Instonians almost certainly set to celebrate Premier League title glory
Instonians will almost certainly celebrate Premier League title glory for the second time in three seasons on Saturday afternoon when Nikolai Smith’s side visit Lisburn.
Heading into the season’s final weekend, Inst hold a four-point advantage over nearest rivals Waringstown and also boast a superior net run-rate, meaning it’ll take a shock set of results to stop the league crown heading back to Shaw’s Bridge.
Instonians have undoubtedly been the Premier League’s most impressive team throughout the campaign, losing only one of 13 matches to date, while their individual stars sit amongst the top performers in both runs and wickets categories.
Only Woodvale’s Ruhan Pretorius (741) has scored more league runs than Ireland international Cade Carmichael (704) with team-mate Shane Dadswell (557) also featuring prominently on the list.
Spinner Cian Robertson is tied with North Down’s Mickey Copeland atop the wicket-taking charts as both have collected 26 while Andrew White has shown no signs of slowing down at the age of 45, picking up 25 scalps so far.
Victory over third-placed Lisburn at Wallace Park would secure Premier League glory with Waringstown looking to apply some pressure with a heavy win at CIYMS.
Greg Thompson’s men, who defeated Instonians in the Challenge Cup final earlier this month, have lost only two of 13 league matches in what has been a competitive title race.
CI still have something to play for as they could yet leapfrog Lisburn into third spot depending on results.
In the other top-six encounter, Muckamore welcome North Down to Moylena.
Templepatrick’s Premier League stay will come to an end after one season with a final home match at The Cloughan against Cliftonville Academy.
The step up from Section One remains a tough challenge with Templepatrick, who won the second-tier title last term, losing 13 of 14 matches in the Premier League, but they’ll be hoping to finish on a high.
Captain Ross Bryans has enjoyed a solid campaign, scoring 324 runs alongside collecting 12 wickets, while Charles Swart (494 runs) registered four half-centuries.
CSNI are guaranteed to finish in seventh after winning four consecutive matches and Stuart Thompson’s side round out their campaign with a home clash against Woodvale.