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Andy are Ireland not producing better youngsters than ever before?? Ireland our competing in international cricket, the game is moving forward!

Also Northern Ireland football team have recently rewritten their history books in recent years narrowly missing out on world cup, how is this demise of international football in NI, Republic also unlucky to miss out!

Andy - reality wind up man - kennedy
The "reality" is that Ireland are playing competitive matches in the world cup - not against the bloody free forresters and the old wellingtonians a state to which you would have us regress.
Nile Smith Muckamore

Paul Flemming,
Paul, don't you realise,the CIYMS South African 'Pro' is not really injured???
He's away over to his home land; to get on the English test team.
They need all the help they can get!!!

"Tee,hee,hee'eeeeeee!!!!!!!

I have just read on their website that CIYMS star South African pro for the new season has pulled out due to an injury.

They could be in trouble!

Ah dear,dear; looks like the poor English Contingent fella has spoke to soon. England 180 all out! He,he & he!!

Good to see that several of the Irish International players are getting full-time contracts, a positive step in the right direction and should encourage more local talent to come through the system.
That's how I see it anyway!

don't have green-tinted glasses but I certainly have "reality" glasses. I simply ask how the imported players have improved our game at local level? England cricket has followed the example of English soccer where imported players have meant that there is little scope for local youngsters to be "scouted". The demise of the international sides in Northern Ireland, the Republic, Scotland & Wales are as a result of the "big" sides going for the quick fix rather than local development. A similar situation exists in County Cricket - Colpeck players etc., so local English cricketers aren't getting the same opportunity to play at the highest level and develop to Test standards. Of course the change of emphasis in schools away from competitive team games is another contributory factor. And I'm not going to start on the millions that have gone out of the country over the past 30 years of the professional "coach" in Irish cricket.

So much for the South African contingent within the England team. At least the English (born) players are showing some grit this morning in Jo'burg.
Eddy - used this argument before with Andy, but he can't see past his green tinted glasses

Welcome to "Eddie" from "Antrim". Perhaps you haven't been on the site too long or you would be well appraised of my views on overseas players, etc.

born in SA and regards himself as English - maybe there#s too much competition for the SA squad!

Am i missing something here Andy??

AC Botha , JP Bray , DT Johnston, D Langford-Smith , MJ Fourie , Thinus Fourie, AR Cusack , R Strydom , P Connell , PS Eaglestone , AD Poynter , RM West.

12 "foreign players" who have represented Ireland in one day cricket in the last 4 years! I dont think we are in any position to pass judgement on England!

"Miller said yesterday: "We have got to get to the stage where we are very careful on that [the number of South Africans in the England team], and we will be. I wouldn't say he's the last but we will monitor it. But Craig has passed all the criteria required to be an English cricketer. He has proved his worth, that's why he's there. He has developed his game, he's a strong character so he fits all the bills from an England point of view. South Africa talked to him and he said 'I'm English, I want to play for England'."
Andy, don't nit-pick when quoting. Above is the full comment by Miller. Particularlly pleasing is the last sentence.

at the risk of being labelled racist (again!) and to clarify - the player to whom I referred in an earlier posting is Craig Kieswetter and my reading of Miller's comments was "Craig might not be the last but we'll monitor it". (Daily Mail 11/1). As he has a South African father and a Scottish mother I'm not totally convinced that, in common with the southern players such as Morgan & O'Brien, he would regard England as the "mother country". Or maybe the Scots that I have met over the years are in a minority!

Andy,

Is this new player playing in the current series? I doubt he will ever play for England. Geoff Millar was talking yesterday and may look at the qualification policy. It's great that so many want to represent the mother nation......

interesting to see that England have found another foreign player - maybe this Test series should be advertised as "South Africa 1st XI - v - South Africa 2nd XI"!

Jason/Stevie.
Thanks,for what some may describe as 'smaller clubs',Millpark & Dundrum have certainly produced some powerful cricketers over the years and continue to do so. The more recent score books I'm working on,don't make for great reading either for Victoria against your clubs!

We'll have to do something about that,starting this season with our second team encounters!!!!