PAUL McCRUM made an impressive return to international cricket yesterday but, still ended on the losing side at Southampton as Hampshire beat Ireland by 166 runs in the first of their four Benson and Hedges Cup group matches.

McCrum had not won an Irish cap since the 1994 ICC Trophy and if he had a point to make there was no better way than by dismissing England batsman Robin Smith first ball.

The veteran seamer was introduced to stem Hampshire's early onslaught, and did so, with ten overs off the reel for ten runs including the wickets of Jason Laney and Smith to successive deliveries, both caught in the gully.

McCrum bowled with life and movement to continually beat the bat and he might have changed the course of events if a desperately close 1bw appeal against Hampshire captain, John Stephenson, had been upheld in the ninth over.

Clearly improving after a year with coach Mike Hendrick, Ireland were good enough to restrict their professional opponents to a little more than four an over, at the 40 over stage, before Stephenson was joined by Winston Benjamin in a match deciding stand of 100 in less than ten overs.

While Stephenson carried his bat for an unbeaten 124 and the Gold Award, Benjamin lashed 58 not out off 32 balls.

Perhaps demoralised to see a spirited performance go to waste in those final overs, Ireland quickly slipped to 32 for six as none of their top five batsmen managed double figures.

If McCrum was raising a glass last night, Ryan Eagleson will want to forget his debut in this competition. After a wayward opening spell, the very promising young pace man dropped Benjamin in single figures only to see the West Indian Test player dispatch the last ball of Eagleson's six disappointing overs out of the county ground.