necessitating an ambulance. Fortunately in the Ardmore ranks is newly qualified doctor Ryan Brolly, and paramedic Tim Harris. Graeme Boyd hit what was to be a vital 30 on the resumption to get Donemana to 199. The Ardmore chase was in tatters at 37 for 6, but they rallied with a seventh wicket stand between Conor King (65) and Mark Chambers (25). Dave Bezzant (46*) and Thomas Brolly (20) almost pulled off a dramatic win with a last wicket stand of 62, but Gary McClintock’s fourth wicket earned Doneman victory.

Leaders Newbuildings are playing catch up after another home game fell victim to the weather. Just three overs were possible at Foyleview Arena, with Ardmore reaching 13 for 0 before the players were forced off by rain, never to return despite the best efforts of ground staff. The hosts are due to play Brigade on Sunday in their second chance rearrangement, and will be hoping that the torrential downpours of Saturday night don’t cause too much disruption.

Bready showed they won’t be relinquishing their title without a fight after they won a high scoring encounter at Donemana by 14 runs. Despite the game being reduced to 25 overs per side, there were 536 runs scored in the 50 overs. Bready hit 24 sixes in their 275 for 5, with Irosh hitting 14 of them as well as 7 fours in his 120. He added 151 in 12 overs with David Rankin, whose 60 included 8 fours and 3 sixes. David Scanlon (31*) and Scott Macbeth (26) kept the runs flowing. Andy McBrine (2-16) escaped the carnage. Donemana gave the chase a fair go, hitting 20 sixes of their own, with Levi Dougherty clearing the ropes 8 times in his 77, while Joe Robinson hit 6 sixes and 3 fours in his 56 from 25 balls. Scanlon kept his nerve and his three wickets ensured the 14-run win.

Brigade proved too strong for Coleraine at Beechgrove, winning yet another rain-affected contest by 7 wickets. The Bannsiders were without Scott Campbell, but welcomed back the prodigal son Marcus Poskitt after spells with Bready and Instonians. The left-hander made 19, which was second top score behind Varun Chopra (20) in Coleraine’s modest 110 all out. Ryan Macbeth took four wickets, while there were two each for Jamie Millar and David Barr, the latter getting the prize scalp of Ravi Karunaratne. Barr then hit an unbeaten 44, getting good support from Kyle Magee (40) and Adam McDaid (25) as Brigade eased to a seven-wicket win despite losing Ifty Hussain first ball to Gareth Burns (2-32).

It was the Mike Erlank show at Ardmore, where the Eglinton professional’s unbeaten century led his side to a five-wicket (DLS) win in a rain-affected contest. Ardmore ran up 257 for 5 in their 40 overs, with Dharm Singh nd 4 scoring another century for the Bleachgreen side. He hit 12 fours and 4 sixes in his 119 not out from 114 deliveries, sharing an opening stand of 106 with Tim Harris (39). The adjusted target saw Eglinton chasing 164 in 20 overs, and when Tyron Koen (3-5) reduced them to 17 for 3, it looked a hopeless task. However, Erlank batted superbly, hitting 11 fours and 6 sixes in his unbeaten 114 from just 57 balls, sealing the win with an over to spare. He was well supported by Robbie Millar and Josh Martin in particular, who both played their part as they lifted the Shaun Bradley Memorial Cup.

Champions Bready suffered their first league defeat since pre-Covid as they were edged out by just eight runs in a thriller at Sandel Lodge. Scott Campbell batted through the Coleraine innings, hitting 6 fours in an unbeaten 54. He shared an opening stand of 50 with Matthew Smyth (27), but Bready kept the innings in check, as Irosh took two wickets in their total of 163 for 6. Jamie Magee and Gavin Roulston went cheaply in the chase, but runs for the middle-order of Scott Macbeth (24), David Rankin (26), Irosh (29) and skipper David Scanlon (23) looked to been enough. However, the Bannsiders kept plugging away, and three wickets for skipper Stephen Hutchinson and Ravi Karunaratne sealed the narrow win.

It’s been a great few weeks for Fox Lodge, and the Ballymagorry side were at it again as they thumped Donemana by 107 runs (DLS) at The Holm. The Foxies never looked back after a blistering start by Travis Nicholl who smashed 9 sixes and 4 fours on his way to 74 in 24 balls, dominating an opening stand of 80 in eight overs with Jason Milligan. He and Luke Hayes went in quick succession, but a half century for Milligan (51), plus runs for Dean McCarter (35) and Craig Doherty (22*) took them to 188 for 4 in 27 overs, before the rain arrived. Donemana required a tough 216 in 20 overs on the restart, and never looked like getting them in truth. Mohammed Naveed (32) and skipper William McClintock (230 threw a few token jabs, but they were knocked out by the Fox Lodge attack, making just 108. Jamie McIntyre (3-19) and Jason Milligan (3-3) took three wickets each, while Ali Doherty took two scalps in another convincing display which augurs well ahead of the upcoming Senior Cup final.

Leaders Newbuildings missed out on the chance to open up the gap further as their game with Brigade was abandoned at the halfway stage. Early wickets for Ryan Macbeth (3-37) and Mark Simpson (2-30) had the hosts worried at 33 for 3, and it could have been worse had David Barr been able to cling onto a catch offered by Jared Wilson on 0. The Newbuildings captain then went on to hit 10 fours and 2 sixes in his 70, adding 96 for the fifth wicket with Johnny Thompson (38). David Barr took four wickets to stall the momentum, but Trent McKeegan hit 3 sixes in a quickfire 32 as they ended on 199 for 9 in 38 overs. The weather then closed in with play abandoned shortly after tea. The game will be replayed at a later date.