The 4th XI welcomed a strong Carrick 2s side to Stormont on a scorching Sunday afternoon for cricket. The toss was won by Carrick who unsurprisingly elected to bat on an excellent surface.
CSNI started well with the ball with C.Elliott very unlucky with an LBW claim off the first delivery of the innings. CSNI made the breakthrough after an absolutely sensational catch from veteran R.Morrow at mid off. CSNI continued to bowl nicely up until drinks with J.Gillan the standout of the bowlers, finishing up on 3-29 off 6. In the second half of the innings Carrick started taking control by latching on to some tired deliveries from the CSNI bowling attack in the heat and finished up on 223-5 off their 30 overs.
In reply CSNI opened with R.Morrow and C.Cronin. It was quickly clear though that Carrick had brought a very strong bowling attack and the CSNI batters struggled to get any real partnerships going. The third wicket stand of 36 between the skipper and C.Elliott was as good as CSNI could manage on the day. Once this pair were dismissed wickets started falling quickly. Despite a late partnership of 27 between J.Gillan and E.Wilson, CSNI were all out for 102 with 25.4 overs gone leaving them well short on the day.
A valiant effort from a youthful CSNI side who were down to 10 players due to a very late dropout. Player of the match is Jemma Gillan, who was absolutely sensational with ball, bat and in the field. Well done Jemma!
The 4th XI have the chance to bounce back quickly again with a rearranged fixture against Lisburn at home on Thursday evening, followed by an intermediate cup fixture against the 3rd XI on Saturday!
CSNICC 