The Cricket thread

[Norf Tyrone]

http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wc2007/engine/current/match/247451.html

My old classmate Peter Gillespie in to bat next.

Geez I sound like Fearon!

[ONeill]

http://www.cricketeurope4.net/IRELAND/index.shtml

96-3 (24)
101-3

Cakewalk.

Put em under pressure

[Gabriel_Hurl]

game over

Ireland win by 7 wickets

[ONeill]

116-3. 7 wicket win. Shockwaves reverberate around the planet.

Men against boys.....

[realredhandfan]

Ole, ole Ok  but could they put 82 thou into croker..

[realredhandfan]

Maybe Im a little out of touch with cricket here but is it true they play Irelands Ball as an anthem..

[Square Ball]

Maybe Im a little out of touch with cricket here but is it true they play Irelands Ball as an anthem..

surely you jest sir

[ONeill]

Ireland are being treated like royalty!

Andrew White - Ireland Cricketer


Andrew White (Myself) and the rest of the Ireland squad arrived in the Caribbean for the World Cup after a nine-hour flight from Gatwick and we were so excited that time seemed to pass quickly.

It helped we flew business class of course, so we didn't mind the stops in Antigua and Barbados before our final destination of Trinidad and Tobago.

But even that luxury was nothing compared to how we were treated when we stepped off the plane...

We were escorted off the runway, to the front of every queue, many of which were lengthy and there was soon the realisation that we were going to be treated like royalty.

We had a police escort at high speed to our hotel. Red traffic lights and roundabouts were no barrier and it meant our 50-minute journey was restricted to 30 minutes. We even had an ambulance behind us, as well as a spare bus in case of a break-down. So there was no half measures involved!

The locals are cricket crazy and they are well aware that the Irish are in town.

There seems to be something about the Irish people because everyone is so keen to tell us about how they have Irish ancestry, and that in turn makes them 100% Irish!

Walking through the shops and eating out has also brought entertaining moments, not least the group of girls who were not allowed into a restaurant to take photos of us unless they were dining...so they went home, changed clothes and returned only for the camera not to work - we felt really sorry for them.

We stopped off at Trinidad's Test match venue, the Queens Park Oval, to see how preparations were coming along for the group matches to be held there.

We were aware that the playing areas were going to be small but Sabina Park in Jamaica where Ireland will play is supposedly smaller than this. Not what I wanted to hear.

We have played one warm-up match so far, against the mighty South Africa, who are ranked number one in one-day cricket.

It was imperative that we hit the ground running to give a good account of ourselves as the cricket world and beyond were watching our every move.

It did not take long for some of our players to gain cult hero status among the Trinidad locals, namely Eoin Morgan and Andre Botha as our ability to go about our business with that promised smile on our faces clicked with the crowd.

What transpired for 90% of the game was outstanding cricket...from Ireland!

We bowled and fielded magnificently as the South African star-studded batting line-up was torn to shreds.

At 91-8 they were almost buried, however Andrew Hall batting at number nine showed, with 60 odd not out, why he is such a dangerous performer.

We were set a target of 193 to win and it was only when we arguably had the game by the 'scruff of the neck' that experience and class pulled South Africa through.

The bowling in the last eight overs was of the highest order by Andrew Hall and Charl Langeveldt. All in all it was a big confidence booster but just a shame we didn't claim a prize scalp in this warm-up fixture. It would certainly have marked our arrival in fine style.

We have our final warm up match versus Canada on Thursday before the travelling Irish support will join us at the opening ceremony in Jamaica on Sunday.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/tms/2007/03/ireland_are_being_treated_like.shtml

[ONeill]

Thursday, 15 March 2007
ICC World Cup
Ireland v Zimbabwe, Jamaica, 14:30

Saturday, 17 March 2007
ICC World Cup
Ireland v Pakistan, Jamaica, 14:30

Friday, 23 March 2007
ICC World Cup
Ireland v West Indies, Jamaica, 14:30

[Gabriel_Hurl]

The Windies aren't playing too well

India underlined their World Cup credentials by skittling West Indies on a seamer-friendly surface in Jamaica.

In the final warm-up game for both sides, the tournament hosts were bowled out for just 85 in just 25.5 overs.

Only skipper Brian Lara (22) and two other batsmen made double figures as India's pacemen ran riot.

[ONeill]

All sing together:

http://cricketworldcup.indya.com/event/officialsong.htm

[youbetterbelieveit]

What the heck is this? the supposed Irish flag?

[ONeill]

Was reading yesterday that Zimbabwe cricket is in complete disarray. Ireland are actually fancied to win that one. Pakistan on St Patrick's Day. Forget Crossmaglen.

[The Real Laoislad]

Just flicked onto Cricket on sky sports for moment this evening not even sure who was playing,But at the bit i watched the camera panned to the crowd where there was this fella wearing a Dublin jersey,he caught a glimpse of himself on the big screen and started grabbing the crest on his jersey and kissing it..While he was doing it there was this huge black fella sitting beside him and he started asking the fella what jersey was it you could see the
enthusiasm in the ublin fellas face as he explained it too him...Very funny to watch

[AZOffaly]

I saw that lad in the Dublin jersey alright. That lad beside him is the next coach of the Ireland Cricket team. He's from the West Indies. 

Good win for the Windies last night, but the Pakistan middle order were a bit timid I thought. they were picking up singles left, right and centre but never really tried for boundaries. There were some good displays in the field from West Indies though, cutting off potential fours. The West Indies were under pressure half way through the Pakistani innings, but Pakistan fell apart from there on in. Once the middle order went for light scoring, it was over.