The recent announcement of the ICC that players should be released for International games is welcome. The ICC and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) reaffirmed their support for the mandatory release of top Associate players from county cricket duty to take part in international matches and the priority of FTP events.

The media release went on to say:

The ICC and its Members have been disappointed and concerned that the Player Release Policy has thus far not always been able to achieve its express aim of ensuring that Associates are at full strength for vital international matches. This has been unfortunate. The idea that an Associate Member is not at full strength when playing an ODI against a Full Member that is at full strength does not match the ICC's development objectives and is obviously not good for the development of the game.

Anyone who was in Aberdeen for the Scotland and New Zealand games will agree with that.

However like many other announcements it expresses aspiration rather than having any real significance. The point is that cricketers from Ireland trying to make their way in the sport professionally know that their financial future lies not with Ireland but with their county or dare I say it, another country. Although their performances with Ireland brought them to the attention of the professional set up in England it is performances with their county that will determine if they have a future in the game. Therefore Irish players in England are left in a dreadful position having to choose between showing loyalty to the country of their birth or showing loyalty to their employer and ultimately their career. Under those circumstances the cricketer will choose the path that gives him ultimate security. He will play in the county team rather than give someone his place. Without any real sanctions nothing will change as the pressure is subtly applied to the player by not guaranteeing his place on his return.

ECB Chairman Giles Clarke said: 'The ECB recognizes that nation versus nation is the lifeblood of cricket and its integrity must be protected at all costs!!!!Whilst we recognize the individual choice of players we will continue to proactively remind counties of their mandatory obligations in this regard and this will help to ensure our strong sport grows ever stronger,' he added.

Overseas players in county cricket usually are from the southern hemisphere and have no such conflict. Nor do the English players. The ECB heavily subsidise County cricket and have first demand on eligible players. The rest of a county cricket club's revenue is largely derived from one day cricket. The thousands of people turning up in a summer evening for a twenty/twenty match at £20(+) a head put them out of sight of Cricket Ireland.

If Ireland is to move forward then we need somehow to reward players for their commitment. We need to be realistic to what can be achieved. Nowadays county cricket provides a most comfortable wage, and consequently it is an attractive career option. For a capped cricketer will rarely earn less than £30,000 and there are a good number of senior players commanding salaries of £80,000 and above. Bumper tax-free benefits lurk ahead for those who stay loyal enough. That money is out of Cricket Ireland's league.

To be honest Cricket Ireland need a huge pat on the back for the efforts over the last few years. The achievements of the national team, the success of our youth teams, the professional nature of the set up and the quality of the individuals involved have convinced me that Ireland is now the premier Associate member. But you cannot sit still. Scotland will be desperate to make up lost ground and Kenya and Namibia are moving forward at pace.

Cricket Ireland is at a crossroads. It has genuinely gone as far down the road it can go without a dramatic change. In other words it is still an amateur sport. Without the financial backing of either the ECB or the ICC or both Ireland can do little. The increase in funding from the ICC is most welcome but will not make the dramatic difference the $11M Zimbabwe picked up at the last World Cup could have made. Since then Ireland have valiantly played their part in the cricket world on a shoestring budget and it is highly likely Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF have pocketed the ICC cash.

The ECB should realise that although Ireland are a long way yet from Test cricket they could be good enough to compete as a full member in ODI cricket quite quickly. A friend whose vote could be counted on in the corridors of power in the ICC would be a great asset to England. At the moment only Test nations have full voting rights. But it is ODI cricket that provides the bulk of the revenue so that could change. The Asian block, along with Zimbabwe hold sway at the moment. But if you think that is of concern there could be an African block made up of South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Namibia in the future to match India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. England, Australia, New Zealand, West Indies and dare I say it Ireland would give some parity to the proceedings. Cricket is now big business, politics and international sport rolled into one.

The most important thing that Ireland can do in the meantime is to keep producing performances. That way the cricketers will have proved they have the right to be at the top table. That will tick the first box for the ICC.

The quality and integrity of our administrators should tick the second box for the ICC.

The last box is whether or not it is commercially viable. That's where you and I come in. We need to get out of our armchairs and support the Ireland team with bums on seats at the matches especially the 20/20 qualifying tournament where the ICC will be represented.

I believe that if Ireland can produce good performances, good crowds and good weather then the ICC will be in a good mood. And when you are in a good mood you are much more receptive to new suggestions. Personally I would draw up a fully-costed business plan outlining the Cricket Ireland youth development, its elite performance program, and the level we would expect Ireland to compete, if we had a budget of $11M over 4 years. I wonder how it would compare to Cricket Zimbabwes plan?