This is going to be my last World Cup. It will be emotional but it’s been my job for a long time and I’m proud to have played for Ireland for 13 years. Every time I step on to the field I go out to enjoy the game. It’s never any different. My focus for this campaign is to be Ireland’s leading run scorer and bring us to the knock out stages.
– Ireland’s Niall O’Brien dreaming of crowd’s roar at #CWC15
– #CWC15: Virat Kohli stars as India ease to Pakistan win
– VIDEO: #CWC15 – Highlights as South Africa scrape by Zimbabwe
First up is the West Indies in Nelson. Despite having world class players at their disposal, the Windies are in a spot of turmoil. They have talented side, but there is something not clicking with them at the moment especially with the in-fighting between the players and board. I think we can be a more difficult team than the West Indies. There’s no point thinking we can hit the ball bigger than Chris Gayle or bowl faster than Kemar Roach but I believe we can be a smarter team. This all comes down to doing the simple things effectively – focus from ball to ball, take the catches, and put the balls in the right places.
Not long until our first game.Excited to be at my third World Cup.should be a smashing game against West Indies and boys are ready #cwc2015
— Niall John O Brien (@niallnobiobrien) February 15, 2015
I think a lot of people are expecting big things from us. We expect it ourselves. We have a huge chance of progressing to the knock out stages, so the ‘underdog’ is something we are not reading into. We’re just going out to play our best cricket. We hope to beat Zimbabwe and UAE, and then we have a game against Pakistan which people believe we can turn over.
It’s a delight to play in Australia and New Zealand but for our supporters, it’s a logistical nightmare. How can they afford to travel around five different cities to see our matches? It costs an average fan an absolute fortune. It’s a shame. But most teams are in the same position so I can’t grumble too much. Deep down, I know everywhere we go around New Zealand or Australia we will receive great support from the Irish. That’s all we can ask for.
This is my seventh time touring Australia. I first came here as a young 18-year-old after completing my studies in Dublin. I coached kids, had the banter, and learned the Aussie way of life. It’s somewhere I’d love to potentially move post-career. It’s sporting mad and the people are really behind the Irish team.
Arriving in Sydney two weeks ago, we played three games and the results haven’t been what we expected, but in saying that, we’ve never been a good team in warm-up games. We’ve always been slow starters but once the tournament begins, any team we meet is in for a battle.
We have fresh faces amongst the squad and we’re relishing the prospect of getting our campaign off to a positive start. Some of the new boys include Andrew Balbirnie (Middlesex). Balbo hails from the same village as me. He’s a top lad. He does excellent impersonations and puts the team in great form. He’s playing impressive cricket at the moment and is a guaranteed starter on Monday [Balbirnie has scored 600 runs at an average of 43 since October]. Balbo, my brother Kevin, big Ed Joyce and I are very close off the field – Joycey is a Bray man. We’d be the Southside (Dublin) posse.
In the lead up to the tournament, we’ve been training most days with little down time. We sat by the Sydney Opera House and climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It’s important when you see these parts of the world that you go out and embrace life, meet the people and explore the cultures. I have lots of different friends in Australia so it’s nice to catch up with them, have a coffee, discuss life and watch the world go by.
@Irelandcricket conquered the Sydney Harbour Bridge, next up it’s Scotland at Blacktown Oval today @niallnobiobrien pic.twitter.com/MOhzLOad2c
— Tourism Ireland Oz (@GoToIrelandOz) February 9, 2015
Australia is an incredible place. Everyone we’ve met is behind us. They consider us their second favourite team. ‘Were backing the Irish,’ they say. I can’t overstate the fantastic reception we’ve had so far. Every barman or taxi man you meet has plenty of knowledge on the game and they’re not shy of sharing it with you!
Life on the road can be tough. I’m getting married in October so it’s been hectic between the travelling and organising. I had a few weeks at home after our warm-up matches in Dubai, so Bex and I were just nailing out the venue and the catering. Bex is a project manager so she makes sure everything is running efficiently. She is over now for a month so it’ll be nice to spend time with her. It can be tricky for the players with families as they might be away for three or four months during the winter, and maybe five or six days a week during the summer. But the realism is you can’t play cricket forever so it’s something you’ve got to make the best of while you have the chance.
