THE Irish squad returned from South Africa on Tuesday with the enormous ICC Trophy tucked under Roy Torrens ample oxter. The gorgeous golden orb is valued at €25,000 but sponsors RSA were happy to confirm that its insurance was well covered.
It completes a glorious set of trophies in the possession of CricketIreland. But while every single gong on offer in associate cricket now resides on this island, there is a definite feeling that we want more, and we want it soon.
There is deep frustration among players and officials with the International Cricket Council's attitude to Ireland. ICC has refused to give Ireland any targets as to how they could attain permanent status at the game's top table.
Former captain Kyle McCallan explained: 'We wanted to win that trophy simply because we want to be able to push the ICC now. There's actually nothing more that we can possibly do on the field, and they've got to recognise that. We've been more successful than most of the teams that have been given further progress or opportunities, and we'll be looking for that."
As the overwhelmingly pre-eminent associate, Ireland is now in the position Sri Lanka was in the 1970s, and Zimbabwe in the 1980s. Both those countries were accepted into test cricket, as was Bangladesh in 2000 despite a patchy record at associate level and one dodgy win over Pakistan.
And while no-one has any illusions that Ireland would find it extremely difficult to step up to the top level – as did almost all test sides on elevation – the fact that there has been no indication of what Ireland might aspire to has provoked anger.
CricketIreland CEO Warren Deutrom spoke with feeling at the welcoming home at Dublin Airport. He outlined the ways that the squad had completely asserted their superiority over their fellow asso ciates, and identified the difference in approach that set Ireland apart: 'It's the one per centers. Two weeks acclimatisation in the high veldt; detailed video analysis; a world-class fielding coach; strength and conditioning; a ban on alcohol and fizzy drinks; the contribution of the players who aren't in the first XI for a match; the team huddle before a stint in the field.'
Deutrom had strong words for ICC: 'We look above us, beyond the glass ceiling that separates the associate world from the test world. We look to understand from ICC what is expected of us next, what should be our next goal. We have delivered everything expected of us within our membership tier, on the field and off it, and we trust the ICC to outline how we can move forwards – and upwards.
'We hope we can look forward to a day when our very best players can pursue the summit of their ambitions not under the flag of a foreign Test country, but with the green shamrock of Ireland on their chest. It might sound like an unreachable dream but, I would remind you, so did beating Pakistan and Bangladesh and getting through to the Super 8s of a World Cup.'
And while there is much to make one cautious about Deutrom's dream of test status, it is fantastic that such a visionary is at the helm at this time. The galling thing is that it would take a tiny amount of money – a single figure percentage of what has been wasted on Bermuda and Zimbabwe for a start – to put Ireland in that league. That ICC cannot even consider providing a framework for Ireland to make that step belies its claim to be a progressive leader of a world game.
If one man had to be singled out to sum up the spirit of this Irish squad it would be Johnny Mooney. The North County man returned from South Africa having played just three of the ten games, a rate only slightly better than the two games out of nine he played at the 2007 World Cup. But while he has yet to hammer down a starting place, there is no better team player around.
"It was a brilliant trip," he told Inside Edge. "Especially when we came back with the trophy. I was obviously disappointed not to play in every game but it shows the strength in our team.
Mooney marked out team spirit as a crucial factor. "There is a great togetherness about us that we didn't see in the other sides. That carries you through the bad times. You see it with every bowling change. Everyone is confident that this is the right thing to do and so we have great faith in each other."
Fielding is another area where the team has made giant strides, with widespread praise for the former West Indies fielding coach Julian Fontaine who helped prepare the team. "We were a class above all the other sides in the field. We must have got 12 or 13 run-outs."
The much-discussed alcohol ban was no hardship for Mooney, who points out that almost all the squad are now professional or semi-pro players. "We're all big lads," he said, "it was a small thing to put up with for what we achieved in the end."
Mooney goes straight into the team today for the opening Friends Provident game at Stormont. He is sure to be one of Phil Simmons' first 11 names for the next few weeks, and a few years yet too.
Heineken Cup mania has hit cricket too, with the 2 May final at Croke Park forcing some clubs to rearrange games. Trinity's DGM league game at home to CYM will now start at 10am. A good toss to win, perhaps?