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Neither Ireland nor New Zealand play too many Test matches and the Irish players don’t even have a domestic red ball structure to fall back on. You may therefore conclude that there hasn’t been any recent first-class cricket from which we might weigh form ahead of this week’s Test match. But you would be wrong.
Last week, Ireland cricket paid tribute to the great decade of the 1980s by putting on a first-class fixture between two teams named after hugely culturally significant events of the era – specifically, the greatest archeological adventure film of all time, and the British coal industry response to proposed pit closures (action which was supported by massive financial contributions from Irish trade unions).
Ireland now and then and maybe again
When England first played Ireland in a Test match four years ago, we had visions of it becoming an annual fixture with a slowly developing history. We’ve followed England cricket long enough to know there was pretty much zero chance that would happen, but the prospect only seemed more remote during the second Test match between the two nations.
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Raiders v Strikers was a hard-fought match that saw the latter emerge victorious, in large part thanks to 120 from Perth-born opener Jake Egan. Will his track record of hitting a century in every single first-class match he ever plays (Raiders v Strikers, May 2026) be enough to earn him a Test debut as Paul Stirling’s replacement? We’ll get our answer shortly.
Ireland v New Zealand starts later today at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast. The good news is that it’s on TNT Sports if you forgot to cancel your subscription after the last cricket you gave a shit about (maybe an Ashes, possibly a World Cup).
Alternatively, it’s worth heading down in person if you’re anywhere nearby because both the weather and the ground look… first-class.