Seconds clinch thriller

COLERAINE Seconds have been involved in a number of thrilling finishes over the past couple of seasons.

Having witnessed Bernard Findlay’s heroics in bludgeoning 30 from the final over to seize victory against the Nedd and seeing Creevedonnell skittled from 99-0 to 122 all out, the Coleraine players could be forgiven for thinking that they had seen it all before. However, their latest encounter which featured almost 500 runs, a century and went right down to the final delivery of the match, this perhaps eclipses any of their previous achievements.

Batting first, Coleraine got off to an excellent start in cool and blustery conditions at Burndennett. Coleraine’s openers got off to a positive start taking the score to 25 off the first four overs. Once again Clive Edgar looked in good touch and was unlucky to play a short pitched delivery onto his own stumps.

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Neil Morrison was then joined by Vishal Chopra at the crease and the two proceeded to put on 122 for the second wicket. Chopra recaptured some of his very best form as he looked to dominate the opposition bowlers from the start. He raced to his fifty with a flurry of sweetly timed boundaries either side of the wicket.

At the other end, Neil Morrison was content to work the ball into gaps and rotate the strike. When Morrison fell LBW to Shaker McGettigan for 38 the in-form Peter Wallace sought to up the tempo, taking no time to rack up 22 including two fours and a six before falling to a sharp catch in the deep.

A swirling headwind did not make the task of finding the boundary any easier and as Coleraine sought to accelerate the innings, middle order batsmen Stephen McCartney, Alistair Handforth and Bernard Findlay all sacrificed their wickets going for big shots. Vishal Chopra, however, kept the scoreboard ticking over as Coleraine eyed up their highest score of the season.

After bringing up his century Chopra threw caution to the wind and his outstanding innings came to an end as he looked to hit over the top. His chanceless knock of 114 was warmly applauded by both sets of players and included no less than 15 boundaries.

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While Coleraine will feel that they did not really capitalize on their strong start they would have been more than happy with their total of 249/6 after 40 overs. Conel Pollock Snr (5-25) was the pick of the home attack, profiting from Coleraine’s late push for boundaries.

Burndennett’s openers Conel Pollock Jnr and Jason Gallagher made it clear that they were not prepared to go down without a fight, and got their reply off to a flying start, confidently dispatching any loose bowling to the boundary.

Despite beating the bat on numerous occasions opening bowlers Bernard Findlay and Alistair Handforth could not find a breakthrough.

The ever reliable combination of Nigel Barr and David Doey went some way to restraining the opposition batsmen but with Burndennett managing to find a boundary in every over it looked increasingly like they would knock off the runs at a canter.

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Coleraine did not do themselves any favours in the field as it looked as though a number of dropped catches was going to cost them dear. Doey’s introduction, however, immediately paid dividends, having Jason Gallagher caught by Bernard Findlay at mid wicket for 37. Despite this breakthrough, the new batsman Ernie McGettigan carried on were Gallagher left off and Burndennett once again looked to be back in control.

The momentum swayed again as Doey who got rid of the real dangerman Conel Pollock Jnr for 61. Doey found a top edge as Pollock attempted to sweep him in front of square and the dismissal was completed by an exceptional sprawling catch from Alistair Handforth which proved to be the turning point in the Burndennett innings.

With two fresh batsmen at the crease Coleraine then attempted to contain their opponent’s scoring as the required rate began to rise above a run a ball.

With captain Nigel Barr bowled out, JD Muller, who was making his league debut for the seconds, was introduced into the attack and immediately settled into a probing line and length outside off stump. The South African produced a fine yorker to dismiss Collum Pollock Snr for 16.

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However Burndennett rallied and once again the outcome of game hung in the balance. Alistair Handforth proved very difficult to score off when he returned for a second spell and Stephen McCartney took a sharp catch at point to dismiss Cecil McGettigan and edge Coleraine back in front.

After his fabulous performance with the bat, Vishal Chopra proved to be an unlikely hero with the ball.

He completed a fine all-round display, producing a tight spell of off-spin bowling at a crucial point of the game. Suddenly Burndennett found it hard to find the boundary and this pressure led to another wicket as Chopra clean bowled veteran Brendon McNamee for 31.

The reluctant Neil Morrison then stepped up to bowl the final over with Burndennett needing 18 to win the match. Coleraine’s hopes looked to have faded when Morrison’s first two deliveries were dispatched for two massive sixes by Craig McLaughlin.

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McLaughlin could only find two off the third delivery and two singles from the next two balls meant that the result of the game hinged on the final delivery.

Under intense pressure Morrison produced a full, straight delivery which crammed McLaughlin for room and the Coleraine players could not believe their eyes as he was clean bowled to spark exuberant celebrations.

This epic game was not for the faint-hearted and will live long in club folklore. One man who never doubted the win was Coleraine skipper Nigel Barr. After the game he said: “In all my years of cricket I have never played in a tie, but this is as close as I’ll ever come. Having said that, I never doubted we could do it. Winning the league is never going to be easy but I think we’ve proved today that we have the mark of champions.”

The Seconds will hope for a more straightforward victory as they face the Nedd in the league this Saturday.

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