The Irish Cricket Podcast

This week sees the start of Ireland's domestic professional competitions for both men and women's sides. But, compared to last year, it's much harder for fans to follow. A sign of the dwindling status of 50-over cricket or a more concerning trend? Do the players themselves truly care? How do we get fans to buy into their regional teams? Contact: theirishcricketpod@gmail.com Sponsored b...

Two Irish players are currently playing T20 cricket in Pakistan, Josh Little and Curtis Campher. Their bowling coach, Cath Dalton, is a former Ireland international herself. Another coach with Irish links, Ian Butler, is working with Islamabad United. Given his work with the Northern Cricket Union, coaching players on the Irish development pathway, and the amount of commentary on how Ireland manag...

Amy Hunter was recently announced as an overseas signing for Surrey CCC. But the county's admin used a tricolour, not the official flag for players representing the entire island of Ireland, in the social media post announcing the signing. Does this innocuous error really matter? Ally McCalmont and Nathan Johns discuss the dwindling role the island's politics plays in cricket. The end of the women...

Ireland women's World Cup qualification campaign went up in smoke inside six days. The Wolves side lost by an innings in their sole red ball game against Afghanistan, while the U19s struggled in Zimbabwe. At senior and junior level, the defeats are piling up for Irish cricket teams. Ally McCalmont and Nathan Johns conduct a postmortem. Where has it all gone wrong? Why is fielding such a concer...

On Wednesday, Ireland's women's team starts their bid to qualify for the ODI World Cup with a clash against Pakistan. Ally McAlmont and Nathan Johns come to you slightly earlier in the week than normal to preview their chances. We also have an exclusive interview with former captain Laura Delany. Have Ireland's chances been overly depleted by injury? Why is this side more comfortable i...

Over the next few weeks, Ireland women, Wolves and U19s all play in an important series of fixtures. With the U19s starting first, Nathan Johns and Ally McAlmont pick through which players are worth watching as those most likely to progress through to international level. We also chat through the upcoming start of the club season and how grounds around the country are getting ready for the summer...

How will the European T20 Premier League actually benefit Irish cricket? Which Irish players will be involved? Who might miss out? Where has Cricket Ireland's club money been spent? What is the best Irish Test XI of all time? Listener questions answered in this week's mailbag/Q&A episode. Get in touch via Twitter @irishcricketpod or email theirishcricketpod@gmail.com.

Last week saw the announcement of Ireland's home summer international schedule. While the cancellation of the Afghanistan series was expected, plenty still pointed to the lack of fixtures not matching increased ICC funding levels. What are Cricket Ireland's priorities, if not hosting matches? Plus, we hear from Abhishek Bachchan, the new investor in the Euro T20 Premier League. Some are st...

Former Ireland wicketkeeper Andy Patterson has endured plenty since retiring from county cricket. Originally from Cliftonville, the one-time Surrey and Sussex man was diagnosed with a condition which threatened to leave him paralysed. After raising over £70,000 with the help of a number of people, Patterson had a successful surgery and is slowly building up his ability to walk again. He joins Ally...

Ireland all-rounder Mark Adair joins Ally McCalmont and Nathan Johns on this week's episode. We debrief the Zimbabwe series, get into Adair's recent form, backyard scraps with his brother as well as a few nerdy deep dives. Nathan and Ally also chat the upcoming Wolves squad and the concerning reliance on overseas imports. Get in touch via Twitter: @nathanrjohns @drawingthetrade Email: theirishcric...

After a rain-interrupted T20 series brings to an end Ireland's tour of Zimbabwe, Ally McAlmont and Nathan Johns look to the future. Tim Tector was the one player to debut across the seven games, who might be next? Did Ireland get their selections right? Who might replace Ed Joyce as women's head coach? Disagree with our calls? Email theirishcricketpod@gmail.com Twitter: @irishcricketpod @n...

Ireland have fallen to Zimbabwe in this week's ODI series. Where did it all go wrong? How to explain the negative batting displays? Did the bowlers still come up trumps? What's going on with Josh Little? Nathan and Ally also react to the surprise news that Ed Joyce will step down as Ireland women head coach after the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

Nathan Johns and Ally McAlmont pick through Ireland's victory over Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. Who impressed with bat and ball, and where does this victory rank in Ireland's red ball success of the past year? Now that Andrew Balbirnie's side has won three Tests on the spin, what is the future of Ireland's participation in the format? How can Ireland find a way to play more Tests? Plus, w...

Ireland men return to action after a four month break this week. Their tour of Zimbabwe starts with a Test match in Bulawayo. With Ireland having returned to red ball in 2023, securing a first win both away and on home soil, the novelty effect is starting to wear off. Couple this with the sparse schedule lack of World Test Championship representation, one question remains: why does Ireland play Te...