Leinster clubs top agenda

CRICKET/Local scene: With matches in three major competitions, this will be a busy weekend for the Leinster clubs.

The second round of the Royal Liver Irish Senior Cup continues on Saturday. Four games are on offer in Dublin as Merrion, North County, Rush and Malahide are at home to Pembroke, Donemana, Lisburn and CYM.

The pick of that quartet could be at Balrothery, where the holders, North County, must stave off the challenge of Donemana in their drive to retain the silverware.

On Saturday, the Leinster Senior 50 Overs League - sponsored by Lewis Traub - sees Railway Union and Clontarf in opposition at Park Avenue. Pembroke and Merrion have already qualified for the semi-finals in their respective sections, but neither club is guaranteed first place.

The result of the Railway-Clontarf encounter could decide the other semi-final qualifying place in Section A. Victory for Railway would give them the top spot, but if Clontarf win and then defeat Rush at Castle Avenue on Sunday, they will be the Section A winners.

Victory for North County over YMCA on Sunday will give them first place in Section B, but should they lose and Old Belvedere defeat CYM, there would be a tie, while a rained-off situation would see the outcome decided on run-rate.

The Lewis Traub semi-finals are scheduled for Sunday, June 23rd, but the Leinster Cricket Union has asked the clubs to find an alternate date to accommodate the match between Merrion CC President's X1 and Middlesex CC which will be played at Anglesea Road that Sunday as a fund-raising exercise for the former Merrion player Philip Quinlan, now 28, who suffered a serious accident in 1999 and will require constant care for the rest of his life. Also, South Leinster and North Leinster meet in a women's interpro at College Park on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the West Indies A squad's game against Ireland at Eglinton was washed out on Wednesday, and yesterday's knock-about at Malahide was abandoned, so the last chance is today at Rathmines, although the forecast is bad. Play begins at 11 a.m.