Downpatrick's 2nd XI travelled to Moylena for their most recent NCU Junior League 2 fixture last Saturday. Faced with a bowler-friendly wicket, skipper Jeremy McCready won the toss and subsequently opted to bowl.

Openers Freddie Gill and Luca Rea bowled tight opening spells, each gaining a wicket in the process. Veteran Philip Lennon continued his rich vein of bowling form, returning figures of 3-19. High quality bowling, coupled with exemplary fielding saw the hosts reduced to 104-8 with 7 overs remaining. With confidence seemingly sky-high, Downpatrick were literally "stung" with bad luck.

A seemingly inocuous boundary scored by a Muckamore tail-ender resulted in the match ball entering the surrounding forestry. Both Gill and Rea proceeded to search for said ball, and without realising stumbled upon a hornet's nest. The Downpatrick youngsters were severely stung by the disturbed insects. This led to a 30-minute delay to proceedings, which ultimately upset the bowling sides' momentum. Furthermore, the unfortunate Luca Rea was unable to complete his bowling spell as a result of the incident.

Muckamore rallied to a total of 171 all out, with a significant contribution from tail-ender Neil McCullough, scoring 43 off 20 balls. Gareth Rea chipped in with figures of 2-9 to prevent further runs being scored.

Downpatrick's full quota of players were restored for the batting innings. Nevertheless, it was a below par batting performance from the Strangford Road men, as they slumped to 129 all out, resulting in a 42-run defeat. Only Aaron Ferris (42 not out) showed any resistance to the Muckamore bowling attack.

The ludicrous ball-finding incident may have affected Downpatrick's momentum in the match. However it was the disappointing performance with the bat that will frustrate skipper McCready the most. Improvement will be required for next Saturdays local derby against Saintfield at the Demesne.