‘Keep it going’ says Captain

Lisburn are at home again tomorrow (Saturday), where they will face Ballymena, who currently lie second from bottom.

Simpson, however, is confident his side can repeat last week’s feat as they aim to be in with a shot of the Premier League title.

“I was absolutely delighted,” said Simspon. “After saying we were underdogs last week, we were really chuffed to win.

“They were at full strength, with a very strong team out. It was a brilliant performance from the whole team,” he said.

“We had some individuals who also produced fantastic performances,” Simpson added. “Craig Ervine got runs and took wickets and one of our young guys, Adam Berry, who has played for Ireland at U19 level, delivered for us. We always knew he had talent and had potential. It was always a matter of when Adam would produce the goods, and I hope this is the start of him having the confidence to go on and help us produce wins, scoring and making contributions.

“One thing about us is that we are a very close knit group of players. We are always fighting for the score, fighting together for the cause. We fight for the result as a collective and we work together as a team.”

Play was interrupted by rain at a vital stage of the CI innings, however, Lisburn had already done more than enough to take the points.

Simpson commented: “We haven’t had a massive share of luck, and usually with a rain break it favours the team batting second, but we had bowled very well and were getting early wickets.

“We always back ourselves to beat anybody and we have a knack of beating the top sides. We just have to be more consistent at that level.

“We are at home again against Ballymena this weekend, who are second from bottom. They have only won once this season, but they have the potential to beat anybody on their day. They also have a pro who was performing in the Indian Premier League this year, that’s a massive multi million pound tournament, and we have to make sure we don’t let him produce the game he’s capable of, because he could kill a game off on his own if you let him.

“We have to keep the momentum going. After winning on Saturday we are now joint second, because the league is so tight. If you produce two wins in a row it can put you in contention. We have to give ourselves the opportunity to be in with a chance of that title, and if not, then we can make it difficult for anyone else to win it.

“I hope for a big team performance from everyone and that the younger guys can produce the performances I know they are capable of.”