CRICKET: Three way tie at the top of Premier League

The race for honours at the top of the Long's SuperValu Premier Division is set to go beyond the last week of the season after the North West Union announced on Saturday that they have already been forced to schedule rain-affected games into September.
Decker Curry.Decker Curry.
Decker Curry.

Donemana are the worst hit so far, their postponement at home to Brigade at the weekend means that they now have three replays to negotiate on top of the three scheduled games still to come.

Those two clubs’ inactivity this time meant an opportunity for the rest of the title chasers to push on, none more so than Ardmore who went to bottom side Drummond with a two point advantage at the top of the table.

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And yet despite another fantastic effort from Decker Curry, the leaders were to come up agonisingly short at the Roe Valley venue, handing the title initiative back to their fellow contenders.

The result of course meant a significant boost for Drummond themselves and heaped the pressure back on Strabane in the relegation scrap ahead of the crucial clash between the pair next weekend.

The Red Caps had the chance to negate Drummond’s win when they entertained Eglinton but on a day of thrilling finishes, the 2014 champions came up just eight runs short.

That win catapulted the Villagers into the title mix alongside Coleraine who came from behind to beat Bready.

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Davy Scanlon’s men aren’t entirely safe just yet but they might even have got into the title picture as well within a win over the Bannsiders, however a horrible batting collapse put paid to any chance of that.

There were just a couple of games in the Championship and it turned into a poor weekend for Burndennett who lost to Killyclooney on Saturday and Fox Lodge on Sunday - the second of those sending the Ballymagorry side four points clear in the race for promotion.

Brian Allen’s men were scheduled to play Newbuildings on Saturday as well however that one was postponed as Dale Culbert’s team was in action away at Laois in the semi-final of the National Cup.

In yet another nervy finish the North West side came up just inches short, beaten by one wicket in the final over despite a century from their professional, Peat Salmon.

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Sunday’s final home Interprovincial match of the summer for the North West Warriors didn’t even get started as a wet outfield led to an early abandonment of their one-day match against the Northern Knights.