Rush's chances of causing an upset rest with Nazeer

UNQUESTIONABLY the plum fixture of the weekend is at Milverton, where The Hills play Rush to decide who will meet Pembroke in the Conqueror Cup final at the same ground in three weeks' time.

The close geographical proximity of the two clubs is of course, what provides most of the interest but the player who could have the greatest influence on the outcome hails from a little further afield. Rush's professional, Nazeer Shaukat, has made a huge contribution since arriving last season and their chances of causing an upset today rest largely with him.

This is not to belittle the efforts of his team-mates. In the quarter final win over Old Belvedere, Joe Caprani gave the man-of-the-match award to skipper Michael Donnelly for three wickets and a surprisingly patient hall"century. There had been others too who had played their part. Young Conor Armstrong had bowled his 12 overs for just 17 runs, John Scanlan had given the Rush reply a solid base and Dara Armstrong had finished things off in style. Still, Nazeer had been the real difference between the sides, ripping through Old Belvedere's middle-order with his seamers and then taking the attack to their bowlers at an equivalent stage of the Rush innings.

With a maximum allocation of 12 overs per bowler, Rush's main weakness is in their back-up bowling and so the deployment of Nazeer's overs will be crucial. In the last round, he bowled two spells in the middle of the innings to good effect but Donnelly might consider unleashing him at The Hills' young openers today.

The Hills bay not have a strike bowler in this mould but their captain, Matt Dwyer, has been the best bowler in Leinster for the past few seasons. In the two rounds so far, he has taken nine wickets at two runs apiece, conceding less than a run per over and his aggressive approach to bowling informs, everything The Hills do on the pitch.

They also have greater strength in depth than their opponents. The new ball problem has been solved by the emergence of Joseph Clinton, who hits the seam regularly and bowls a steady line, while Declan Moore has the wicket-taking habit at the other end. The finger-spinners, Dwyer and Mark Clinton, then begin the strangulation process in mid-innings, leaving Paul Mooney and Barry Archer to share the other 12 overs between them.

They also bat a little further down than Rush, as was seen in the recent 50 Overs League final, when John Andrews led something of a resurgence in the latter overs. Their superior overall strength, allied to home advantage, makes, them favourites.

Meanwhile, all other Leinster senior clubs are involved in the recently-begun River House League, with Railway Union enjoying pole position at the moment. They are also involved in a local derby today, welcoming Pembroke across from the far side of Park Avenue. Pembroke are again without Stuart McCready because of work commitments.

Carlisle are strengthened by the return of Mark Cohen from Bombay and the arrival of Keith Banks, from Cork, for their meeting with YMCA at Kimmage tomorrow. Former international opener Cohen will be available for half a dozen games, while left-arm seamer Banks has made a commitment to play in Dublin for the remainder of the season, so long as his troublesome hamstring causes no further problems.

In contrast, YM field a weakened side. Angus Dunlop is in Copenhagen with the international squad, while Alan Lewis's shoulder injury prevents him from returning just yet.