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| Cricket in Ireland | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Ireland compete against Essex at Castle Avenue | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Governing body | Cricket Ireland |
| National team(s) | Ireland (men's) Ireland (women's) |
Club competitions | |
International competitions | |
Cricket in Ireland is governed byCricket Ireland, which maintains theIreland men's andwomen's cricket teams. Like several other sports inIreland, cricket is organised on anAll-Ireland basis. Following the team's success in the2007 Cricket World Cup, the sport's popularity increased in Ireland.[1] The country was, until 2017, anassociate member of the International Cricket Council and played in tournaments like theWorld Cricket League andICC Intercontinental Cup, which are qualifying rounds for associate teams to theCricket World Cup and theICC World Twenty20. Ireland qualified for the2009 ICC World Twenty20, the2011 Cricket World Cup and2010 ICC World Twenty20. In the 2011 World Cup, they beatEngland in the group matches.
In 2017, domestic cricket in Ireland was recognised asfirst-class cricket and, in recognition of their progress as a cricketing nation, Ireland was granted Full Member (and henceTest) status for the men's national side. Ireland played their first men's Test match againstPakistan in May 2018, losing by 5 wickets. Ireland's women played a Test match prior to full membership. This was in 2000, againstPakistan women.
Cricket has been played in Ireland since at least the 17th century, when Oliver Cromwell issued an edict banning it.[2] It is believed to have been introduced to Ireland by the British, although recent research claims that Irish troops in the British Army shaped the game's evolution, by introducing terms and gameplay from the old Irish game of Catty.[3] The earliest known reference to a match in Ireland is the August 1792 fixture inDublin between the British garrison and an "All-Ireland" team,[4] the garrison team winning by aninnings.[5]
Cricket was being played in the towns ofKilkenny andBallinasloe in the early 19th century, with the Ballinasloe club established in 1825. In the 1830s, the game began to drop down; many of the clubs which were founded in the following 30 years are still in existence today.[6] The first Irish national team played in 1855 against an English national team inDublin.[7] In the 1850s, the EnglishmanCharles Lawrence was responsible for developing the game in Ireland through his coaching.[6] In the 1850s and 1860s, Ireland was visited for the first time by touring professional teams. Ireland's first match againstMarylebone Cricket Club was in 1858.[6] The game increased in popularity until the early 1880s.
Two changes in the late 1800s-early 1900s damaged the popularity of cricket and cricketers in Ireland. The first was the outbreak of theLand War in the late 1800s resulting from the mistreatment of tenants by absentee landlords when landlord and tenant were alienated. The second was a ban placed in 1901 on the playing of "foreign" games by theGaelic Athletic Association, which was not lifted until 1970.[6] Anyone playing foreign games such as cricket would be banned from the extremely popular Irish games ofhurling andGaelic football as it was popularly referred to as a 'garrison game' enjoyed primarily by the occupying British forces and the landowning Protestant oligarchy they protected.[8]
Irish teams toured Canada and the United States in 1879, 1888, 1892, and 1909. On top of this, Ireland defeated a touring South African side in 1904.[6] Their first match withfirst-class status was played on 19 May 1902 against aLondon County side includingW.G. Grace. The Irish, captained bySir Tim O'Brien, lost convincingly by238 runs.[9]
The 2005ICC Trophy was hosted by Ireland. After Ireland's successes at the2007 Cricket World Cup, cricket experienced a popularity boom in Ireland, with participation reaching record levels.[10]
According to the Cricket Ireland strategic plan for 2021–2023,[11] 52,000 people in Ireland play, officiate or administer cricket or are involved in school programmes. This is compared to 13,000 people in 2007.
There are more than 120 active cricket clubs on the island. Women and girls make up 19% of participation numbers. Immigration to Ireland has boosted participation with 70% of people involved throughLeinster being of non-Irish origin.
27,000 children participated in school programs in 2019.
TheIrish Cricket Union (ICU) – the governing body of Irish cricket – was officially founded in 1923, although its predecessor had been active since 1890.[6]
In 2007, it announced that it would undergo major structural changes in order to bring it in-line with the main cricket governing bodies.[12]
In 2008, the Irish Cricket Union was formally dissolved and replaced with Irish Cricket Union Limited,[13] which would go by the trading name ofCricket Ireland.[14] A new governance structure was implemented, with the Board of Directors comprising a chair, six nominees from four Provincial Unions and five independent directors. All Board members are non-executive and act in a voluntary capacity.[15]
Warren Deutrom has served as CEO since 2006.[16]
TheIreland cricket team is thecricket team representingall Ireland (i.e., both theRepublic of Ireland andNorthern Ireland). They compete in Test, ODI and T20I competitions in international cricket. Ireland was granted ODI status after finishing second in the2005 ICC Trophy, while also qualifying for the2007 Cricket World Cup, the first time they had done so. They were awarded Test status in 2017.[17]
In the period before and after obtaining ODI status, Ireland lost a number of their most talented players to England. This was due to Ireland's lack of professional wages and an inability to play Test cricket. Since gaining Full Member status, a senior player has not left the play elsewhere internationally.
Dublin-bornbatsmanEd Joyce had played with some success as part of Ireland'sICC Trophy team and became a key member of theSussex side in England'sCounty Championship; he also previously captained Middlesex in the 2004 season. Joyce decided to declare to forEngland in 2005 in order to try to play Test cricket,[18] he was called up in 2006 and made his ODI debut against Ireland.[19] Joyce never played a Test for England and returned to play for Ireland in 2011. He retired in 2018 and is now Head Coach of theIreland Women's team.[18][20]
Talented batsmanEoin Morgan who earlier represented Ireland in tournaments including theICC World Cup and theICC World Twenty20 qualified and played for England, making no secret of his desire to play Test cricket. He played 16 Tests for England and captained the ODI team to victory in the2019 Cricket World Cup.[21]
Former Ireland seamerBoyd Rankin also joined England in 2013 before returning to play for Ireland until retiring in 2021.[22]
After the World Cup, Irish cricket experienced a dip in success with poor results in the 2007 Friends Provident Trophy as many players were unavailable. The Irish cricket team was an amateur side at the time and most of the players had full-time jobs with commitments conflicting with cricket.[23] After the World Cup there were delays in paying the players which resulted in them ignoring the press in protest to their treatment after an Intercontinental Cup match against Kenya.[23]
Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the ICU, had stated that it wanted to "seek actively to place Irish players into top-level cricket, by developing relationships with [especially] county cricket which will incorporate appropriate player release for Irish international duty, and feeder systems for developing Irish cricketers".[12] The reorganised ICU's sought to make closer links with the English counties, encourage the development of age group cricket, and to introduce a professional element into the Irish game. They also want to take the Irish cricket team on winter tours more often.[12] In an attempt to prevent the game losing players to counties or other commitments such as jobs, it was suggested that central contracts should be introduced.[24]
Ireland, along with Scotland, has at times played in competitions forEnglish county cricket sides, including theBenson & Hedges Cup and theFriends Provident Trophy (previously the C&G Trophy). Since there is no nationality restriction in county cricket, non-Irish players have competed for Ireland in these matches. For example,Hansie Cronje of South Africa competed for Ireland in the 1997 Benson & Hedges Cup,[25] and more recently New ZealanderJesse Ryder played for Ireland in 2007.[26] In 2004 Ireland beatSurrey by five wickets in the C&G Trophy.[27]
For the 2006 season, the C&G Trophy was reorganised to include a round-robin stage instead of being entirely knock-out. Whereas Ireland had only one match guaranteed in the tournament before, they now had more fixtures against English county sides. For the 2006 tournament, they were bolstered by the signings ofSaqlain Mushtaq andShahid Afridi, the two overseas players they were allowed when competing in English domestic competitions. Ireland recorded one win in their nine matches.[28] Their victory was overGloucestershire on 30 April by 47 runs.[29]
The C&G Trophy changed its name to Friends Provident Trophy for the 2007 season. In 2007, Ireland played in the Friends Provident Trophy against nine English county sides. Of those nine matches, they lost six and the remaining three matches were abandoned due to rain. They finished bottom in the South Conference of the trophy.[30] For the 2008 season, the round-robin section of the trophy was changed from two divisions to three; Ireland was in the newly formed Midlands Division. In 2008, Ireland played eight games in the Midlands Division, winning one match with one no result and six losses. They finished fifth in the division which had five teams.[31] Ireland's four wicket victory overWarwickshire on 16 May was Ireland's first win in the competition against a county side for two years.[32] Captain William Porterfield anchored the innings with 69 runs.[33]
The Inter-Provincial Series ('Interpros') was introduced for the first time in 2013 as part of Cricket Ireland's strategy to attain Test status by 2020. It featured three teams representing their respective provincial unions:Leinster Lightning,North West Warriors,Northern Knights.Munster Reds were added to the T20 competition in 2017[34] and then the List A competition in 2021.[35] Connacht Cricket Union do not take any part in these competitions.[36]
The multi-day competition is called theInter-Provincial Championship. In October 2016, the International Cricket Council agreed to award the competitionfirst-class status as part of efforts to elevate Ireland to becoming a Full Member.[37] The competition was not held in 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic and has yet to return.[38] Leinster Lightning have been the most successful team in the competition, winning six of the seven seasons.[39]
The one-day competition is called theInter-Provincial Cup. At the same time that the ICC awarded first-class status to the Inter-Provincial Championship,List A status was also conferred on the Inter-Provincial Cup.[37] Leinster Lightning have been the most successful team in the competition, winning eight of the ten seasons.[39]
The 20 over competition is called theInter-Provincial Trophy. The competition also received officialTwenty20 status in October 2016. Leinster Lightning have been the most successful team in the competition, winning seven of the ten seasons.[39]
In a Cricket Ireland press release, High Performance Director Richard Holdsworth explained the process for the provinces to award contracts for the Interpros.[36] He said that each team would be allowed to award sixteen contracts. These contracts would not involve regular salaries for reasons of budget, but they would include match fees and help with expenses such as travel and gym memberships.
To be eligible for a contract, a player must either be an Irish national or play for an Irish club in one of the five cricketing provinces. Holdsworth said that the Interpros should provide a direct pathway into the Ireland side, but that retired internationals likeNigel Jones andAlbert van der Merwe would still be eligible. Teams are allowed to play up to two non-Irish nationals in the Championship matches.
Each province would first have the opportunity to sign players from their own province, such as aLeinster-based player playing forLeinster, but players would also be able to play for non-local provinces if they preferred. He also said that provinces would be allowed to bring in players from outside their squads who are excelling in club cricket.
Club cricket is organised on a provincial basis, with each of four major provinces –Leinster,Munster,Northern andNorth West – organising its own senior leagues and cups.
Clubs within theConnacht Cricket Union, the smallest and newest provincial union, generally compete in Munster Union competition.
Since 1982, Cricket Ireland has organised the 50-overIrish Senior Cup on anall-Ireland basis. The competition has held a similar format since its inception – featuring 32 teams: ten clubs from each ofLeinster, theNorth andNorth West, and two fromMunster, producing a five-round knockout. At times entries have exceeded 32 teams, requiring the need for preliminary games.[40]
Waringstown are the most successful team in the competition's history win six titles.[41]CIYMS are the current holders, they beatLisburn in the 2022 final.[42]
The All-Ireland T20 Cup is the national club T20 competition in Ireland - bringing together the best T20 teams in club cricket across the provinces.
The men's competition began in 2017 and features the winner of each of the four Provincial Unions’ T20 club competition playing off in four team knockout format. The semi-finals and the final are played on the same day.[43]CIYMS are the current holders of the Cup having beatenCork Harlequins in the 2022 final.[44]
The women's tournament began in 2021 and features a preliminary final between the winner of theNCU's andNWCU's T20 club competition to play in the final against the winner ofLeinster's T20 club competition.[43]Merrion beatCIYMS in the 2022 final and are the current holders of the Cup.[45]
In 2019,Cricket Ireland,Cricket Scotland and theRoyal Dutch Cricket Association announced the creation of aTwenty20 league competition, theEuro T20 Slam, involving two new city-based franchises per nation. In April of that year, it was confirmed that the as yet unnamed Irish franchises would be based in Dublin and Belfast.[46]
The first season of the Twenty20 franchise-basedleague was scheduled to start in August 2019 but was postponed due to unforeseen reasons.[47] Cricket Ireland again announced postponement of the competition in 2021.[48]
There are four international cricket venues in Ireland that have been approved by the International Cricket Council to host international cricket.
| Ground | Club | City | Provincial Union | Capacity | First Used | Test | ODI | T20I |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castle Avenue | Clontarf Cricket Club | Dublin | Leinster Cricket Union | 3,200 | 1999 | — | 25[49] | 3[50] |
| Stormont | C.S.N.I. | Belfast | Northern Cricket Union | 7,000 | 2006 | — | 34[51] | 27[52] |
| The Village | Malahide Cricket Club | Malahide | Leinster Cricket Union | 11,500 | 2013 | 1[53] | 22[54] | 16[55] |
| Bready | Bready Cricket Club | Magheramason | North West Cricket Union | 3,000 | 2015 | — | 1[56] | 12[57] |
Cricket Ireland is also committed to the creation of a fifth international ground inAbbotstown, WestDublin.[58] In January 2023, Cricket Ireland was given the go ahead byMinister for SportCatherine Martin to proceed with development in Abbotstown on theSport Ireland campus. CEO Warren Deutrom said he expected work on pitches to begin in 2023 in order to be ready to co-host the 2030T20 World Cup alongside England andScotland.[59]
There is currently no international ground in either of the Munster or Connacht Cricket Union areas.
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