Strabane produced the shock result of the season as they stunned fancied Donemana by 34 runs in a dramatic DLS success that sent the Red Caps soaring to the top of the table alongside fellow Tyrone side Fox Lodge. The hosts were dismissed for just 137 in 42 overs, but the total proved more than enough on a difficult surface. Young Zimbabwean leg-spinner Luke Marrillier was the chief destroyer for Donemana, ripping through the innings with outstanding figures of 5-29. Despite regular wickets, Strabane dug in through Allen Patterson, whose resilient unbeaten 31 anchored the innings, while overseas professional Muhammad Mohsin contributed 24 valuable runs in the middle order. Awais Zafar chipped in with 2-22 to keep the pressure on the home side. Donemana would have expected to chase the modest target comfortably, but Strabane’s bowlers produced a sensational display full of discipline and intensity. The visitors never settled as wickets tumbled steadily throughout the reply. Vadivel Moorthy was the star with the ball, claiming a magnificent 5-32, while Mohsin completed a superb all-round performance by taking 4-14 to rip the heart out of the Donemana batting line-up. Only Zafar, with 23, offered meaningful resistance as Donemana were bowled out for 101 in 34.3 overs, sealing a famous Strabane victory.

Fox Lodge made it two wins from two with a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Coleraine at Ballymagorry after Levi Kerr’s five-wicket haul set up the chase. Coleraine’s innings never recovered from the nightmare start of losing professional Louren Steenkamp first ball to teenager Swarnim Jha. The South African had struck an unbeaten century on Saturday, but cricket proved a great leveller as he departed for a golden duck. Experienced campaigner David Cooke battled hard for 35, while Patrick Carson added 23 and Jacob Logan-Wilson chipped in with 22, but Fox Lodge kept taking wickets at regular intervals. Kerr was the standout performer with superb figures of 5-41, while Aaron Heywood claimed 2-10 and Swarnim Jha picked up 2-30 as Coleraine were dismissed for 121 in 30.5 overs. Fox Lodge suffered a couple of early setbacks in reply with Ali Doherty and Charlie Simpson falling cheaply, but there was never any real alarm thanks to an excellent third-wicket stand of 75 between Gayan Maneeshan and Jason Milligan. Maneeshan dominated the scoring with a fluent 54 from just 42 balls, striking 10 fours and a six, while Milligan finished unbeaten on 37 with five fours and a maximum. Brian Allen added a run-a-ball 16 not out as Fox Lodge eased to 122-3 in 18.4 overs.

No play was possible at The Boathole, and as this was the second opportunity, none of the sides get any points.

Defending champions Brigade overcame tricky batting conditions and a brief mid-innings wobble to secure a four-wicket win over Bready in a rain-reduced 36-over contest. Runs proved hard to come by throughout the day, with only ten fours and one six struck in the entire Bready innings. South African professional Josh van Heerden anchored the effort with a patient 51 from 77 balls, while Kyle Magee contributed 25 in support as Bready closed on 145-5. Ryan Macbeth was the standout bowler, finishing with impressive figures of 2-17 to keep the scoring under control. Brigade’s chase started poorly with David Barr and Adam McDaid both falling early, but former Bready players Gavin Roulston and Scott Macbeth swung the momentum firmly in the visitors’ favour. The pair added 73 for the third wicket, with Roulston compiling a composed 51 featuring three fours and a six. Macbeth was the aggressor, blasting 45 from only 43 deliveries with three fours and three sixes. Although Bready threatened a comeback with a couple of quick wickets, Ifty Hussain’s unbeaten 34 alongside Andy Britton guided Brigade safely home with 15 balls to spare to help ease the pain of their forfeiture last Sunday.

Coleraine eased to victory in a rain-affected clash after South African professional Louren Steenkamp produced a superb unbeaten century to guide the Bannsiders home. Reduced to 36 overs per side, Strabane posted 176 with several batters making starts but none able to push on. Rhys Logue and Aaron Gillespie added 51 for the second wicket, scoring 38 and 31 respectively, before overseas player Mohammed Mohsin injected late momentum with a quickfire 43 from just 33 deliveries, clearing the ropes four times. Coleraine’s bowlers shared the workload impressively, with Gareth Burns, Scott Campbell, Matthew Smyth and Steenkamp all taking two wickets each. Set a revised target of 201, the hosts recovered from two early blows by Andrew Mullen to take control through Steenkamp. He blasted an unbeaten 101 from only 69 balls, striking six fours and seven sixes in a dominant innings. He shared an 80-run stand with Varun Chopra, back from the NCU, before adding an unbroken 66 with Matty Smyth as Coleraine sealed an emphatic win.

Donemana edged a rain-affected contest against St Johnston after surviving a mid-innings collapse to chase down 190 in 26.2 overs. Reduced to 29 overs a side, the Saints made an impressive start through Jack Macbeth and Mark Pollock, who shared an opening stand of 77 in 12 overs. Macbeth led the way with an accomplished 57 from 61 balls, striking seven fours and two sixes, while Pollock added 32. The innings accelerated late on thanks to Irish international Conor Olphert, better known for his seam bowling, who blasted 36 from just 21 deliveries with three fours and three sixes. Alongside David Lapsley’s 32, he added 58 in six overs as the Donegal side posted 185-6. Awais Zafar and Donemana skipper Gary McClintock both claimed two wickets. Donemana’s reply began shakily with Jamie Huey and Zafar dismissed cheaply, but McClintock and Raymond Curry transformed the chase with a stunning 106-run partnership in only 12 overs. McClintock smashed 62 from 48 balls, while Curry hammered 59 from 43 deliveries. Nathan Cole and Scott Devenney sparked panic by reducing Donemana from comfort to chaos as four wickets fell for five runs, but brothers Levi and Ricky-Lee Dougherty steadied nerves with an unbroken stand of 45 to seal victory.

Fox Lodge continued their strong form with a 29-run DLS victory over Newbuildings in a rain-affected 32-over contest. The Foxies built their innings around a superb third-wicket partnership of 119 in just 16 overs between Sri Lankan professional Gayan Maneeshan and Jason Milligan. Maneeshan’s prolific early-season form showed no sign of slowing as he hammered 87 from 70 balls, striking 12 fours and three sixes. Milligan provided excellent support with a powerful 53 that included four boundaries and three maximums, while Charlie Simpson laid the early foundations with 33 featuring five fours. Skipper Ross Hunter picked up two wickets for the hosts. Set a revised target of 214, Newbuildings collapsed to 92-7 despite an explosive 28-ball 49 from Peat Salmon before he was removed by Johnny “Bap” Robinson. Ross Dougherty battled gamely with an unbeaten 78 and shared a half-century stand with Josh Wilson, but the required rate proved beyond them. Levi Kerr claimed three wickets, while teenager Swarnim Jha took two in Fox Lodge’s comfortable win.

THERE was a controversial conclusion to the NW Premiership clash at Beechgrove between defending champions Brigade and expected challengers Newbuildings. Chasing 233, the contest was evenly poised with David Barr’s unbeaten 80 having the hosts 160 for 4 in the 39th over when a shower stopped play. Brigade failed to produce a DLS sheet which calculates revised targets in the event of stoppages, with the umpires automatically awarding the match to Newbuildings. It’s a bitter pill to swallow for Brigade, but Newbuildings will care little as they get their season up and running. Earlier, a century stand between Jason Dunn (66) and Ryan Hunter (61) laid an excellent platform before Jamie Millar’s five-wicket haul saw them falter to 232 for eight.

Aaron Gillespie's brilliant hundred steered Strabane to an emphatic seven wickets win at Bready in the only game to go ahead in the Premiership. He hit 9 fours and eight sixes in his unbeaten 120, sharing a match winning second wicket partnership of 183 in 28 overs with Rhys Logue who proved the perfect foil. Logue's fine 70 included seven fours and one maximum. David Rankin took two wickets to get Bready a bonus point but it was scant consolation on a dominant Strabane display. Earlier, wickets for Mohammed Mohsin (3-50), Manav Aggarwal (2-25) and Vadivel Moorthy (2-35) reduced the hosts to 122 for 7, but David Scanlon, not for the first time, rallied the tail as he thumped five sixes in an unbeaten 44-ball 59, putting on 106 in the last 14 overs with Charlie Downey (27) and Nathan McCombe (19*). A final total of 228 for 8 looked competitive - but it wasn't.