Surprisingly it was the first century by a Gloucestershire batsman this season. The former Donemana player has come a long way since he hit 57 for the County Tyrone cricket kingpins in their 2001 North-West senior cup final win over Limavady. William was only seventeen at the time, but he has always shown the maturity of a born leader, and now firmly entrenched in the Irish position, we sometimes forget he is still only 26.
Over the past two months Irish cricket has received multiple plaudits on the back of Eoin Morgan’s fine achievements for England, but whether we appreciate it or not, Eoin is ploughing his own field and none of his achievements will do Ireland any good in the future. Yes, it’s nice to hear Ireland being praised as the breeding ground where England’s latest cricket star originated, but everything Eoin does from now on will only help himself, and his adopted country. Good luck to him, as he has taken his chances with aplomb.
Ireland’s cricket future depends on players like William Porterfield, who have committed to the Ireland cause, and every run they score in county cricket will help build their experience and expertise, and that can only be good for Ireland when they return to the national team. The more professional cricket our best players play the better, and William’s career-best 175 will be an inspiration to his Irish colleagues plying their trade in county cricket. Ed Joyce set the ball rolling in the modern era, but his defection to England robbed us of his talent at a crucial time, and when he was later discarded, it highlighted the stupidity of the qualification rules as he then had to serve a ‘sentence’ before he can return to the Ireland ranks. Joyce was as good as Morgan from all accounts, but he never got the chances Eoin has been given, so his career needed a switch of direction back to his roots.
Hopefully his vast experience in the county game will bring him back a better player and a role model for aspiring young Ireland players.
Niall O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, and Gary Wilson are all professionals in the county game, and ultimately Ireland will gain a lot of benefit if more players play professionally and we keep them. It is said that the strength of the great West Indies teams of the past was built on the experience their top players gained in county cricket, and their demise can be traced back to the time when counties were restricted in their overseas players. It would be a great compliment to Irish cricket if we ever got to that stage, but who knows, as our youth programme continues to produce exceptional young players like George Dockrell, Paul Stirling and James Shannon.
Porterfield’s status has risen immensely since he was elevated to the captaincy, and those people who thought the job would be handed back to former captain Trent Johnston when he made his Ireland comeback underestimated the calibre of Porterfield, and the respect he has from the team management and the players. This guy is a class act. He is a strong character, and although not flamboyant, he gets his views across in his own way and with conviction. He can adapt to all types of cricket, and he is a superb fielder. His focus and discipline epitomise the modern cricketer, and hopefully this superb innings will lead to greater things for both Gloucestershire and Ireland.
And we certainly don’t want the English commentators touting him as a possible partner for Andrew Strauss!
Clarence Hiles
Editor
