The 2009-10 Intercontinental Cup is just around the corner, and Ireland are this weekend due to announce their squad for their first match against Kenya on July 3. Ahead of that, however, Ireland A are taking on a young Yorkshire team who yesterday compiled an impressive 337, with Chavez Younes top-scoring on 71. Cricket Europe has the full report and a scorecard.

	© Getty Images

Click here for Cricinfo's match report

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of Cricket Ireland, has launched a stinging attack on the ICC and the way it handles cricket below Test level.

The ICC has sunk millions of pounds into Associate and Affiliate cricket, and established several global competitions, but speaking to the Wisden Cricketer, Deutrom was unimpressed.

“What is the point of Associate cricket?” he said. “Ireland has proved itself head and shoulders above the rest of the Associate nations, winning all the available titles in every form of the game – four-day, 50-over and Twenty20. Yet we are bumping up against a glass ceiling. What does the ICC want us to do? How do we get from high-performance programme to the higher echelons of the world game? There is no road map for us. The issue brings to question the whole mission statement of the ICC High Performance programme: what is it preparing teams for?”

Continue reading "'What's the point of Associate cricket?'"

If the rest of the ICC World Twenty20 is going to be as eventful as the warm-up game between Ireland and Netherlands it will be a thrilling tournament. The handful of fans who turned up at Lord's, and there weren't many, were witness to a tie and then a one-over eliminator after which Ireland finally clinched victory by four runs.

Click here for the full report of Ireland and Netherlands' warm-up match.

Ireland coach Phil Simmons has big ambitions for his team at the ICC World Twenty20 and will be disappointed if the side don't make it through to the Super Eight stage of the tournament.

Simmons wants the squad to repeat their success from the 2007 World Cup in West Indies when they reached the last eight after beating Pakistan in the qualifying section and later in the event they also beat Bangladesh.

For the full story click here.

Ireland and New Zealand will gain valuable practice ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 when they contest a warm-up match at Derby on May 27.


Irish Cricket chief executive Warren Deutrom said: “We’re delighted to be preparing for our ICC Twenty20 World Cup campaign against such masterly practitioners of the short-form of the game as New Zealand.

“Of course, the County Ground will be familiar to many of our county-based players as well as to our coach, Phil Simmons, who spent many summers just down the M1 at Leicestershire.

“We hope that the Derbyshire public comes out in droves during the half-term holiday to watch an excellent contest and, of course, Irish fans will be hoping this is the start of another terrific campaign when the team can once again create more than a few upsets and grab the cricket world’s attention.”

New Zealand team manager Dave Currie added: “New Zealand are grateful that Derbyshire has agreed to host this game against Ireland. It is an important part in our preparation for the ICC Twenty20 World Cup and we look forward to an exciting afternoon.”

The match will give the Derbyshire public the opportunity of seeing world international stars such as Brendan McCullum, Jacob Oram, Jessie Ryder and Daniel Vettori in action as well as checking on the progress of an Ireland side who stunned the world in 2007 by qualifying for the Super Eight stage of the World Cup. The match gets underway at 2pm.

The preparations for the ICC World Cup Qualifiers continued in South Africa at the weekend.

Ryan Watson led from the front in Scotland’s win over Westerns in Pretoria, his 73 guiding them home after being set a modest target of 170. “It was a good result and important to get our first go out in the middle,” coach Pete Steindl said. “There are one or two areas that need to be worked on but we also had some good individual performances."

Ireland’s batsmen were in good form as they piled up 309 for 8 against Eastern Province, William Porterfield’s 97 the main innings, but a weakened bowling attack was in less inspired mood as the hosts squeezed to a one-wicket win with two balls in hand.

On Friday, Netherlands beat Boland Academy by 29 runs, but it took a superb sixth-wicket stand of 174 between Mudassar Bukhari and Peter Borren to dig them out of a hole. Bukhari finished on 128 not out from 100 balls, Borren with 74 from 79.

Cricket Ireland has announced ticket details for their ODI clash with England at Stormont on Thursday August 27. Prices remain the same as they were for the previous game in 2006, with an adult ticket costing £35.

Tickets for the game are priced as follows:

Adults = £35
Under 16 with an adult = £10
Under 16 unaccompanied= £15
OAP = £25
Associate/life members = £28 (place orders through Cricket Ireland office)
Family = £90 (2 adults and 2 Under 16)

Club booking = order 10 tickets or more and receive them for £30 each (must be arranged through the Club Secretary and ordered through Sue Wickham sue.wickham@irishcricket.org in the Cricket Ireland office)

Tickets for the game will go on sale at 10am on Monday March 16, and can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.ie or by telephone at the following numbers:

Rep. of Ireland 0818 76 2121

Northern Ireland 0844 277 9950

Cricket Ireland has announced a packed international schedule for 2009, a year in which the team will attempt to qualify for the 2011 World Cup.

Their year begins with a two-week training camp in South Africa on March 14 prior to the World Cup Qualifiers, which take place from April 1 to April 19. Ireland have been placed in a group alongside Scotland, Namibia, Canada, Oman, and the second-placed qualifier from World League Division 3, the tournament in Argentina which kicks off next Saturday. Four teams from each group will then play in a Super 8 series of games, with the top four gaining qualification for the World Cup.

In addition to home and away fixtures in the Friends Provident Trophy, Ireland will be apart of the ICC World Twenty20 in June, followed by the defence of the ICC InterContinental Cup. "We've a chance to showcase Irish cricket again on the world stage, when we take on Bangladesh and India in the World Twenty20," said Phil Simmons, the coach. "I know how much the players are looking forward to face England again, and we've also got some mouth-watering clashes in the Friends Provident Trophy. It'll be a great experience playing under lights at The Rose Bowl - even more so if it's shown live on tv!

"We've come to look upon the Intercontinental Cup as our own, having won it three times on the trot, and the four day format seems to suit our style of play, no matter what the climate or conditions."

Ireland have announced their squad for next year's World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa.

There are no surprises in the 18 names, with the 15 who won the Intercontinental Cup against Namibia in South Africa last month all retaining their places. They are joined by Eoin Morgan, who missed that trip due to injury and Middlesex commitments, Paul Stirling and Reinhardt Strydom.

"I've decided to go with the group of players who have served us so well this past season," the coach Phil Simmons explained. "It's hard to go outside that group, and the fact there's so little cricket for us between then and the qualifiers makes it nearly impossible for anybody else to stake a claim.

Click here for the full story.

In addition to 2009's county fixtures, the ECB also announced that England will meet Ireland in Belfast on August 27.

England first played, and defeated, Ireland in Stormont in 2006, followed by a group match in the 2007 World Cup. Their game on August 27 represents a final warm-up before the first Twenty20 against Australia which precedes seven one-dayers and, in what is a high-profile week for British Associates, Australia take on Scotland the following day.

Ireland's captain William Porterfield was understandably excited. "Obviously it's great to be given the opportunity to test ourselves against some of the best players in the world again," he said. "It's a fixture that all the lads are really looking forward to after the announcement of the game earlier this year. The last time England came to Stormont there was a massive turnout, and hopefully August will be no different, and we hope to put on a real show for them."

The Ireland coach, Phil Simmons, called the contest "almost like a local derby" but remained cautious about Ireland's chances.

"It's another chance for the players to showcase their talents, and hopefully by playing good cricket, we'll get the fans to come and back us not only in this game, but in all our fixtures," he said. "It's fantastic for the players and fans to see some of the real superstars in world cricket playing in Ireland. It'll be a tough test facing players of the calibre of Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff, but as we've shown in the past, we have players who are capable of responding positively to that challenge."

The Ireland allrounder, Andre Botha, has won the inaugural Irish Cricket Writers Club award for 2008.

Botha scored 756 runs at an average of 36, and also took 37 wickets at 17.97. he earned his his 100th cap in the Intercontinental Cup final victory over Namibia, was named in the ICC Associates team-of-the-year, and scored centuries against Kenya and Netherlands this season.

“I’m honoured to be the first recipient of this award. It means a lot to me, and it’s a privilege to be recognised by the Irish media," he said. "They have given the squad unparalleled coverage this past few years, and I know just how much the players appreciate it.”

Ireland's impressive form as an Associate has lifted their hopes of one day qualifying as a Full Member nation. However, the ICC's high performance manager, Richard Done, has issued a warning against complacency while calling for greater consistency if Ireland - and, indeed, other Associate nations - are to challenge the world's elite.

Click here to read the full article, and leave your comments in the form below.

A little more than a week after the postponement of the Champions Trophy, Cricinfo can reveal that the ICC will have to either move or postpone its next high-profile event, the World Cup Qualifiers.

The tournament, which involves the leading Associates, is due to be staged in the UAE next April, with the top four countries winning a place at the 2011 World Cup. The event will also be used to establish which six Associates will be granted one-day status for the next four years.

Read the full story here and leave your comments below.

Ireland's rain-affected match against Canada was frustratingly cut short with no play possible on the fourth and final day, but Ireland have closed the gap on an already tightly packed top four in the Intercontinental Cup table

Click here for more.

	The destroyed outfield at Dungannon Park © Dungannon CC

A club in Ulster have had their entire season wiped out because of a music festival which left their ground at Dungannon Park unusable.

Dungannon CC use a council-owned pitch, and last weekend the local authority agreed to the staging of UTV CountryFest, attracting almost 10,000 spectators. But heavy rain had left the outfield sodden, and lorries used to construct the various stages to host the bands churned up the outfield and left it an unusable mudbath.

The concert organisers did erect fencing round the square, but for access to the stage area they drove over the outfield. “It looks like a ploughed field with an oasis of the square in the middle,” a club official told Cricinfo. “It didn’t take a lot … a car would have done considerable damage but they were using lorries.”

Dungannon now face having to forfeit their remaining home games which will almost certainly mean them being relegated from the Northern Cricket Union league. More worrying is that the outfield is in such a bad state that it needs leveling and then reseeding. Club officials fear that even if this work is undertaken now the ground might still not be ready for the start of next season.

Dungannon is a close-knit club and hope that they will not lose players because of their inability to play at home, but it has tarnished their 60th anniversary celebrations.

Dungannon Council said that all remedial work to the area was part of the contract with the organisers of CountryFest and that they would endeavour "to ensure that this work is carried out as swiftly and efficiently as possible".

The World Twenty20 Qualifers get underway at Belfast tomorrow. Have a read of our preview of this important event.

The ICC and ECB have reaffirmed their support for the mandatory release of Associate players from county cricket to take part in international matches and the priority of FTP events.

Continue reading "Boards reaffirm commitment to Associates"

The ICC has announced a revised schedule for the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in Belfast next month.

The tournament, involving the six leading Associate teams - Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, the Netherlands and Scotland - will now take place from August 2 to 5, with a fourth day included to allow room for a third and fourth-place play-off.

Click here for the full story

Although the ECB has told Cricinfo that no plans have been made to identify the two additional sides joining the 18 first-class counties in the new EPL, Scotland chief executive Roddy Smith had said that he does not expect his side to be one of them.

It is widely believed that one slot will be filled by a team belonging to Allen Stanford, as part of his recent multi-million pound deal with the ECB. Despite media speculation that the other could come from Australia, county sources have indicated to Cricinfo that they believe the second side could come from the IPL for commercial reasons, assuming some deal could be agreed with the BCCI.

"Ourselves and Ireland both applied to the ECB about being involved in the EPL but were unsuccessful in doing so," Smith told The Scotsman. "For us it wasn't to be, which is fair enough. The ECB are under no obligation to do anything for us."

	Eoin Morgan: only one winner when it came to club or country © Getty Images

In his column in the Sunday Tribune this week, Ger Higgins highlighted the problem, laying the blame at the door of the ECB.

"There is ample evidence that Irish cricket is being systematically plundered by English counties," he wrote. "The fact that there are a dozen-odd players attached to counties wouldn't be much of a problem if they played fair about player release. But they don't: already this season Morgan, Niall O'Brien and William Porterfield have "opted" to play for their employers ahead of their country. Even an ICC regulation that players must be released for ODIs failed to prise that trio from the clutches of the counties. And it is a similar story with Scots players.

"It is about time that the ECB showed some leadership and told the counties to allow their Irishmen and Scotsmen to play internationals. A FIFA-style regulation could be introduced where a player who is not released must not play for the club on any of the days of the Irish game."

Continue reading "Only one winner in county v country debate"

Andre Botha reached his 150 for Ireland against Netherlands, on a frustrating second day's play in Rotterdam yesterday. Click here for the brief report.

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Continue reading "Future bright beyond the Test world"

Ireland's squad to face New Zealand and Scotland in the tri-series next week has been further depleted by the withdrawal of Eoin Morgan.

Yesterday Morgan confirmed to Paul Simmons, the Ireland coach, that he had made himself unavailable, prompting Ireland to call up Chris Doughtery, the Bready opening batsman.

Click here for the full story.

Ireland will host the inaugural World Twenty20 Qualifiers between August 2 and 4, with the top six Associates vying for the two places available to them in next year's ICC World Twenty20 in England.

Click here for more and the itinerary.

Much is spoken about the expansion of the international game, and if, as expected, proposals for a significant increase in funding for the Associates is approved when the ICC meets in June, then their progress should be further boosted.

But cash and goodwill can only go so far. What is widely agreed is that to improve, the leading Associates need to play more, and against the elite top ten Full Member countries. And that is where the problems come.

A casual glance at the international schedule will show that the major countries are on an almost constant global tour. In part this is because of the requirements of the Future Tours Programme, but more often than not the large gaps in that schedule are filled with lucrative one-day tours or tournaments.

In an ideal world, there would be time for India or England to undertake ambassadorial tours to Kenya or the Netherlands. But given the choice between a lucrative three-match series against commercially attractive opposition containing star names or a trip to a cricketing outpost in Africa or Europe, it's not a contest.

Click here for the full article

West Indies fast bowler Ravi Rampaul will be Ireland’s overseas professional for the remaining seven games in this season’s Friends Provident Trophy.

There were big wins for West Indies, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Malaysia on the second day of the CLICO International U-15 Championship in the Caribbean. Of the three, only Bangladesh are not guaranteed a semi-final place, meaning the winner of their match against Ireland will progress to the last four.

Click here for the full round-up

John Campbell struck 112 for West Indies Under-15s in the CLICO International Under-15 Championship. Click here for the full report. Scorelines and cards for the other matches can be found below.

West Indies 237 (Campbell 112) beat Bangladesh 200 (Nelson 3-43) by 37 runs
Scorecard

Ireland 111 for 3 (Getkate 31*) beat Kenya 110 (Karim 46, Getkate 4-17) by seven wickets
Scorecard

Pakistan 332 for 5 (Naeem 90) beat Netherlands 102 (Worries 20, Gohar 3-32) by 230 runs
Scorecard

Malaysia 157 for 8 (Goonasagaran 33, Hazim 19*) beat Americas 156 (Joshi 64, Zahid 3-36) by two wickets
Scorecard

Kenya, tipped by some as one of the teams to watch, were easily beaten by an ICC Americas team in the first round of the Clico International Under-15 Championship. Set a modest 134 to win, ICC Americas eased to a six-wicket win with more than 13 overs to spare.

Kenya won the toss but never got their innings going and limped to 133. Bermuda’s Joshua Gilbert, who had taken 2 for 11 with his offspin, played the anchor innings with an unbeaten 43 off 97 balls, twice being dropped, but that was not enough to win him the Man-of-the-Match award which went to Nitisj Kumar who took 3 for 14.

In the day’s other game, Pakistan beat Ireland by eight wickets to book a semi-final against Bangladesh while ICC Americas will play West Indies. Ireland managed only 99 off 43.3 overs, Usman Qadir, the son of the legendary Abdul Qadir, taking 3 for 22, a score Pakistan passed in 20.5 overs.

Trent Johnston, Ireland's captain, has decided to take an indefinite break from international cricket. Johnston, who turns 34 next month, will play no part in Ireland's Friend Provident Trophy games, but hasn't ruled out featuring later in the year in the Intercontinental Cup.

Click here for the full story

As widely expected, the ICC executive board approved proposals to reduce the number of Associates participating at the 2011 World Cup from six to four.

This was done, so the ICC claimed, to reduce the length of an event which many considered to be too bloated in 2007 from 47 days to 38.

The ICC's 10 Full Members automatically qualify and they will be joined by the top four teams from next years World Cup Qualifiers in Dubai. As thing stands, this means that Ireland have to qualify for a tournament they reached the Super Sixes at last time, while Zimbabwe, who are below them in the official ICC One-Day Rankings, do not.

Alternative proposals, including one which would have involved a pre-qualifying tournament featuring the top six Associates as well as Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, were earlier rejected by the ICC's chief executives committee.

ICC Europe has announced the schedule and venues for the ICC European Division 1 Championship to be held in Ireland from the July 25 to 31, 2008.

The 50-over round-robin tournament will see Europe's top six Associate and Affiliate countries - Denmark, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Scotland - fight it out for Europe's top spot. Six cricket grounds will be used to host a total of 15 matches that will see each country come face to face over five days.

Click here for the full story

The newly-constituted Irish board cricket met for the first time this week, and announced that the trading name of Irish Cricket Union Ltd will now be Cricket Ireland.

The board also confirmed that Belfast and Dublin would host the ODI matches against England in 2009 and 2011.

Click here for the full story.

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the Irish Cricket Union, has warned that a failure to qualify for the next World Cup will have a seriously detrimental affect on leading Associates.

"Non-qualification for two out of the existing six ODI countries will have a materially detrimental effect on the profile of the sport in that country, therefore ability to attract finance, therefore ability to attract (and pay for) top teams to visit, therefore ability to tour abroad to play competitive cricket,, therefore ability to move forward on and off the pitch."

Click here for the full interview.

The ICU have announced a 14-man squad for the Under-15 Clico International tournament in West Indies which starts on April 19 and runs for two weeks.

Hugh MacDonnell from Leinster will captain the side and Ben Wylie from Instonians is the vice-captain. There are eight countries participating in firstly a knockout competition, followed by an international championships, which has been split into two groups.

Ireland have been given a tough draw, facing Pakistan in the knockout phase, while they are drawn with West Indies, Bangladesh and Kenya in the group stages.

Squad Hugh Mac Donnell (capt) (Leinster), Ben Wylie (Instonians), Jonathan Andrews (North County), Jordan Coghlan (Clontarf), Eoghan Conway (Rush), George Dockrell (Leinster), Shane Getkate (Malahide), Matthew Gillespie (Donemana), Hugo Mays (Railway Union), Andrew McBrine (Donemana), Graeme McCarter (Killyclooney), Philip Moon (Limavady), Simon Olphert (Eglinton), Jason van der Merwe (Muckamore)

The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

Click here for the full story.

As revealed by Cricinfo last month, the 2011 World Cup will be shortened and the main victims of the change will be the Associate countries who will have their numbers cut from six to four.

"It is a move we both feared and expected and it's not great news for the Associates," Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the Irish Cricket Union, told Cricinfo. "Neither is it a great vote of confidence in the ICC's own High Performance Programme.

Click here to tell us what you think of this? Is it the start of the gradual elimination of smaller countries from the World Cup or a necessary and welcome move?

	Ireland hosted England for the first time in 2006 in Stormont © Getty Images

The Irish Cricket Union (ICU) and the ECB have agreed that Ireland will host England for ODIs in 2009, 2011 and 2013, while also confirming that Ireland will continue to participate in the English domestic structure "for the foreseeable future".

The two governing bodies have also agreed to finalise television contracts for the two countries in order to provide income to support the development of the game and to avoid any scheduling clashes.

"We are absolutely delighted that we have reached an agreement with the ECB moving forward . The ECB have been strong supporters of ours for a number of years and it was a logical step to enter into a more formal agreement," Warren Deutrom, the ICU's chief executive, said. "Having England play in Ireland in 2009, 2011 and 2013 will give the game a huge boost and I am sure our cricketing public will be looking forward to welcoming the English team."

England played Ireland for the first time in 2006, a match England won, in front of a sell-out crowd, rather unconvincingly by 38 runs in Stormont.

"We have a strong relationship with the ICU and we are delighted to have reached this agreement," David Collier, the ECB's chief executive, said. "The ODIs with Ireland will create a lot of interest and the participation in our domestic competitions by the Ireland team will help build on the outstanding achievements of the Ireland team in last year's World Cup."

Ireland are about to confirm that they will play three ODIs in Bangladesh in March, according to a report in the Belfast Telegraph.

The games will come on the tail of Ireland’s Intercontinental Cup match against UAE in Abu Dhabi and while in Bangladesh they will play a four-day match followed by a couple of one-day warm-ups and then the three ODIs.

Barry Chambers

The draw has been made for the 2008 Northern Bank Senior Cup, with Bready taking on NW league champions Brigade at Magheramason. The two sides have been frequent opponents in recent years, with Brigade coming out on top in 2006, thanks to a partnership of 312 between Iftikhar Hussain (204) and Wajahtullah Wasti (115). There were happier fortunes for Bready in 2005, when they skittled Brigade for just 66. Trevor Britton, the captain, took 5 for 18.

Brigade will have a new captain at the helm next year, as Charlie Elder takes the reins from Mark Simpson.

Donemana will also have a new face in charge, with Dwayne McGerrigle replacing Jordan McGonigle who is stepping down after 5 years. They have been handed a tricky opening-round fixture against Fox Lodge. The Ballymagorry side have never reached the final, while McGonigle was captain when Donemana last tasted success in 2004.

The other clash sees Killymallaght on their travels to Strabane. The Tyrone outfit last won the cup way back in 1993. The visitors won't be overawed - they chased 274 earlier this year to win by seven wickets. Their hero on that occasion was Danza Hyatt, who scored an unbeaten 131, and with the Jamaican due to return in 2008, another win could well be possible.

Holders Limavady will begin their defence against Senior Two oppostion, with a home tie against either neighbours Drummond, or Creevedonnell.

Newly promoted Ardmore, who won for the only time in 1994, have home advantage over either Bonds Glen, who have knocked them out twice in recent times, or Burndennett.

2005 winners Glendermott face Sion Mills at The Rectory in a repeat of last year, when the home side chased 324 to win by two wickets. Eglinton, the 2006 winners, face a possible giant-killing act when they appear for the first time in their distinguished history at Killyclooney.

The final tie is an all Senior Two affair, with St Johnston or Coleraine playing the winners of the Nedd versus North Fermanagh game.

The preliminary round takes place on May 10 with the first proper round two weeks later on May 24.


The draw in full

Limavady v Drummond/Creevedonnell
Fox Lodge v Donemana
Ardmore v Bonds Glen/Burndennett
St Johnston/Coleraine v The Nedd/N Fermanagh
Strabane v Killymallaght
Bready v Brigade
Killyclooney v Eglinton
Glendermott v Sion Mills

Tony Cozier is, rightly, one of the most respected journalists in the game. His work to cover and promote cricket in the Caribbean has been unstinting for almost four decades. And yet even the best writers have off days, and his attack on the way that the ICC funds the Intercontinental Cup, the first-class competition for the Associates, is one of those.

Continue reading "ICC must go on funding cricket's expansion"

Tony Cozier, the veteran Caribbean journalist and broadcaster, has launched a scathing attack on the way the ICC funds global cricket outside the Test-playing countries.

Writing in his column which is syndicated throughout the Caribbean, Cozier was angry at the way that established regions, such as West Indies, were not allocated more money instead of so much being spent by the ICC on Associate competitions.

“Certainly there is no ICC venture more illogical or costly than the one dubbed the Inter-Continental Cup,” he wrote. “It is an annual tournament, described by the ICC as its ‘flagship first-class competition’, comprising round-robin, four-day matches between its second tier members, those one below Test status. These are countries where the game has always been based on amateur, weekend, one-day club cricket. They play no four-day domestic matches and almost certainly never will.

“Yet the ICC doles out heaven knows how much cash every year to fly them, and their own entourage of officials, across the world and to house and feed them at venues as scattered as Aberdeen, Dublin, Namibia, Toronto, Sharjah and Windhoek.

“Canada were unable to raise their strongest team for the African tour because many of their best players simply could not get time off from their jobs. The same problem affects others, rendering the tournament even less relevant.”

The ICC maintains that the competition enables players from Associate countries to gain more experience in the longer form of the game.

Ireland are to tour Bangladesh for three one-dayers next March and April.

Ireland, who in addition to beating Pakistan in that memorable World Cup match earlier in the year also defeated Bangladesh, will also play two four-day warm-ups against local teams.

"As we are not yet in the ICC's Future Tours Programme, we have to look for matches against the teams close to us in the ODI rankings, such as Zimbabwe, Kenya, West Indies and Bangladesh," Warren Deutrom, the Ireland Cricket Union's chief executive told Cricket Europe.

The tour gets underway from March 16.

The ICC Europe Cricket Committee (ECC) have confirmed Ireland as the host for next year's European Division One Championship.

They lasted hosted the tournament in 2002 when 12 teams participated. In the past five years, however, six more countries have joined including Europe's four High Performance Program countries: Denmark, Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands. Norway - who won Division Two in 2006 - also join Italy.

The previous championship, hosted by Scotland in 2006, crowned Ireland as the European Champions and 2008's event will also feature three official one-dayers.

Meanwhile it was also confirmed that Guernsey will host the Division Two Championship in August, a six-team tournament which includes France, Germany, Gibraltar and Jersey. The sixth place will be decided later this year when Croatia meet Israel on November 18.

The caribbeancricket.com website has reported that Phil Simmons, the current Ireland coach, is among those who have applied for the vacant West Indies coaching post.

Simmons coached Zimbabwe before taking charge of Ireland five months ago.

Ireland's domination of European youth tournaments continued as they captured the Under-13 title in Denmark this week.

They edged home against Scotland in a thrilling contest by just one wicket in the final decider. They opened the competition with a convincing seven-wicket win over Netherlands thanks to a fine bowling performance from Ross Adair and George McKinley. The pair each picked up three wickets to dismiss Netherlands for 104. Tyrone Kane and Jordan Magee also got among the wickets.

That total proved little obstacle to Ireland as they lost just the three wickets - David Barr top-scoring with 50, while Matthew Clarke, the wicketkeeper, made a composed 20.

Determined batting from Denmark saw them post a respectable 154 for 6 in the next game, with Saad Ahmed (45) and Basit Javed (38) playing neatly. Adair was again their main performer with the ball, taking 3 for 31. Ben Wylie, the captain, secured the win with a chanceless 71 not out.

The deciding fixture with Scotland was going to plan when four wickets from McKinley reduced Scotland to to 80 for 7. But a fine rearguard action from Johnny Perrium (31), and Nicky Farrar (27), saw them score 141 for 9.

In reply Ireland were well placed at 60 for 1, but Andrew Umeed hit back with four wickets to reduce them to 132 for 9. The nervous last pair of George Adair and McKinley got the Irish over the finishing line much to their obvious delight. The Scots will rue the concession of 41 extras - 38 of which were wides, which proved the decisive factor in the outcome.

"I'd like to congratulate the entire squad and support staff on another fantastic achievement. To win the title for an 8th consecutive year is a truly remarkable feat,” Tom Prior, the Irish Cricket Union president said.

Ireland have a chance to complete a second consecutive clean sweep of the European Championships, having won all six tournaments last season, and having won four of the five so far in 2007. The Under-17s are currently in action in Dundee, where they play Scotland in the final fixture on Sunday and Monday in a two-day fixture.

	Jeremy Bray chose not to represent Ireland ... because he can earn more playing club cricket © Getty Images

Continue reading "Bray highlights issues facing Associate players"

Trent Johnston, Ireland's captain, has challenged his young squad to produce the goods against the might of India who they face in a one-dayer on Saturday at Stormont, Belfast.

Only seven members of the squad which beat Pakistan to reach the Super Eights of the World Cup remain, but Johnston insists that - in spite of being in a phase of regeneration, not to mention beset by injuries - they can still challenge India.

Click here to read the full story.

In The Daily Telegraph Tony Francis travels to Ireland to see if the World Cup was a flash in the pan or something more significant. The findings are not that encouraging, but he does flag an interesting point when he talks to some players from Derry. They believe that:-

“The authorities should encourage indigenous cricketers and scale down their dependency on Australians, South Africans and Asians who migrated to Dublin when the economy took off in the Nineties. Unless they can block the drain of talent to England by contracting Ireland's young elite such as Boyd Rankin, Niall O'Brien and Eoin Morgan, who all play county cricket, they'll need more Johnstons and Bothas if they're to have any chance of building on their international success.”

The issue will continue to dominate as a number of players refuse to play for Ireland because of their count commitments.

“The Irish Cricket Union would rather avoid a repeat of the Ed Joyce scenario. While understanding his career decision and wishing him well at Middlesex, most followers were hurt to see an Irishman representing England in the World Cup. It was like watching Roy Keane sing God Save the Queen.”

Peter Gillespie has retired from international cricket after 124 appearances for Ireland.

"I was going to retire after the World Cup but my family persuaded me to stay on,” he told cricketeurope. “I’m glad they did because I wanted to finish on the pitch. I knew the team would be weaker because of retirements, injuries and the three County players in England, so I'm glad I stayed on to give a bit of experience to the new caps."

Eoin Morgan has declared himself unavailable to Ireland, setting a worrying precedent for the future as more Ireland players pledge their future to England © Getty Images

Ireland have announced a severely depleted 13-man squad for their one-dayers against India and South Africa due to get under way on June 23.

Though it is a wonderful opportunity to showcase Ireland's talent, several of their star players are missing through injury. Andre Botha, Dave Langford-Smith and, most disappointingly of all, Boyd Rankin have all failed to recover from their respective injuries in time, though it is expected they will be fit in time for the quadrangular series in July.

The batting also lacks depth and, to compound their troubles, both Jeremy Bray and Eoin Morgan have declared themselves unavailable while their allrounder, Peter Gillespie, has decided to call it a day.

"There's no doubt we have been badly hit by injuries," Phil Simmons, their coach, said. "Langford-Smith has a side injury, and this type of injury can be very slow to heal. Both Andre Botha (elbow injury) and Boyd Rankin (stress fracture of the fibula), are still two or three weeks away from full fitness, but I'm confident all three will be ready for the quadrangular tournament."

Injuries, though unfortunate, are part and parcel of the game but it is Morgan's case which is a greater concern, as more and more Ireland players pledge their future to England.

"Morgan has informed me that he isn't available for the ODIs because of his commitments with Middlesex," Simmons said. "He wants to qualify and play for England, and feels that by obtaining a regular place in the Middlesex team is the best way to achieve that.

"Bray asked not to be considered for selection for these matches and Gillespie has decided to retire from representative cricket.

"The positive aspect to this is that a number of the younger players in the squad will now get a chance to show me what they are capable of," Simmons said. "They have the opportunity to firmly establish themselves in the squad. I'm already starting to look ahead to the World Cup qualifiers in the UAE in 2009, and the composition of the team."

Ireland squad

Trent Johnston (capt), Kenny Carroll, Alex Cusack, Thinus Fourie, Dominick Joyce, Gary Kidd, Kyle McCallan, Kevin O' Brien, Niall O' Brien, William Porterfield, Roger Whelan, Andrew White,Gary Wilson

Ireland aren't having much luck with coaches - the four-wheeled, not two-legged variety. Their vehicle to take them to Grace Road for their Intercontinental Cup final against Canada was delayed...and yesterday, en route to London, their team bus broke down. Fortunately, the local constabulary were nearby.

The Ireland squad arrived in London yesterday afternoon on a police bus, after their coach from Leicester was impounded at a service station just north of the capital.

Instead, they were guided into the London Gateway service station where the police told us they were carrying out a vehicle inspection check. This took place while the squad had an impromptu lunch. However, on their return, they were told the driver was "over his hours" and would not be allowed to drive for another 24 hours and the two rear wheels on the coach were found to be defective.

So much for a day off. Ireland play Surrey in a Friends Provident Cup match at The Oval on Sunday.

If you are in Leicester this week, then head down to Grace Road to catch the Intercontinental Cup final – for free. That’s right. It’s your chance to see Canada (including John Davison) take on the reigning champions and World Cup heroes Ireland. The four-day match kicks off on Tuesday 22.

The inaugural ICC European Twenty20 Challenge competition has been cancelled because three of the countries due to take part have announced they are playing ODIs in Belfast at the same time.

Europe's four ICC Associate Member High-Performance countries - Scotland, Ireland, Netherlands and Denmark - were set to compete in the championship, which was a new addition to the European tournament program for 2007. But Scotland, Ireland and Netherlands have taken on other commitments and that made the tournament impractical.

Richard Holdsworth, the ICC's regional development manager for Europe, said: "The recent announcement of an ODI series between India and South Africa in Belfast is fantastic news for the further promotion of the game in Ireland. It will provide additional world class cricket for the many followers in Ireland, but most importantly both of these ICC Full Members have agreed to play against Ireland.

Continue reading "Inaugural European Twenty20 tournament cancelled"

John Mooney, the Ireland allrounder, has explained his recent withdrawal from the international scene. Mooney's just 25, but he's keen to get his electrical apprenticeship sorted.

He has played 38 times for Ireland, including World Cup appearances against Australia and West Indies in the Caribbean.

"I've been working for Stuart Costello of Stuart Costello Electrical for the past four years. His support for me during that time has been nothing short of exceptional, and has enabled me to play a part in Ireland's great success during that period.

"I've decided now that it's time for me to get my career sorted, and finish my electrical apprenticeship. If I don't do it now, I've a feeling it will drift and never get completed. I'd like to stress that this is my personal decision, and that Stuart would have been happy for me to continue my involvement with the international team.

"I'm committed to getting the apprenticeship finished as quickly as possible, and then I will look forward to resuming my Ireland career, and wearing the green jersey with pride."

Ireland are prepared to risk being thrown out of next season's Friends Provident Trophy by playing ODIs against India and South Africa in June.

The two matches come before the India-South Africa series, which is part of the BCCI's offshore deal with Zee TV, but the games are for the ICU to sell, allowing them a first major inroad into the lucrative TV market.

The Irish Cricket Union and film maker Paul Davey have announced that the principal photography has been completed on a behind the scenes documentary following the Irish team at the World Cup.

“We have enjoyed working with Paul and look forward to seeing the completed work” Irish Cricket Union spokesman Barry Chambers commented. Post production will commence once Davey secures the necessary funding.

For more information about the documentary click here.

The fixtures for the first half of the 2007-08 Intercontinental Cup have been released by the ICC.

The tournament undergoes a change of format once again, with the group stages scrapped and a round-robin system introduced. This will mean that the eight participants play seven matches after the two-year span of the competition.

The event kicks off on June 28 when Canada, who meet Ireland in the final of the 2006-07 tournament at Leicester between May 22 and 25, meet Netherlands in Toronto.

Scotland play back-to-back matches against Ireland and Netherlands at the start of August, while Bermuda will be in Europe to take on the same opponents at the end of the month.

The schedule shows that Bermuda are the busiest country in 2007 with four matches, all away from home. In addition to their European trip, they play Kenya in Nairobi at the start of November and from there go straight to the meet UAE.

Namibia, on the other hand, have only one game inked in, while Kenya have two.

Buoyed by their success in the World Cup, Ireland are preparing to ask the ICC for financial help to take the game forward.

Ireland beat Pakistan to reach the Super Eights, and added a victory over another Test side - Bangladesh - to their list of victims in the second round. Now Warren Deutrom, the Irish Cricket Union's CEO, has said he will be looking to the ICC for support.

Continue reading "Ireland plan to build on their success"

The ICC has announced that the final of the Intercontinental Cup between Canada and Ireland will be held at Grace Road, Leicester between May 22 and 25.

The County Ground at Chelmsford had originally been earmarked to stage the game, but negotiations between Essex and the ICC broke down earlier in the month.

Martin Williamson has written an article which highlights the pressures players for Associate countries face as they compete with the budgets of the Full Members.

In expanding the game, the ICC has, rightly, offered more matches to the Associates. On top of any ODIs they can persuade Full Member countries to give them, as well as tournaments they arrange among themselves, they participate in the Intercontinental Cup, the World Cricket League and the four-yearly ICC Trophy. But that expansion has not taken into account that the players remain amateur.

The flaw in the ICC's plan is that the increased demands have not been backed by additional funding. In the year ending April 30, 2007, Scotland were scheduled to play 46 days of cricket (including warm-ups for tournaments) as a national side; the numbers for the other Associates are similar - Bermuda 45, Canada 43, Ireland 42, Kenya 37, Netherlands 24. That does include time spent preparing, travelling and acclimatising.

The direct funding they receive for that from the ICC amounts to US$215,000, of which $125,000 is not actually handed over to the boards but is retained by the ICC and used to offset other costs, such as paying for coaches and hosting training camps. Compare that with the lowest-ranked Full Member, Zimbabwe, who will receive around US$10 million with no requirement to account for how it is spent. In the same period, they had 37 days cricket scheduled. That really puts into perspective Ireland's achievement in Jamaica.

	Going easy on the minnows? © Getty Images

Robert Craddock, writing in The Australian, thinks he knows why.

It is understood commentators have been told by Global Cricket Corp producers that it frowns on them denigrating the minnows. However, it is deemed acceptable for commentators to call an event a mismatch but not to say some of the nations do not deserve to be in the tournament.

Some commentators who agree with the directive and feel the minnows are a necessary part of global expansion are happy to abide by it. Others, who feel the tournament has been devalued by their presence, would rather speak their mind.

And Craddock concluded by saying that some of the players themselves are aware of the real picture.

The widespread feeling that the minnows are enjoying every moment of their matches against the big boys is wide of the mark. Several Dutch players privately conceded they feel embarrassed by their team's efforts.

Keep your eyes and ears open and see if what you are watching tallies with what you are being told.

The Irish Cricket Union chairman, Murray Power, kindly spoke to Cricinfo recently on the fortunes of his country and the problems Associates face. Have a read of it and leave your comments below.

Scotland have underlined their position at the top of the ICC Associate ODI rankings after good performances in the World Cricket League in Nairobi. Kenya, who beat Scotland in the final, are not included as they are part of the main rankings until 2009.

Scotland beta Netherlands, Canada and Ireland in the tournament, giving them a 69% win rate against other Associates, well clear of Netherlands in second place. Ireland ate third after a disappointing event, Canada are fourth and Bermuda fifth.

The ICC has announced the regional winners of the ICC Development Program Awards 2006 with Guernsey, Jersey and Ireland coming out on top for the European Region.

Continue reading "Guernsey, Jersey and Ireland big winners for Europe"

It won't get many column inches in the mainstream cricket press, but the World Cricket League, which started in Nairobi yesterday and continues into next week, features the best of the rest, the six sides just under the ten Test-playing countries. For the two finalists, the rewards are bountiful - a place among the big boys in the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa this September, along with $250,000. For countries used to surviving on annual handouts from the ICC of less than $200,000, that's big money.

Continue reading "A long way from home"

Martin Williamson looks at what message is being sent to the Associates by the ICC deciding to appoint Darrell Hair to officiate in their tournament ... and do the ICC even know where they stand.

Continue reading "Mixed messages from Dubai"

The announcement that the ICC is to expand the World Cricket League (WCL) to five divisions is great news for European Cricket.

The expansion will see a total of seven Associates and Affiliates from the Europe Region compete in the WCL. New additions Norway and Jersey are set to join the European top five teams who already compete in the competition.

Continue reading "High hopes for European Cricket"

The European Cricket Council's European Cricket Championships, which are being held in Scotland, are the first to be organised under the auspices of the International Cricket Council’s World Cricket League.

The tournament will feature 13 countries in two divisions playing 30 matches in seven days at 12 west of Scotland grounds, starting on Thursday (August 3).

The Division 1 sides - Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Denmark and Italy - will play a round-robin tournament, from which there is no relegation. The three matches involving the first three named teams are deemed by the International Cricket Council as official One-Day Internationals, and will be played at Ayr Cricket Club, where ground facilities have been upgraded with support from South Ayrshire Council.

Scotland’s other two matches will be played at New Anniesland (against Denmark) and Hamilton Crescent (against Italy).

Division 2 consists of eight teams - France, Germany, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Hellas (Greece), Israel, Jersey and Norway - who will play in two initial pools of four, followed by crossover semi-finals and four ranking finals - and one team will be promoted to the first division in two years’ time. The facilities at all grounds have been equipped with additional weather protection and other enhancements, thanks to a range of local authority grants and commercial support.

A huge bonus is available for the Division 2 teams, with the winners not only promoted to the European Division 1 in 2008, but also a place in the new ICC World Cricket League Division 5 in 2007-08. This team will receive $20,000 towards preparation of that event, the venue of which is still to be decided.

The rush to grab tickets for England's encounter against Ireland has started, with £100,000 raised from ticket sales - even before they've gone on sale. 2,900 tickets remain to be sold, priced between £20 and £35 pounds.

The capacity at Stormont on Tuesday June 13 will be 6,200, the biggest audience for a cricket match in Ireland, and there will also be room for 800 schoolchildren and a hospitality tent accommodating a further 500.

More information can be found at Newsletter and a previous article on Cricinfo.

Ireland have secured the services of Saqlain Mushtaq, the former Pakistan offspinner, for their C&G Trophy campaign this season.

As reported by the BBC:

Ireland have agreed to take part in the five-team EurAsia Cricket Series in the United Arab Emirates next month.

The other teams taking part in the March 9-20 tournament in Abu Dhabi are India A, Pakistan A, an England A side and the hosts UAE.

Ireland play England in a one-dayer on June 13 which is expected to be a sell-out, as reported by us yesterday.

Ireland are considering offering key players semi-professional contracts as they gear up for a key 15 months which culminates in the 2007 World Cup. As Adrian Birrell, the South African-born coach, explained:

We'll never be able to afford to contract 15 players but we might be able compensate players in some way for their time and their commitment and that's going to be massive in the next few years.

Top Irish batsman Jeremy Bray has signed for Eglinton. Chairman Jon Pierce said:

Jeremy's signing is an important one for us to demonstrate that we are serious about our cricket here and he will be a great role model. We have a new professional next summer who comes with great coaching credentials and that is the direction we want to be taking as a club.