The recent debate about whether or not the current Irish Cricket captain should be sub-fielding for England in a recent ODI against New Zealand is related back to the status held by the Ireland cricket team. Is Ireland a country or a county?

It seems to be an obvious question, one which any primary school child could answer. But we have seen in the past that when cricket is the subject, nothing is straightforward.

When Ireland competed in the Friends Provident Trophy they competed against different county teams. Ireland competed under the eligibility requirements applied to a County Cricket club. Ireland are allowed an overseas player. They competed against Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Northamptonshire. Those counties were also allowed an overseas player. The majority of the Irish team were from Ireland, eligible to play for Ireland and indeed by any definition Irish. The majority of the Leicestershire side were not from Leicestershire. The majority of the Warwickshire side were not from Warwickshire, nor the Northamptonshire side from Northamptonshire. Indeed it was marginal in some cases if the majority of the sides faced were even English.

The reason is down to a Slovakian handball player called Maros Kolpak who has never even seen a game of cricket. Kolpak went to the European Court in a bid to play in Germany without being classed as a foreigner, claiming restraint of trade. Slovakia is not part of the European Union but it has an associate agreement with the EU, as has South Africa and several Caribbean islands. Kolpak won his case and as a result, county cricket clubs could sign any number of South Africans or West Indians with a work permit.

There is no reason that I can see that Ireland can't use some of the overseas players that are based here to compete in the FP trophy if they come from a country with a relevant agreement. The difficulty is getting the clubs to release those players.

For the record Ireland played a Warwickshire side with 4 South Africans; Monde Zondeki, Jonathan Trott, Anthony Botha and Neil Carter. They faced a Leicestershire side with 6 South Africans; Hylton Ackerman, Boeta Dippenaar, Claude Henderson, Garnett Kruger, Jacques Du Toit and Dillon Du Preez as well as Australian Jim Allenby. They faced a Northamptonshire team with 4 South Africans in Johannes van der Wath, Lance Klusener, Nicky Boje, and Andrew Hall as well as Australian Riki Wessels. For good measure they also had Ireland player Niall O'Brien just to rub salt in the wounds.

I think from now on Ireland should play all of their FP Trophy matches in Donemana. Never mind the fact that the hospitality is superb and the crowds and entertainment value would be tremendous, it would be our own subtle protest. If we can't compete on a level playing field then we won't play on a level playing field!

The presence of Niall O'Brien is significant. Because Ireland are playing in the tournament as a county they are really no different than any other club team. Were Ireland playing in an ODI against New Zealand then O'Brien would be playing for Ireland the country. Indeed the strangest thing about the FP Trophy matches is that Gary Wilson and William Porterfield played for Ireland when contracted to other teams in the competition. They were then able to return and play for Surrey and Gloucestershire respectively. In any other sport they would be cup tied but not cricket.

In some ways it shows that selecting William Porterfield as captain, when someone else has first call on him, was a strange decision. Having already seen Ed Joyce turning out against us in the World Cup and Niall O'Brien in the FP trophy, it is no wonder that many local cricket followers are getting twitchy over the increasing numbers of local players in the First Class game. But it demonstrates in a real way that Ireland is making progress as a cricket nation. The fact that the counties are looking towards our talented youngsters is testimony to that.

Many years ago Dermot Monteith went to Middlesex as cover for Emburey and Edmonds on England duty. Ed Joyce went a step further and not only trail-blazed a professional career but went to the top by representing England in ODI cricket. Then our own players went further by competing and then actually beating full member ODI teams. The bar has been raised. Expectations are higher. I believe only one thing now stops Ireland making the quantum leap to the top table!!cash.

Professional contracts enable our very best players to commit fully to the game, to improve without the distractions that come with amateur status. We need to stop thinking of why we can't compete financially and start asking how we can compete financially. Money attracts money. Believe me when I say, that the sums of money generated by the IPL and Texan billionaire Sir. Allen Stanford will have made many rich people sit up and take notice.

Is it so far fetched to imagine that someone with financial resources cannot take a punt on Ireland? We are the 9th best One Day International team in the world in the second biggest global sport. The island is stable politically. The country is vibrant financially. Our citizens are welcomed all over the world. As the World Cup showed we know how to party. A competitive Ireland cricket team would be a tremendous addition to the cricket world.

If a millionaire were able to buy stock in Cricket Ireland, in the medium term he really could have a fabulous investment. Sometimes I worry that our administrators are so busy with their heads stuck down the side of the sofa looking for a couple of euros they can't see the van Gogh above the fireplace.

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Footnote: I was very sorry to hear of the passing of John Wright. He was a first class administrator and a real wily operator in the corridors of power. He was also a very nice man. In his own way John Wright was a trail-blazer, a man who gave Ireland a voice in the ICC when our cricket performances didn't merit it. He has left his own legacy to Irish cricket. Looking at the picture of John Wright with Bob Kerr at the World Cup it is hard to take in they are no longer with us. We owe it to them to build on their foundations.