So frequently finals are a one-sided affair, as was shown on Friday by North County against the Hills. County got off to a flying start. Andre Botha made a stylish 84 hitting ten shots, mostly square of the wicket, for four, and one maximum before being bowled by veteran Matt Dwyer.

Sloppy fielding let the Hills down throughout the game; dropped catches, off-target throwing and misfields were not what they needed when playing against a team that has won this competition every two years since 2001. A few wickets in the middle of County's innings helped the fielding side stem the flow of runs being conceded, but then came the Mooneys. The dam broke, "The Mooney's are running" said former Irish coach Adi Birrell.

It was a master class in running between the wickets, and a flurry of wickets in the last four overs came too late. North County ended up on 258 with eight wickets down, but as Irish coach Phil Simmons said "that score should have been up around the 300 mark with the start they had. We'll see if that's enough".

He didn't have to wait long. After a few overs of short bowling from Reinhardt Strydom, Jeremy Bray tried to work a full one to leg and was bowled. Not long after Botha struck from the other end.

Patrick Byrne was first to lose his wicket to Botha caught at first slip. Next was Ajaz Farooqi, who was bowled first ball. Once a replacement for the shattered off-stump was found, the unhappy task of preventing a hat-trick of top order wickets for Botha fell to Michael O'Herlihy. A low full toss proved too much for him though, and he was trapped leg before wicket.

Barry Archer continued to play his shots and scored consistently. It was to be Botha's day however, and when Archer went aerial off Richie Lawrence's off-spin to cow corner, it was Botha who took a great catch to dismiss the Hills' last real hope of pulling back the game.

The Hills were all out for 154, losing by 105 runs . . . I guess it was enough, Phil. No prizes for guessing who won the man of the match award. With 84 runs, three wickets for 31 from 10 overs, and two catches, Botha (right) was the obvious choice.

The ICC award nominations for 2007 were released earlier this week. This year a new category has been added . . .

Associate ODI Player of the year. Captain and vice-captain, Trent Johnston and Kyle McCallan both received nominations. Joining them on the list are Niall O'Brien, Eoin Morgan, and Andre Botha. Catriona Beggs has been nominated for Ireland in the Women's Cricketer of the Year category. This will be only the second time the award - it was won for the first time in 2006 by Australian captain Karen Rolton.

A relegation battle between the Hills and Railway Union will kick off this weekend with both teams hoping to get their games played and won. Railway have played only two of a possible nine fixtures this season due to rain. The loss of both matches means Railway lie second from bottom, 17 points behind the Hills. Both teams will hope to stay in Section A of the Whitney Moore League, but the odds look in the Hills' favour.

They have a good chance to gain maximum points from YMCA today. The Sandymount team has only managed 37 points from five outings and has not won a game in the league this season. Railway have a potentially tougher game on their hands taking on Merrion at Anglesea road.

With Trent Johnston and Kevin O'Brien back from international duty, Railway will hope to put last week's 235 run loss at the hands of Rush firmly behind them. Both scored runs in the Intercontinental cup win over Bermuda last weekend; Railway will be hoping the two allrounders can turn the club's season around. If Railway can manage a win today, they must still get results in their last two games: Clontarf next weekend, and then the real battle . . . the Hills away.

Though promotion from Section B is all but certain for Leinster on 154 points, the second promotion spot is not yet decided. With Old Belvedere, Phoenix and CYM all within six points of each other, it is all to play for.

Eoin Morgan scored his first County Championship 50 for Middlesex against Nottinghamshire on Friday, making 72 from 198 balls. Morgan is doing Ireland proud in the Sky Sports sixes league, he lies in seventh position with 18 maximums for the season. Ahead of him are names like Mark Ramprakash and in first position, Graeme Hick.