Cricket Ireland has launched a new Emerging Talent competition – including a new logo – to complement the men’s Inter-Provincial Series. The aim is to strengthen the talent pathway and provide competitive cricket for the next generation of cricketers with senior inter-provincial and international aspirations.
The inaugural Cricket Ireland Future Series will start on 28 June 2021 and feature five teams – one from each of the four Provincial Unions and an Ireland Under-19s team. The series will mainly (but not exclusively) feature players under 25 years of age.
The competition will involve 20 matches, with each team playing eight games – four 45-over matches and four T20 matches. Each team will play the other teams once in each format.
“The Cricket Ireland Future Series is a very exciting venture and gives us a real chance to focus on the development of players at an age where we believe we can make a real difference,” said Albert van der Merwe, National Talent Pathway Manager.
“We have designed the competition to provide a substantive opportunity for each Provincial Union to plan, identify and expose their next generation of players to high quality, competitive cricket in an effort to make our domestic game even stronger.”
“I see the new competition as a key component in the Cricket Ireland pathway in terms of player development and identification. For the last few years we have played ad hoc, bilateral fixtures – and whilst there was value from these, the new competition creates a formal structure around matches for players aspiring to play senior inter-provincial cricket over the next number of years.”
“The Cricket Ireland Future Series is a big step forward in creating a formalised talent pathway competition, and will be of great benefit to succession planning at both provincial and national levels,” added Richard Holdsworth, High Performance Director for Cricket Ireland.
“We will use the competition to track players’ development and measure the depth coming through each province. The inclusion of the Ireland Under-19s team will also work as an opportunity to pit our youth players against stronger opposition, and act as an opportunity to show provincial and national selectors their skills and abilities, as well as prepare them for the ICC Under-19s World Cup Qualifier.”
“Albie and the provincial coaches have undertaken stellar work on pulling this competition together, and with a dedicated new brand it gives the Future Series a sense of identity. I look forward to seeing our most talented young players competing in the Series and giving an opportunity for those players to shine on a national stage.”
Cricket Ireland are one of more than 250+ members of the Sport for Business network of sporting and business organisations working together across a number of key areas.
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