Tector believes in Ireland’s group chance despite tough World Cup opposition

It is a very proud time for Harry Tector as the Delgany native is preparing to lead out his country in this year’s U19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand. Tector and his squad flew over to Auckland a couple of days after Christmas and so far are adapting well to the different conditions that the country provides.

Having initially received a few days to banish any jet-lag present, this young and hungry Irish team got to the business of preparing for this demanding competition. However, the weather has let them down to a certain extent, with both practice games against Auckland ‘A’ falling victim to rain. Therefore, Ireland’s first official warm-up match was on Monday against England, a tough early assignment. England’s quality told in scoring a massive 372-8 in their fifty overs. Despite this, Tector was quick to focus on the positives. “Our fielding was very good yesterday,” said Tector. “We want to be one of the best fielding sides in the tournament”, added the skipper.

Alongside a strong fielding performance, a fiery opening spell from Josh Little paired with a swashbuckling 55 with the bat capped off a fine start to the tour for the Pembroke all-rounder. Although, it was Tector himself who starred with the bat. His determined 104 was a standout performance in his sides relatively heavy defeat. “The guys were a bit green, which was not ideal”, said Tector regarding his teams performance. However the captain admitted that “it was a bit of an eye-opener for some of the lads”, with many of the team not having had any previous World Cup experience. This is something Harry Tector can fall back on, with himself and teammates Josh Little and Varun Chopra all representing the nation at the previous World Cup in Bangladesh.

This experience is something that is vital for the team and Tector expressed this by saying: “The experience has been vital even in the lead up”. The passing on of even “some form of knowledge” is something these two-time squad members can provide. “It has worked out quite well, Josh can talk to the seamers, Varun to the spinners and myself to the batters”, added Tector.

The team can now look forward to another warm-up match against Canada before embarking on the tournament proper against Sri Lanka on Sunday. However, Tector insists that they will concentrate on trying to perfect their own game rather than to focus on the opposition. Due to the group consisting of Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Afghanistan, he confesses that in their preparation for the tournament, there was an emphasis on “particularly spin”. “The pace that spinners bowl at” was something he alluded to as a massive difference between the Asian spinners and those found in Ireland. “Irish spinners are encouraged to toss the ball up and let the batsman come at you” added Tector. However, due to “spin machines” in both the Irish indoor training facility in North County and during their camp in Spanish resort La Manga, the team tried to “emulate that big turn” found within the Asian sides. The Irish team have examined that each of these sides have one player that could be described as a “mystery spinner”, these players need to be watched with caution.

Despite the warm-up loss to the English, Tector and the camp remain extremely positive over their World Cup bid. “I firmly believe that we can get out of this group”, said Tector. His belief in his teammates is unquestionable, although he insisted that the team need to learn to play “smart cricket” and be “intelligent”, especially with ball in hand. Ireland’s effort with the ball was satisfactory against the English, but a better, more disciplined effort will be required come the group stage. “The bowlers need to hit their straps but I believe they will”, said Tector, ensuring that confidence in the attack is still as strong as ever. Tector added that: “we will be looking to peak during these group stage games.”

“Honoured” is one of the many words Tector uses when describing the pride he has for captaining his country. He has the privilege of being the younger brother to Jack, who captained the Irish U19 team in the Bangladesh World Cup two years ago. However, despite the obvious prestige, he feels at home in the role, having captained this same side since their U15 days. “I really know the guys well at this stage, we spend a lot of time together”, said the Captain. He also went on to quash any line of thought that would indicate that there is a north/south divide within the team, they are all a bunch of good friends. Despite being comfortable in the role, Harry Tector takes nothing for granted and is “humbled every time I captain Ireland”. Tector is also quick to add over his immense satisfaction of scoring his ton against the English while wearing a black armband. The armband being in memory of the sudden passing of Northern Cricket Union (NCU) correspondent, David Holmes.

The Irish will be up against it in this World Cup but nothing will detract from their efforts to prove their doubters wrong. Tector talks about the tight-knit group his team has become and it is evident that this “team unity could go a long way to winning games of cricket going forward.”