Waringstown are the first team into Friday’s Challenge Cup Final and, at the start of the biggest month of their season, they were boosted by the return of James McCollum.

The Ireland opener had not played since damaging ligaments during the Lord’s Test match at the start of June but, in his first match back, he top-scored with 61 in yesterday’s Semi-Final win over Civil Service North.

McCollum hit only five boundaries but spent an hour and a half in the middle, facing 71 balls before he was third out with the total at 130 in the 25th over.

Like all the matches across the province, the match was interrupted by rain, and in the end Waringstown faced only 40 overs with Morgan Topping and Greg Thompson’s unbeaten partnership halted at 52 as the Villagers finished on 218 for four.

CSN’s revised target was 253 in just 37 overs, and when they lost their top four batters in the space of five overs with just 65 on the board, the game was all but up. In the end, the innings lasted 29 overs, and the final DLS margin was 97 runs.

Waringstown, who are already in the Irish Cup Final on Saturday week, are due to learn their opponents in the Challenge Cup decider today when Carrickfergus play Lisburn at Middle Road.

With a poor forecast, however, it has already been agreed that if there is no play – or the game is not completed – the teams will try again tomorrow night in a 20-over rearrangement. If that cannot be played, a toss of a coin will decide the Finalists.

It will also be a coin toss at The Lawn today if there is no result in the T20 Final between CIYMS and Waringstown (3pm start) to decide the NCU representatives in the All-Ireland Semi-Finals next Sunday. The winners will host Cork County.