Ireland’s historic cricket success this week has led to a surge of interest in the sport in Cork. The David versus Goliath match at Bangalore on Wednesday saw Ireland emerge victorious against England, with a scoreline of 327-8. And Cork County Cricket Club is already witnessing the effects of the achievement, as parents rush to register their children at the club.
“This win has allowed plenty of interest in the game from young people,” said club member, Matt Reed. “The response has been brilliant, with people already enquiring about sending their children to cricket.“
Club members celebrated Ireland’s victory in the ICC Cricket World Cup at their Mardyke clubhouse on Wednesday, watching the highlights and sending messages of congratulations to the Irish players.
Mr. Reed added that batsman and wicket-keeper, Niall O’Brien, brother to Kevin O’Brien, who now holds the world record for the fastest ever century scored at a World Cup, has travelled to Cork on a number of occasions for training sessions. “We had a really good crowd of senior players and young players watching the game and they are all obviously very proud. I think everyone is on a high after it all and the guys here, who would know a lot of the players like Niall, were sending them messages on Facebook.”
Mr Reed said that such a win bolsters the profile of cricket in Ireland, which “always has been a minority sport”.“In the past cricket has had a lot of prejudice, being played by a certain demographic,” explained Mr Reed. “We have always had foreigners from the Southern hemisphere joining the squad but we really want local kids from the area to join, as the success of the club depends on them.”
Mr Reed added that Ireland’s World Cup future looks bright with just four teams – India, the West Indies, South Africa and the Netherlands – left to play. A win will be necessary in at least two of these games
for the team to be in with a chance of qualifying.
Cork will carry on supporting the green army, opening the bar to members only on Sunday morning, March 6th for the match against India in Bangalore.
courtesy: TheCorkNews
