Thompson to lead Ireland's challenge in Malaysia

Malaysia Under-19 World Cup:Senior international Greg Thompson will captain Ireland in the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia after the 15-man squad was announced yesterday.

The Lisburn player, who spent time on the books at Lancashire, will be playing in his third World Cup, having taken part in the events in Bangladesh in 2004 and Sri Lanka in 2006. He leads a youthful selection that includes seven players under the age of 17, but one that is backboned by four players who took part in the last World Cup.

Ireland will be based in Kuala Lumpur for their three Group D fixtures, opening their campaign against England on February 17th, before clashes with Bangladesh and Bermuda. They will also play two warm-up games against Namibia and Nepal. The Irish came desperately close to beating England in the last competition, losing by just four runs, with Thompson being dismissed off the final ball of the game.

Irish coach Brían O'Rourke is happy with the composition of his squad. "We have a very strong batting line-up, with Paul Stirling and Chris Dougherty being particularly impressive over the past few seasons. Ben Ackland has been over at Northants, while Graham McDonnell, Andrew Balbirnie, James Hall, James Shannon and Shane Getkate are all very talented players," said O'Rourke.

"We have plenty of options in the bowling department, and the squad is full of all-rounders. We are particularly strong in the spin department, which I feel will be crucial, given the type of pitches we are likely to encounter in Malaysia.

"With both England and Bangladesh in our group, the standard of cricket we are likely to face is very high, but it will be the experience of a lifetime for the boys."

IRELAND U-19 SQUAD (For World Cup in Malaysia) - Greg Thompson (Lisburn, captain), Ben Ackland (Merrion), Andrew Balbirnie (Pembroke), Andrew Britton (Donemana), Christopher Dougherty (Bready), Shane Getkate (Malahide), James Hall (Waringstown), Richard Keaveney (Merrion), Theo Lawson (Pembroke), Graham McDonnell (Pembroke), Gavin McKenna (North Down), Lee Nelson (Waringtown), Stuart Poynter (Middlesex, wkts), James Shannon (Instonians), Paul Stirling (Cliftonville). National Coach: Phil Simmons. Team coach: Brían O'Rourke. Team manager: Brian Walsh. Physio: Iain Knox.

FIXTURES:Warm-up games - Feb 12th: v Namibia; Feb 14th: v Nepal.

WORLD CUP- Group D: Feb 17th v England. Feb 20th: v Bangladesh. Feb 21st: v Bermuda. All games in Kuala Lumpur.