CIYMS target more cup glory

The Belmont side came out on the winning side of a dramatic Twenty20 Cup final against Waringstown last Friday, with Jason van der Merwe hitting 80 and captain Nigel Jones picking up four wickets as CI won by just one run.

Their attention will now turn to what is widely considered to be the biggest day on the NCU calendar every season, and Jones is no stranger to the occasion having won the Challenge Cup four times.

“The boys have been talking about the Challenge Cup final as a focus this year,” he said.

“This is my fourth in five years and third against Instonians, who have become familiar opposition over the years. The boys are very excited for Friday.”

CIYMS have become accustomed to reaching the latter stages of the majority of cup competitions they enter, and they’ll be hoping to lift their third Challenge Cup in five years.

On the way to the final this season, they navigated past three Premier League teams in the shape of Lisburn, Carrickfergus and CSNI, but Jones has been more focused on each match rather than reflecting on the journey to this point.

“It’s a funny one, and I mean this in the nicest way, but you tend to forget who you played in the round before in the cup because you’re so focused on the day and want to give the best account of yourself on the day.

“You sometimes have to think quite hard who you played last time. It was good to play tough games along the way because it hardens you up a bit, but I must admit that when you’ve played it you’re very much just focused on the next one.

“We’ve been like that this year and we are here now and that’s the main thing.”

CIYMS suffered their first 50-over loss of the season last weekend when they were defeated by Carrick, bringing an end to their 20-match unbeaten league run which spanned back to the start of the 2018 campaign.

Jones believes the defeat came at the perfect time and adds even more motivation for his side heading into Friday.

“If a loss is to come, which it always will - it’s very rare to have a league campaign without getting a loss.

“You try as hard as you can to avoid them but inevitably one comes along. I think the loss was perfect timing.

“If you’re to have a loss, I’d say having one at the start of the season or one before you really need to knuckle down to the end. It has given us a lot of motivation for this weekend.”

Challenge Cup finals are always massive occasions and will typically be the highlight of local players careers, and Jones says moments like Friday are why people participate in the sport.

“Playing in club finals are special times," he said.

“You’re playing with a bunch of mates who are all trying desperately to do well individually, but collectively as well to get some silverware for your club.

“As a club cricketer, what else do you play the game for?”

CIYMS captain Nigel Jones gives us the run down on his team:

Chris Dougherty - ‘Doc’ is the rock in our team with the batter he is. We look to bat around him he is a crucial part for us to keep calm, and we feed off him when he’s batting.

John Matchett - John has all the flair in the world and that’s what we like. At the top of the order, when he gets in he is incredible to watch and is difficult to get out for opposition.

Obus Pienaar - Obus is a special player. What has been great about him this year is that he has been able to get us out of a situation if we are in it. He’s a quality cricketer and will undoubtedly turn up in the final.

Ryan Hunter - ‘Hunts’ has been a bit unlucky this season with not getting much batting, but he’s a quality cricketer. He strikes the ball brilliantly from ball one and that’s something we all look to from him.

Jason van der Merwe - He is an exciting cricketer. I’ve always been a big fan and he knows that. He has played a lot of cricket with me at Civil Service North and CIYMS, and he can be a match winner on his day.

Mark Adair - ‘Sparky’ has had a lot of press recently and he is box office in what he can potentially do. No doubt he will add some real firepower for us on the team-sheet and in the middle batting order.

Jacob Mulder - He has been a quality performer with both bat and ball for us this season. He can turn a match and we will be looking for him to see if he can put a squeeze on the opposition when it comes to the bowling side of things.

James Cameron-Dow - We turn to him straight away when it comes to the spin option and he is always reliable. He is a quality performer.

Allen Coulter - ‘AC’ has proven in recent years what he is capable of with the ball. He takes big and early wickets, and we will be looking for him to do that and put pressure on Instonians.

Ted Britton - Ted has been here before and is a wily campaigner. He is very experienced, is calm under pressure and it’s always nice having that out on the field and in the changing room.

David Robinson - He is the future of CIYMS and he has been important for us throughout the year and has been learning and getting better. He is one to watch in years to come and be a big part of CI.