A Presidential Diary Part 14

November 24th 2013 by Robin Walsh | International

With some of the Ireland supporters © Barry Chambers

My first lesson in journalism as a cub reporter came from the editor of the old Larne Times. “Son” he said, “news is something out of the ordinary. Dog bites man - no story.  Man bites dog - hold the front page.”

And so to the front page of the Gulf Times as from this week : STORMY WEATHER LIKELY TO CONTINUE FOR 2 DAYS.  Out of the ordinary for sure as the fiercest thunder storms people can remember in a very long time brought havoc throughout the Emirates. 

No-one in the Ireland party - or in any of the other 15 for that matter - had expected any of their seven group matches to be abandoned because of rain but that’s the way it was against Italy, resulting in our heroes losing their first point of the tournament.  So five out of six, the only unbeaten side in either group and victory over Hong Kong on Sunday will guarantee a place in the World Twenty20 finals in Bangladesh next spring.

The two victories since my last musings have been pretty relaxed jobs over the United States (75 runs) and Uganda (48 runs) unlike the two and five run wins over Canada and UAE.

There have been two common denominators in all five wins. Whether winning or losing the loss, Ireland have batted first in every game.  And they have fielded the same eleven.

So spare a thought for the three members of the party who have been on the wrong side of the boundary thus far - Andrew McBrine, James Shannon and Stuart Thompson. Yet they are every bit part of the squad, their fetching and carrying done with admirable enthusiasm, their encouragement from the other side of the rope constant.

The three contribute much to a fine team spirit which is plain to see. The players enjoy each other’s company, not surprising since coach Phil Simmons is a strong believer in team bonding.  Many are the competitions on off-duty hours, from ten pin bowling to darts. Incidentally, avoid the arrows if either John Mooney or young McBrine are in the vicinity.

Four of the five games have been played in the Sheikh Zayed Stadium and day by day the support for the Ireland cause from the luxurious leather armchairs of the Chairman’s Box has been increasing. Not a flood, you understand; more a trickle. Twenty or so in all but making a noise of many more.

The wife of the Irish Ambassador to the UAE, Pauline Hennessy, has been to no fewer than four of the games and at the last two she’s been joined by a coterie of ex-pat friends, complete with home made culinary delights.

Pauline is a former PE teacher at Muckross Park College in Donnybrook and, as reported last time, had as one of her pupils Ciara O’Brien, the former Irish hockey and cricket international and sister of Niall and Kevin. The current Irish cricket international, Louise McCarthy, is also an old girl of the school where cricket was helped along when some of Kevin O’Brien’s old school gear was donated by mum Camilla.

And talking of the O’Briens, an old friend of dad Brendan has been pretty vocal in his support from the leather armchair. Paul Barry has been a stalwart of Railway Union for years and grew up with “Ginger”.  For the past couple of years Paul has been in the construction business in Dubai and he and his wife Valerie have been making the 80-mile trip to each game.

One of our small group is now back at his job as general manger of the Connacht Hotel in Galway having enthused his way through four of Ireland’s victories. The larger than life Shay Livingstone is a member of Cork County and vice president of Co Kerry Cricket where, he says, the game “is on the cusp of greatness, on and off the field!” 

Fine company is Shay - son of a former President of the Methodist Church in Ireland -  and not slow to tell a good story against himself. Like his visit with some of the Ireland team to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Centre across the road from our hotel at Yas Island where one of the many high speed attractions is the fastest roller coaster in the world. As Shay tells it, the centre offered him a 50 per cent discount on his entrance fee on the grounds that his generous proportions might not squeeze into a number of the attractions.  It was an offer he declined - as the accompanying picture proves.

All good fun.