The ICC has shuffled its umpires panel for Associate and Affiliate cricket for 2012. Kenya’s David Odhiambo will replace Namibia’s Theunis van Schalkwyk, who has moved to South Africa and is under going training for the Full Member list.

The umpires on the Associate and Affiliate panel can be assigned to ODIs and T20Is involving Associate and Affiliate members as well as Under-19 and women’s international cricket.

“The umpires have performed credibly in the last year and the selectors are confident that this panel will continue to grow in stature,” said Vince van der Bijl, the ICC umpire and referees manager. “We wish Theunis well with his future career and his umpiring ambitions. We welcome David Odhiambo to the panel, who has performed well with dedication and skill. He joins a strong team and will enhance it.”

ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires’ Panel 2012
Jeff Luck (Namibia), David Odhiambo (Kenya), Roger Dill (Bermuda), Courtney Young (Cayman Islands), Buddhi Pradhan (Nepal), Sarika Prasad (Singapore), Shahul Hameed (Indonesia), Niels Bagh (Denmark), Mark Hawthorne (Ireland), Ian Ramage (Scotland), Richard Smith (Ireland)

Jason Anderson struck a composed 73 and Lionel Cann a blistering, unbeaten 46 as Bermuda opened their five-match tour of Dubai with a five-wicket victory over the United Arab Emirates Under-19s on Tuesday.

Chasing the UAE's 213 in a 50-over game at the ICC Global Cricket Academy, Bermuda were in trouble at 36 for 3 with Dion Stovall (13), skipper David Hemp (5) and Fiqre Crockwell (12) all falling cheaply. However, they were rescued by Anderson, who shared an important 123-run partnership with Chris Foggo (44) for the fourth wicket as the target was reached with more than three overs to spare. The 38-year-old Cann hurried the end by belting 46 from 29 balls to provide support.

Earlier, UAE suffered three run-outs which saw them collapse from 101 for 1 at one stage with Zamin Jaleel (67) and Dan D'Souza (42) the main run-getters. Fast bowler Stefan Kelly was the pick of Bermuda's bowlers, finishing with 3 for 37 from nine overs.

The recent announcement of a restructuring of the bloated international calendar by the ICC was an opportunity to restore sanity to the world game. Instead, all it has confirmed is that the battle within the ICC between the money men and those with a genuine interest in the world game is over. As expected, the bean counters have won.

The 2015 World Cup will have 10 teams, and while ICC officials say that no final decision has been taken on how these teams will be selected and that there might be still be a chance for Associate members to participate through a qualifying tournament, there is little likelihood of this materialising.

The working party that made the recommendations was made up of David Collier (England), James Sutherland (Australia) and N Srinivasan (India) with no Associate representation, and only David Richardson of the ICC there as anyone remotely independent. With a sub-committee like that it's no wonder this decision was reached.

The headline news regards the World Cup, a distended tournament, which, lest we forget, was brought to its knees in the Caribbean in 2007 largely as a consequence of the ICC's dreadful management. Instead of tackling the root causes of the malaise the ICC simply culled four of the six Associates to ensure there could be no repeat of the commercial disaster that came from India's early exit.

In 2015 the ICC will go a step further and remove the Associates altogether. While fans might have hoped this will mean a leaner event, the depressing news is it won't. The reality is that the number of matches will come down by one, from 49 to 48. But there will be more cheer for the commercial arm of the ICC because there will be more games involving the lucrative teams.

In a bid to deflect flak, the ICC claims no decision has been made about the structure of the 2015 World Cup, offering a flickering hope of a qualifying tournament that might allow Associates to win through to the finals. Sadly this just won't happen. It appears a stalling exercise to assuage critics until the dust has settled.

When I raised qualification involving Full Members as a possible suggestion a few years ago, at the time Zimbabwe cricket was imploding, I was told by a senior ICC official it would never happen. The reasons, he said, were two-fold.

Firstly, the Full Members would never agree to a structure that could result in them missing out. In a straight qualifying competition involving countries at the bottom of the ODI table, at least three Full Members could quite realistically be beaten by leading Associates and so miss out on the World Cup. While financially the ICC would ensure they would not lose money - for example, India's and Zimbabwe's earnings from the 2007 competition were massively more than Ireland's, though the first two made early exits and Ireland made the Super Eights - the implications for sponsorship and local exposure would be considerable.

While it seems a ludicrous suggestion at the moment, India were as recently as 2005 eighth in the ICC's ODI rankings. It is possible that by 2015 a major country could again be out of form and risk getting sucked into a qualifying event.

Given pressure from within the ICC as well as from media partners, who signed a colossal TV rights deal, led to a restructuring of the 2011 competition, neither would be willing to accept anything that might, however remotely, risk the commercial appeal of the World Cup, especially in the massive subcontinental market.

So for all the rhetoric about expanding the game - and to be fair here, there are many within the ICC who genuinely believe in this vision - a glass ceiling has been lowered into place, which ensures Associates will probably not be able to play again at a full World Cup.

In defence of the ICC, six Associates, as was the case in 2007, was too many. While Ireland made the headlines, others, including Kenya and the dismal Bermudans, were totally outclassed. A qualifying system between the top Associates and the worst Full Members would be fairer and would have also ensured the competition could genuinely be called a World Cup.

The two small pluses are that the emergence of Twenty20 means the Twenty20 World Cup, generously expanded to 16 teams, will give Associates a chance to bloody a few noses every couple of years. But the top Associates have not welcomed this, as it all but ensures their remote chances of attaining Test status, which could only come through impressive performances in 50-over games, disappeared. The other gain is that the unloved Champions Trophy might be consigned to the dustbin.

The only way Associates might return is if those controlling the finances stop pretending and just state that certain countries - probably no more than three or four - have to play in any tournament, leaving the rest to scrap among themselves for the other places. At least it would be more honest than the situation we have at the moment.

The Associates have been fighting a battle for recognition they were never likely to win. For all the pretence of the ICC being a democratic organisation, most people know the game is now run by three countries who are hellbent on keeping an increasing share of the pot between themselves. However much they might claim to have the interests of cricket at heart, the revamping of the World Cup has exposed that as a sham.

The leading Associate members of the ICC have described the plans for a smaller 50-over World Cup as a glass ceiling that will restrict the growth of the game in their countries, while simultaneously protecting the interests of the full members.

"The challenge will be [to see] how we break through," Chandra Gocool, Cricket Canada's chief executive told ESPNcricinfo.

The ICC's chief executives committee, which includes three representatives from the associate countries (Ireland, Namibia and Hong Kong) in addition to those from the ten full members, has suggested reducing the 50-over tournament to 10 teams from 2015 onwards, while increasing the Twenty20 tournament to 16 teams. The 2011 World Cup in India has 14 teams, including four Associates; a 10-team event would effectively make it much harder for any of them to qualify the next time around.

The long and winding journey to the 2015 World Cup makes its next stop in Nepal with six teams competing in the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 5 from 20 to 27 February.

The WCL gives the Associate and Affiliate nations a pathway towards qualification for the pinnacle event of the limited-overs game. Not that it is easy to get there, of course. Tournament hosts and favourites Nepal will face tough opposition from Bahrain, Fiji, Jersey, Singapore and USA as they attempt to finish in the top two and gain promotion to the Division 4 tournament to be held in Italy in August this year.

USA are heading to Division 5 straight from the World Twenty20 Qualifiers in Dubai, where they made a successful start by beating Scotland in their opening match. The side will arrive in Nepal a week early for the tournament to get some 50-over match practice in ahead of their first match against Fiji.

"We'll be heading straight from the Qualifiers to Nepal, so we'll have had plenty of match practice,” said Steve Massiah, USA’s captain. “We've got some warm-ups in Nepal to help us get back into 50 over cricket from Twenty20. We know Nepal and Jersey well as teams we've met before and as for Singapore, Bahrain and Fiji we'll just have to face what comes at us, but I am confident of my side."

Singapore, which were victorious at the Division 6 games in September last year, have appointed former Sri Lanka opening batsman Marvan Atapattu as their new coach and he is confident that he can pick up with the side where former coach Trevor Chappell left off.

"Trevor Chappell did a fantastic job for Singapore and all the side have been given a taste for victory,” said Atapattu. “It's going to be hard work for the team when we travel to Nepal, which is a challenging venue, but I am confident that we will do well. We are a talented team but being part-timers makes their priorities different from those of pro cricketers so I will also need to adjust while they need to understand my expectations of them which is that we must to compete on all three skills levels – batting, bowling and fielding.”

Mohsin Kamal, who represented Pakistan in Tests and ODIs and is now Bahrain’s coach, is confident his side will play to their strengths at the tournament. "When we went into Division 6 we didn't know all our strengths and now I feel we have discovered them,” he explained. “We play our games with our strengths and abilities and I am confident we'll do well in Nepal.

"We've been taking a look at the other teams' scores but we're concentrating on ourselves. However, we of course know Singapore from Division 6 and also Nepal from the recent tournament we played in the United Arab Emirates. I've also taken a trip to Nepal so am aware of the type of pitches we can expect and but as always with this game it's about what happens on the day," said Mohsin.

The squads for the World Twenty20 Qualifier tournament in Dubai and Abu Dubai between February 9 and 15 have been announced.

The tournament will see 17 matches take place in the five days, played Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium and the Dubai International Cricket Stadium at Dubai Sports City, where the final will be staged.

At stake are two places in the World Twenty20 which takes places in the West Indies from April 30 to May16. The winner of the UAE event will join South Africa and India in Group C while the losing finalist will join Group D which includes the West Indies and England.

All eyes will be on Afghanistan, who's stellar performances over the last ten months have reverberated around the cricketing world and beyond. While they narrowly missed qualification for the 50-over World Cup 2011 in April, they have been in good form at the Intercontinental Cup. Most recently they displayed flair and resilience to defeat defending champions Ireland, and also recorded a come-from-behind, one-wicket victory over the Netherlands in August 2009.

Ireland, who have been pushing for full-member status, remain one of the strongest associate sides and their squad includes 13 players from the 2009 World Twenty20 in England, where they defeated Bangladesh by six wickets and qualified for the Super Eights.

The Netherlands, who caused the major upset of the 2009 tournament when they defeated England in the opening match, will be without captain Jeroen Smith's this time round but will still be looking to impress.

Afghanistan Dawlat Ahmadzai, Hameed Hasan, Karim Khan Sadiq, Mohammad Asghar Stanikzai, Mohamamd Shahzad Mohammadi, Mohammad Nabi Eisakhil, Merwais Ashraf, Nawroz Khan Mangal, Noor Ali Noori, Obaidullah Konary, Raees Ahmadzai, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Shahpoor Zardan and Samiullah Shinwari.

Canada Harvir Baidwan, Ashish Bagai, Geoff Barnett, Umar Bhatti, Ian Billcliff, Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan, John Davison, Sunil Dhaniram, Shaheed Keshvani, Usman Limbada, Henry Osinde, Abdool Samad and Saad Bin Zafar.

Ireland Andre Botha, Alex Cusack, Peter Connell, George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Gary Kidd, John Mooney, Kevin O'Brien, Niall O'Brien, William Porterfield, Boyd Rankin, Paul Striling, Andrew White and Gary Wilson.

Kenya James Kamande, Lameck Ngoche, Nehemiah Ngoche, Shem Ngoche, Alex Obanda, Collins Obuya, David Obuya, Nelson Odhiambo, Otieno Ondik, Elijah Otieno, Maurice Ouma, Rakep Patel, Steve Tikolo and Hiren Varaiya.

Netherlands Peter Borren, Mudassar Bukhari, Daan van Bunge, Ryan ten Doeschate, Tom de Grooth, Mark Jonkman, Muhammad Kashif, Alexei Kervezee, Atse Buurman, Timothy Gruijters, Edgar Schiferli, Pieter Seelaar, Eric Szwarczynski and Bas Zuiderent.

Scotland Richie Berrington,, Kyle Coezter, Gordon Drummond, Gordon Goudie, Gavin Hamilton, Majid Haq, Ross Lyons, Neil McCallum, Dewald Nel, Navdeep Poonia, Simon Smith, Jan Stander, Ryan Watson and Fraser Watts.

UAE Fayyaz Ahmed, Saqib Ali, Arfan Haider, Mohamed Iqbal, Amjad Javed, Khurram Khan, Mois Shahid Malik, Naeemuddin, Qadar Nawaz, Ahmed Raza, Abdul Rehman, Shoaib Sarwar, Mohammad Tauqir and Qassim Zubair.

USA Timroy Allen, Imran Awan, Orlando Baker, Lennox Cush, Kevin Darlington, Sudesh Dhaniram, Glenmore Hall, Rashard Marshall, Steve Massiah, Sushil Nadkarni, Usman Shuja, Aditya Thyagarajan and Saurabh Verma Carl Wright.

An ICC spokesman has criticised players from Afghanistan and Uganda who absconded at the end of the recent ICC Under-19 World Cup Qualifiers in Toronto, and who are believed to be looking to claim asylum in Canada.

Reacting to concerns that the players' action will have a detrimental effect on future tournaments, a spokesman told Cricinfo: "The ICC does not condone the act of players absconding during or after playing in an overseas tournament. Such an action does not benefit anyone: it affects the member from whom the players come as it means it is weaker for subsequent events.

"It affects the country where they come from as it damages its reputation and, potentially at least, makes it harder for nationals and players without intentions to remain in a country illegally to obtain travel documents in the future; and it damages the reputation of cricket. Even those that abscond are potentially worse off as they become illegal within that country."

There has been growing concern that the recent defections will make it harder for players from some countries to obtain visas for future events. "The ICC does not play a role in obtaining visas for member boards," the spokesman said. "That is the responsibility of each of those members. It is also the responsibility of those members to have knowledge of each of their players and their likely behaviour."

Asked if the ICC might take a more hands-on role in such matters, the spokesman said it was not for the ICC to interfere in the way that teams are selected. "The ICC does not seek to vet, to approve or disapprove of any selections of players for any teams and that has to be correct; each member is free to select whoever it sees fit."

An interesting article on Cricket Europe website regarding the ongoing debate surrounding Associates and Affiliates whose national sides are made up of more expats – usually from Asia or the Caribbean – that home-grown players.

It cites Norway as one of the worst examples – not one of the national side is Norwegian born – and if teams were limited to only five players who qualified through the ICC’s generous residency rules, then the Middle East would go from being an up-and-coming force to being wiped off the map.

It is only to be expected that on cricket’s frontiers, ex-pats will sow the seeds of a growing sport. But they must show willing to develop the sport beyond their enclaves and introduce locals both to the game and to national representation, even if this may, at least in the short term, have a detrimental impact on results.

The article cites the example of Japan, who have imposed their own quotas on the number of home-grown players, but the ICC has shown an unwillingness to tackle the problem. Cricinfo has made more than one request to establish how many players in a side have qualified through residency but such questions rarely produce the requisite answer.

The summer season of Associate cricket continues to take shape with various announcements about games being arranged.

Afghanistan's first foray into mainstream competition starts in the rather unlikely setting of Mutare where they take on Zimbabwe in a four-day Intercontinental Cup tie starting on August 16. From there the Afghans head to Europe where they meet Netherlands in the same competition starting on August 24 and follow that with their first two stand-alone ODIs on August 30 and September 1.

Kenya, meanwhile, head to Toronto where their Intercontinental Cup tie against Canada starts on August 7 and is followed by three ODIs on August 12, 14 and 16.

On August 17 Scotland's game with Ireland starts, and that is followed by an ODI weekend as two matches are held on August 22 and 23 ahead of Ireland's ODI against England on August 27 and Scotland's against Australia on August 28.

In the new Intercontinental Shield, Bermuda host Uganda in a four-day match starting on August 17 and the two then play a brace of one-day games on August 22 and 23 with a one-off Twenty20 clash on August 24

	© Getty Images

Three days after Netherlands embarrassed England, Ireland have taken another scalp for Associate cricket with a six-wicket win over Bangladesh at Trent Bridge.

Click here for Cricinfo's match report

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of Cricket Ireland, has launched a stinging attack on the ICC and the way it handles cricket below Test level.

The ICC has sunk millions of pounds into Associate and Affiliate cricket, and established several global competitions, but speaking to the Wisden Cricketer, Deutrom was unimpressed.

“What is the point of Associate cricket?” he said. “Ireland has proved itself head and shoulders above the rest of the Associate nations, winning all the available titles in every form of the game – four-day, 50-over and Twenty20. Yet we are bumping up against a glass ceiling. What does the ICC want us to do? How do we get from high-performance programme to the higher echelons of the world game? There is no road map for us. The issue brings to question the whole mission statement of the ICC High Performance programme: what is it preparing teams for?”

Deutrom has made no secret of his ambition to see Ireland play Test cricket, but he admitted there was little prospect of that happening in the near future. And, without that goal, he concluded, what was the point of the Associate merry-go-round.

“Three or four years from now there will be no new entrants in to the cosy club of full Test members. That is a significant frustration. It shows that despite the massive investment in the Associate programme, costing over £200 million over seven years, there is no stepping stone from No.1 of the Associate countries, into the Test world.

“Inclusion in the Future Tours programme gives guaranteed fixtures, which allows the CI board to put together a commercial package with some certainty. This makes it interesting for broadcasters, and then sponsors, ticketing and hospitality. Currently, we don’t know what next year’s fixtures are going to be. We are not saying that Ireland deserves to be a Test nation tomorrow but what steps do we need to take to get there?”

In a separate conversation, Deutrom told Cricinfo: “We are all aware that there is no established pathway to Test cricket for Associates, and ascension to the Full Member ranks by (for example) Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh appears to have happened rather haphazardly. For me, having top Associates playing the bottom-ranked Test teams is pure common sense and the first step in breaching the glass ceiling separating the Full Member and Associate world.”

Countries who receive ICC monies but do not field a national side could lose out as the whole way that Associates and Affiliates are funded.

Until now, once a country gained such status its board merely had to show that it functioned to continue receiving annual payments, But as the sums involved grow, the ICC has decided to raise the bar in terms of what they are expected to do and to enforce its own rules more strictly.

If countries do not put out a national side then they will be put on notice at this year's ICC AGM in June, and if the situation remains unremedied they face being suspended in 2011. That gives them three years to correct the situation.

Despite some negative coverage in some sections of the media, the ICC was adamant that it was the right action to take. "Why would an international sporting federation want - or want to significantly invest in - members that can't even field a national team in the international competition opportunities that it facilitates?" an ICC spokesman told Cricinfo.

"With the increase in funding levels (approximately US$300 million over the next eight years) to Associates and Affiliates, we are looking to our members to put plans in place that enable them to develop and one of the planks of any plan would be to give people, especially the best players, within their constituencies an incentive to stay involved and reach the best level they can - and one way to do that is to have a national team.

"We've seen the positive effect national competition can have on members like Uganda and Afghanistan and with those additional funds and our desire to ensure all members have plans in place to use them, there's now going to be much less excuse for members not to put the programmes in place"

The reality is that the ICC has always been able to take this course of action, but now that it has established a World Cup qualifying system right down to the smallest countries, the failure of some to raise a national team while still collecting the same rewards as those who do has become more apparent.

And contrary to what some have claimed, it is not a new rule but merely a more rigid enforcement of an existing one.

The preparations for the ICC World Cup Qualifiers continued in South Africa at the weekend.

Ryan Watson led from the front in Scotland’s win over Westerns in Pretoria, his 73 guiding them home after being set a modest target of 170. “It was a good result and important to get our first go out in the middle,” coach Pete Steindl said. “There are one or two areas that need to be worked on but we also had some good individual performances."

Ireland’s batsmen were in good form as they piled up 309 for 8 against Eastern Province, William Porterfield’s 97 the main innings, but a weakened bowling attack was in less inspired mood as the hosts squeezed to a one-wicket win with two balls in hand.

On Friday, Netherlands beat Boland Academy by 29 runs, but it took a superb sixth-wicket stand of 174 between Mudassar Bukhari and Peter Borren to dig them out of a hole. Bukhari finished on 128 not out from 100 balls, Borren with 74 from 79.

Western Australia Country (WAC) scored a two-wicket win over the ICC East Asia-Pacific (EAP) team in Round 3 of the 2009 Australian Country Cricket Championships.

Defending 209, EAP were confident of taking some early wickets to expose the WAC middle order, however Raymond Haodo Jnr and Sakaria Lomani didn’t get the early break through of the first two rounds. WAC lost their first wicket with the total at 36 when Rarua Dikana removed Cooper.

WAC continued to fight hard against the disciplined and relentless EAP bowling attack, and when part-timer Vani Vagi Morea struck with the score at 6 for 134, EAP had their tails up and were pushing for victory. A 50 run partnership ensued for WAC, and with the tail wagging somewhat they continued to move closer to the required total, before passing 209 with just two wickets in hand.

The best bowler for EAP was Dikana, who worked hard all innings to collect 4 for 50 from 18 overs.

In the second of the two-day fixtures, EAP won the toss and elected to bat on another good batting deck. They started positively, with Vani Vagi Morea and Masaomi Kobayashi taking their time to settle at the crease before compiling an outstanding opening partnership of 86. Morea was dismissed for a swift 63 from just 77 balls, which unfortunately was the catalyst for a batting collapse of 5 for 34 to leave the EAP team in a precarious position at 5 for 120.

In-form young gun Kila Pala and compatriot Mahuru Dai went about rebuilding the innings, but once Pala was dismissed for a quick-fire 25 and captain Dikana followed quickly after, the EAP tail was exposed. EAP were eventually bowled out for a competitive 209 from 64 overs, Morea (63) was the main contributor with assistance from Dai (31), Kobayashi (28) Pala (25) and Ipi Morea (19*).

EAP now look forward to a one-day fixture against Victoria Country at Eudunda Oval on January 10.

The ICC and ECB have reaffirmed their support for the mandatory release of Associate players from county cricket to take part in international matches and the priority of FTP events.

This followed discussions and correspondence between the ICC president, David Morgan, and the new CEO, Haroon Lorgat, with Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, and ECB chief executive David Collier.

"The full commitment of the ECB to work with counties to support the ICC Board's mandatory release policy for Associate players is great news and very welcome," Morgan said. "It will help to ensure that when the top Associates have ODIs against Full Members or compete in next month's ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in Belfast they have their top players available.

"In terms of the ICC WT20 Qualifier, that will make sure the best teams reach next year's event, rather than the teams with the most top players available on that weekend in August, something that will then have a knock-on effect of enhancing next year's event.

"And with all county-contracted players available for a ODI against Full Members it will make the Associate side that much more competitive, making for a worthwhile experience for that Full Member as well as a great career-enhancing one for all the Associate players, even those playing regular county cricket.

Those comments were endorsed by Clarke. "The ECB recognises that nation versus nation is the lifeblood of cricket and its integrity must be protected at all costs. One way of protecting that integrity is by ensuring that the top Associate players currently playing county cricket are available for their countries in all their mandatory commitments with Full Members and in prestigious events such as the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier. The ICC further recognises that this must also embrace and enforce the priority of all FTP events and ECB welcomes that position.

"Whilst we recognise the individual choice of players we will continue to proactively remind counties of their mandatory obligations in this regard and this will help to ensure our strong sport grows ever stronger."

Despite the encouraging words, this is actually unlikely to make any difference to the availability of players. Those that have missed matches recently have not been prevented from playing by their counties but have actually chosen to give priority to their full-time employers rather than turn out for their countries.

While the boards can do all they can to urge their best players to be available, the increasing number of games played by them allied to the pressure on individuals to perform for their counties means that availability will always be hit and miss.

It is likely that most county-contracted players will be freed to play in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers as this is a high-profile competition. But when it comes to one-off ODIs or other lower-key competitions, county is always likely to win through over country.

	Eoin Morgan: only one winner when it came to club or country © Getty Images

A common gripe that keeps cropping up, especially where Ireland are concerned, is the number of players who are unavailable for matches because of their commitments in English county cricket.

In his column in the Sunday Tribune this week, Ger Higgins highlighted the problem, laying the blame at the door of the ECB.

"There is ample evidence that Irish cricket is being systematically plundered by English counties," he wrote. "The fact that there are a dozen-odd players attached to counties wouldn't be much of a problem if they played fair about player release. But they don't: already this season Morgan, Niall O'Brien and William Porterfield have "opted" to play for their employers ahead of their country. Even an ICC regulation that players must be released for ODIs failed to prise that trio from the clutches of the counties. And it is a similar story with Scots players.

"It is about time that the ECB showed some leadership and told the counties to allow their Irishmen and Scotsmen to play internationals. A FIFA-style regulation could be introduced where a player who is not released must not play for the club on any of the days of the Irish game."

Higgins' frustration is understandable and you have to sympathise for the Associates who are deprived of their best talent in this way. But, equally, it is too easy to lay the blame at the boards and to demand legislation to force the individuals to play when they are asked to.

Critics point out that FIFA, football's governing body, have such rules in place. But our colleagues on soccernet point out that in reality such draconian steps are rarely taken. Forcing a sportsman to do something he doesn't want to do is hardly to way to get the best out them.

Look at it from the players' point of view. There are those whose ambitions end at playing for their country and who make tremendous sacrifices to do so. Almost all the leading Associates rely on such individuals, as only Kenya have a professional, full-time squad.

But there are others who want to make a career out of cricket. That is not available to them in Ireland, either in terms of cash or consistently high quality of opposition. So they head abroad, mainly to England, to hone their skills and earn good money while doing so. Some, such as Ed Joyce, even go on to play for their adopted countries.

Higgins cites examples of players contracted to English counties who opted to remain with them rather than play for Ireland, recommending that they should be banned from playing while their country is in action as an "incentive".

Take the case of Morgan. Last season he had just broken into the Middlesex side when he got an Ireland call-up. He faced a quandary. Middlesex were happy/obliged to release him, but made clear that he was not guaranteed a first-team place when he returned. If whoever filled his boots while he was away scored runs, Morgan would be back in the reserves with no guarantee of regaining his place. At the end of the season that could have made the difference between him being offered a new contract or released.

One could understand the county's position, and also Morgan's when he chose to remain with them. "He wants to qualify and play for England, and feels that by obtaining a regular place in the Middlesex team is the best way to achieve that," Phil Simmons, Ireland's coach, observed.

In such circumstances, legislation preventing Morgan from playing for Middlesex at that time would be completely counterproductive. It could also be illegal, and would hardly be likely to make the individual more inclined to play for his country in the future. In the case of the Morgans of this world, they might even retire from international cricket, albeit temporarily, to circumvent the problem.

The Associates are rightly concerned and it has been discussed within the ICC. Additional funding due to them from 2009 will help. But while it will reward those who give up so much to play for their countries, cash will not make any difference to those with ambitions to play on a bigger stage that Associate cricket can offer.

Whatever happens, there can be no winner. Either the country loses out or the players do. But to blame the employers or the individual is wrong. After all, how many of us would risk our careers in similar circumstances?

The reality is that the best players will always aspire to play at the highest level, and so they should. All the Associates can hope for is that they play for them as often as they can and bring all their experience into the national side, and act as an inspiration to the next generation.

Rather than reacting with anger when Joyce pulls on an England or Middlesex shirt, Ireland should be proud of what they have produced and wish him well. The hope has to be that the day will come when the Joyces and the Morgans of the future are only too eager to chose country over county.

Zimbabwe's withdrawal from the ICC World Twenty20 in England in 2009 has opened the way for a third Associate county to be invited from next month's ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers.

The leading Associates meet in Belfast between August 2 and 4 with the top two gained an automatic place in the main event the following June.

"The third associate will come through the qualifiers in August this year," Samir Inamdar, the chairman of the ICC's Affiliates and Associates, told Cricinfo. "I have had a conversation with Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, who has agreed that it is logical to replace Zimbabwe with an Associate."

Samir Inamdar, the chairman of Cricket Kenya, was elected as the chairman of the Associate and Affiliate members of the ICC at the annual conference in Dubai.

Inamdar, who was already one of the three representatives of the non Test-playing countries on the ICC executive board, replaces H.H. Tunku Imran who stood down because of his commitments with the IOC.

Inamdar, who polled 26 votes, is joined on the ICC executive board, by Imran Khwaja (Singapore, 22 votes) and Neil Speight (Bermuda, 21). Rene van Iashort from the Netherlands received 18 votes while Israel’s Stanley Pearman, who was a sitting representative, finished bottom of the pile with 16 votes.

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Although the ICC draws considerable flak on many fronts, it is quietly committed to promoting the game in as many countries as possible, and it does that by means of a myriad of competitions and initiatives. Most do not warrant much media attention, but they are there and they work.

Until now, the gripe of the smaller countries, and especially those bubbling just underneath the top flight, has been about the inequality of the way in which the game is financed. That was never more apparent than when it came to earnings from last year's World Cup.

Ireland got a flat fee of US$125,000 a year for four years for taking part, and on top of that they received another $50,000 for reaching the Super Eights. However, because of the extra costs involved in their progression, not least because their players are not professional cricketers and their absences from their full-time jobs had to be underwritten, Ireland's success actually left the board out of pocket.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, turned up, tied with Ireland and never threatened to progress after being thumped by Pakistan and West Indies. For those three matches, Zimbabwe Cricket received US$11 million, their share of the pot as a Full Member.

The top six Associates receive no more than US$500,000 a year - some substantially less - to fund their entire operations. Out of that they have to pay all their cricketing and administration costs. Only those with a low cost of living, such as Kenya, can hope to maintain a professional squad on that kind of money.

The gulf between the haves and have-nots is further widened by the limited sums Associates can earn from sponsorship and media contracts. Zimbabwe can exploit home series against, say, India to carve out lucrative TV deals worth millions, and on the back of that, attract shirt- and other corporate sponsorship. As highlighted by Scotland's failure to secure any TV deal for their forthcoming ODI against England, the Associates struggle to get such income streams.

The new deals will provide a substantial increase for Associates, especially for the countries who are pressing for space at the top table. Until now the share has been roughly equal, rewarding Netherlands and Kenya on par with Thailand and Fiji. The new system will see more demarcation between the top Associates and the rest.

The leading ten could earn as much as US$1.5 million a year from 2009. There will then be an onus on them to professionalise their administrations, but several of them are already well down that route. They will also be more accountable - the ICC does not want a repeat of the mess that came following a spike in Kenya's funding earlier in the decade.

The second-string Associates will also get more - around US$160,000 as a base figure - but then again the demands on them are less. Even Affiliates will receive US$15,000, with the opportunity for more should they make a good enough case. There will also be more cash in the pot for participating and hosting competitions.

There have never been more opportunities for development outside the Full Member countries, but there remain some nagging worries.

The main one is how to bridge the gap between semi and full-blown professionalism. Almost all the Associates rely on dedicated amateurs, both on and off the field. As the number of ICC competitions has increased - and they have to be welcomed - the pressure has begun to tell. Scotland and Ireland particularly have already found players cannot meet all their commitments, and even the increased income will not allow them to employ a full-time squad.

"So much of putting players on full-time retainers depends on how many fixtures we can command," Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland's chief executive, said. "At the moment, all we can promise the squad in 2009 is a World Cup qualifying campaign, eight FP Trophy matches, an England game, and probably some Intercontinental Cup matches. Of course, we hope to have more, but can't be sure at the moment.

"Our top players are already plying their trade in county cricket, while others have full-time jobs which they may not wish to give up. The actual number of players that the coach will want to put on a full-time contract, or else the number that even want to have one, may not be that many."

The other quandary is how to get them fixtures. Kenya, widely regarded as the leading Associate, have found it almost impossible to get Full Member countries to visit or host them. As a result they invariably play other Associates. Good for the win-loss ratio, not so clever in providing the kind of experience that no amount of money can buy.

These issues will need to be addressed, but for now the future has never looked so promising beyond the Test world.

A fascinating report in The National highlights that while the IPL might bring massive rewards, most international players, especially those outside the top flight, live a more modest existence.

UAE allrounder Khurram Khan reckons that it costs him money to play as he has to take unpaid leave from his job with Emirates airline.

"He might play a match, then be flying out on the night of the game to Melbourne on a 20-hour flight. Just imagine how hard that is. If he plays a four-day match, he would almost certainly then have a four-day job with his work to Melbourne, or Tokyo, or Jakarta.”

Much is spoken about the expansion of the international game, and if, as expected, proposals for a significant increase in funding for the Associates is approved when the ICC meets in June, then their progress should be further boosted.

But cash and goodwill can only go so far. What is widely agreed is that to improve, the leading Associates need to play more, and against the elite top ten Full Member countries. And that is where the problems come.

A casual glance at the international schedule will show that the major countries are on an almost constant global tour. In part this is because of the requirements of the Future Tours Programme, but more often than not the large gaps in that schedule are filled with lucrative one-day tours or tournaments.

In an ideal world, there would be time for India or England to undertake ambassadorial tours to Kenya or the Netherlands. But given the choice between a lucrative three-match series against commercially attractive opposition containing star names or a trip to a cricketing outpost in Africa or Europe, it's not a contest.

Click here for the full article

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the Irish Cricket Union, has warned that a failure to qualify for the next World Cup will have a seriously detrimental affect on leading Associates.

"Non-qualification for two out of the existing six ODI countries will have a materially detrimental effect on the profile of the sport in that country, therefore ability to attract finance, therefore ability to attract (and pay for) top teams to visit, therefore ability to tour abroad to play competitive cricket,, therefore ability to move forward on and off the pitch."

Click here for the full interview.

The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

Click here for the full story.

As revealed by Cricinfo last month, the 2011 World Cup will be shortened and the main victims of the change will be the Associate countries who will have their numbers cut from six to four.

"It is a move we both feared and expected and it's not great news for the Associates," Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the Irish Cricket Union, told Cricinfo. "Neither is it a great vote of confidence in the ICC's own High Performance Programme.

Click here to tell us what you think of this? Is it the start of the gradual elimination of smaller countries from the World Cup or a necessary and welcome move?

Jersey became the 33rd country to be granted Associate membership at the ICC Annual Conference held last week at Lord's.

The decision comes after a successful 12 months for cricket on the island and makes Jersey the 11th European Associate Member joining the likes of Denmark, Ireland and Netherlands.

Cameroon, The Falkland Islands, Peru and Swaziland were awarded Affiliate membership, taking the total number of ICC members up to 101. Jersey was the only country to be granted Associate Membership.

The Falkland Islands were elected with only one dissenting voice. Argentina abstained in the week that marked the 25th anniversary of the end of the Falklands War.

	Jeremy Bray chose not to represent Ireland ... because he can earn more playing club cricket © Getty Images

Jeremy Bray, Ireland's opening batsman, has branded the Irish Cricket Union's efforts at turning the game professional 'a joke'. Bray opted out of Ireland's weekend ODIs against India and South Africa, having also been unavailable for a large part of the Friends Provident campaign, because of family commitments and admits his future is in doubt.

"I was a bit tired and needed a rest", he told the Sunday Tribune, "at least that was the initial plan. But it's hard to get to training because I live so far away. My wife has her own hair salon business so organising childcare has become a big issue. The reality is that it costs me money to play for Ireland."

Since Ireland returned from the World Cup there has been much talk of Ireland turning professional and negotiations are well advanced, but Bray isn't impressed. "It's just a joke", he said, "But I'm not surprised - that's the Irish Cricket Union for you."

Bray has spoken to Ireland captain Trent Johnston about the situation but is still uncertain about the future. "I hope it doesn't get to me giving it all up, but we need to get it all out in the open and see what's on offer."

Warren Deutrom, the ICU chief executive, who has been a driving force being the quest for a professional set-up responded to Bray's comments and said the delay isn't because of a lack of effort.

"The fundamental issue is that we can't complete and finalise the contracts for the players until we know we are able to satisfy what they are requesting in terms of additional monies," he said. "We can't do that until we know how much of a budget we have, and we won't know that until this current series of games is completed. It's a vicious circle.

"Do we want to be able to pay the players? Absolutely, of course we do, and it's the fundamental route to success. I know there's a significant degree of frustration among the players, and I completely understand that. We have met with the players on a number of occasions, and will continue to do so.

"We've managed to get many of their issues and concerns out into the open. A lot of the players are prepared to be patient until they know of the final financial result. Obviously we're trying to do our very best."

Johnston has also been vocal in his call for a professional structure in Ireland. Following the match against India on Saturday he said: "We've got to have professional contracts put in place so players can get back to the standard we set in the West Indies. Four months we were away playing cricket and you could see in our performance over there we were a much better team."

A very rare high for Bermuda at the World Cup © Getty Images

Associates cricket is on something of a high at the moment. Ireland did the second-tier countries proud at the World Cup, there are a number of full ODIs set to take place involving Associates and Full Members, and the World Cricket League Division Three, which finished in Darwin at the weekend, showed that the game does have strength in depth. In 2009, extra funding resulting from the ICC's media deal with ESPN should also kick in giving a further fillip. But while the leading Associates press on with ambitious plans to try to bridge the divide between them and most Full Members, there is one country where the profile of the game is heading in the wrong direction - Bermuda .

A year or so ago, Bermudan cricket looked to be heading for great things. Despite the restrictions of a tiny population, the game, which has strong roots on the island, was thriving.

On the strength of the country qualifying for the 2007 World Cup, the government agreed to donate US$11 million to the Bermuda Cricket Board over five years. On top of that the BCB received more than US$250,000 from its participation in the Stanford 20-20, and then there were ICC grants totalling more than US$200,000 a year. Bermuda 's direct rivals, the other five Associates which qualified for the World Cup, only had ICC funding and local sponsorships to build on. It should have given them a huge advantage.

But the ink had hardly dried on the government's investment than things started to go wrong. The national side spluttered, wobbled and then fell apart, and by the end of 2006 there were too many stories regarding their lack of fitness and dubious approach to matches to ignore. They played three games in Mombasa in November and several independent eyewitnesses raised concerns about many aspects of their performances.

Gus Logie, the coach, who played 52 Tests for West Indies when they were at their peak, started to sound increasingly frustrated. In December, Richard Done, the ICC's High erformance Manager, also expressed his concerns over the players' fitness in public.

Despite all the financial advantages and the boost to the game's profile that came from the World Cup, there is every reason to argue that things now are worse than they were 12 months ago

By the time the side arrived in Nairobi in February for the World Cricket League Division One - the premier event for Associates - even the Bermuda government was being asked to justify its investment. Under the spotlight to perform, Bermuda looked a shambles. "They were smiling and laughing as they walked off the field after being thumped," one eyewitness told Cricinfo after they lost their opening game by ten wickets. "They seemed to lack fight and any willingness to battle." Things got no better. One senior administrator from another Associate said: "Five sides came here with a professional attitude. Bermuda came as if it was an all-expenses-paid jolly."
Few expected any better at the World Cup, and so it turned out. Aside from Dwayne Leverock's headline-grabbing and earth-shattering catch against India, it was forgettable and dismal. They lost by margins of 243 runs, 253 runs and seven wickets, and stories of their off-field activities abounded.

Since then, things have continued to slide. Last week it emerged that almost no players had deemed it necessary for them to attend training sessions which resumed at the start of May. And a new two-day league introduced by the BCB has started amid chaos. Two sides have already pulled out, a third only fielded seven players and another match was scrapped because the pitch had not been prepared.

A fortnight ago an exasperated Done reported that the country could not stage any full ODIs because the square at the National Sports Centre was not fit to be considered for such matches. In the year since he first inspected, nothing had changed. At that time Andy Atkinson, the ICC's pitch expert, said the pitches were "only suitable for growing carrots".

So despite all the financial advantages and the boost to the game's profile that came from the World Cup, there is every reason to argue that things now are worse than they were 12 months ago.

Time is against the board. In 2009, Bermuda has to re-qualify for its current status and also battle for a place at the 2011 World Cup, and there are some sides out there who are already snapping at their heels. Failure to secure both goals will quite possibly be the end of the dream for Bermuda, and it is hard to see any way back if they do slip.

Things can still be turned round. The board and selectors need to come down hard on those players who will not toe the line - and indiscipline, at club and national level, has been a constant issue - and if that means those who want to play are picked, and not necessarily the best players, so be it. A clear message has to be sent out that the players are expected to behave as conscientiously as those from other Associates.

The BCB has to invest time and money in getting pitches sorted, and establishing a workable club structure. It was apparent from some time ago that the two-day competition was unsustainable.

There is also encouragement to be had among the up-and-coming players. Participation in the Under-10 league has more than doubled since the World Cup. The Under-19s have impressed with their commitment and ability. James Whittaker of the Bermuda Sun said that anyone who had watched them play "has found it refreshing to see a team in Bermuda colours looking fit and sharp in the field".

What cannot be allowed is another year of stagnation and a strategy of hoping everything will come good. It won't. In a professional world, it's time for some professionalism.

Martin Williamson has written an article which highlights the pressures players for Associate countries face as they compete with the budgets of the Full Members.

In expanding the game, the ICC has, rightly, offered more matches to the Associates. On top of any ODIs they can persuade Full Member countries to give them, as well as tournaments they arrange among themselves, they participate in the Intercontinental Cup, the World Cricket League and the four-yearly ICC Trophy. But that expansion has not taken into account that the players remain amateur.

The flaw in the ICC's plan is that the increased demands have not been backed by additional funding. In the year ending April 30, 2007, Scotland were scheduled to play 46 days of cricket (including warm-ups for tournaments) as a national side; the numbers for the other Associates are similar - Bermuda 45, Canada 43, Ireland 42, Kenya 37, Netherlands 24. That does include time spent preparing, travelling and acclimatising.

The direct funding they receive for that from the ICC amounts to US$215,000, of which $125,000 is not actually handed over to the boards but is retained by the ICC and used to offset other costs, such as paying for coaches and hosting training camps. Compare that with the lowest-ranked Full Member, Zimbabwe, who will receive around US$10 million with no requirement to account for how it is spent. In the same period, they had 37 days cricket scheduled. That really puts into perspective Ireland's achievement in Jamaica.

Will Luke and Andrew McGlashan have chosen their best XI from the Associates. Click here to see their choices and let us know what you think.

The 2007 edition of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack was published this week, and in it Tony Munro takes a look at life beyond the Test world.

Four new countries – Bhutan, Kazakhstan, Tonga and Swaziland – are included in this year’s Cricket Round the World section. This takes the total of countries, regions and territories featured since the feature began in Wisden 1993 to 107.

Steve Tikolo, Kenya's captain, has pleaded for more international exposure for his side, as well as the other leading Associates.

Kenya exited the World Cup after losing to England on Saturday, but Tikolo said that unless the major countries agreed to play the Associates, then the standards would never improve.

"You need more high-level games," Tikolo said. "You can't come here without playing at this level consistently. If you look at our calendar now, what we are expecting is a Twenty20 World Cup in September. Between then and now there's nothing for us.

"If you want the Associates to come up, you have to give them more games, it's as simple as that."

Kenya, like the other Associates, have struggled to persuade the major nations to play them. In the last year, Kenya have played 18 ODIs, of which all have been against the Associates or Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Bangladesh, who themselves struggle to get fixtures against major countries, have been co-operative, while Zimbabwe are believed to have come under intense pressure from the ICC to actually take to the field.

Kenyan cricket was boosted by Tikolo's assurance that he was not ready to retire. "I want to play for Kenya for the next few years to see this team develop into a fine unit," he explained.

Scotland have underlined their position at the top of the ICC Associate ODI rankings after good performances in the World Cricket League in Nairobi. Kenya, who beat Scotland in the final, are not included as they are part of the main rankings until 2009.

Scotland beta Netherlands, Canada and Ireland in the tournament, giving them a 69% win rate against other Associates, well clear of Netherlands in second place. Ireland ate third after a disappointing event, Canada are fourth and Bermuda fifth.

The ICC has announced the regional winners of the ICC Development Program Awards 2006 with Guernsey, Jersey and Ireland coming out on top for the European Region.

Guernsey Cricket Board picked up the Best Overall Cricket Development Program Award for their development program governed by the Guernsey Young Cricketers Development Committee and spearheaded by Jason Shambrook, full-time Cricket Development Officer, and Jon Orme, full-time Cricket Development Coach. The program begins in schools, giving children as young as seven years of age the opportunity to take part in cricket, and providing a player pathway to develop and feed these youngsters into senior club cricket.

Guernsey also had success in the Best Women’s Initiative category, where a series of after school ‘clubs’ resulted in the first ever match between two all-girls colleges and from this stemmed the first girls-only cricket league.

The Jersey Cricket Board picked up two awards - the first in the Marketing and Promotional Program category, for its newsletter “Around the Boundary” and the second the Spirit of Cricket Initiative in association with UNAIDS, awarded for a joint venture between the Jersey Cricket Board Development Team and St James School, a school for children with emotional and behavioural disorders. Children from the school formed a combined cricket team with two other primary schools enabling them to compete in a hardball match for the first time.

The Irish Cricket Union produced two successes in the Volunteer of the Year and Lifetime Service categories. Richard Johnson won the Volunteer award for his tireless contributions to Irish and European cricket, which included helping to stage Ireland’s first official ODI against England and organising the Under 19 European Championships in 2006.

The Lifetime Service award went to Clarissa Pilkington who, amongst her many contributions to women’s cricket in Ireland, led the steering committee for the formation of the Irish Women’s Cricket Union in 1982 and guided the Irish team to their first World Cup in Australia in 1987.

Elsewhere Belgium won the award for Best Junior Initiative following a year of hard work by Full Time Youth Development officer Fazil Mahmoud, which has delivered cricket to many Belgian schools and has brought a new crop of youngsters to the game. And finally, The Photo of the Year award went to a pair of action shots from Peter Power of Denmark.

ICC Regional Development Manager-Europe Richard Holdsworth commented on the awards. “Each year Europe’s member countries continue to produce great initiatives to develop the game, particularly at youth level. This area is so crucial if the game it to grow and further develop and all the very many volunteers and professionals should be congratulated on their efforts. It is particularly encouraging to see the women’s game grow so quickly and participation increase by 37% in the last 12 months”.

ICC global development manager Matthew Kennedy congratulated all of the award winners on their achievements. “Winning these awards is a fantastic tribute to the successful Members,” said Kennedy. “They will rightly take the plaudits but the whole process of deciding the winners has left the regional judges feeling immensely positive about the health of the game around the world. Since the ICC’s Development Program began in 1997 the number of ICC Members has more than doubled and the sheer volume and quality of nominations for these awards is a positive indicator that cricket is a strong sport growing stronger.

“This year’s awards illustrate the way many established development programs are flourishing. At the same time it is really pleasing to see awards going to Members for the first time and also that women have received significant recognition for contributions to the game.”
Best Overall Cricket Development Program - Guernsey Cricket Board

Best Junior Cricket Initiative - Belgian Cricket Federation

Best Women’s Cricket Initiative - Guernsey Cricket Board

Best Cricket Promotional and Marketing Program - Jersey Cricket Board Newsletter

Photo of the Year - Peter Power (Denmark)

Best Spirit of Cricket Initiative in Partnership with UNAIDS - Jersey Cricket Board Development Team & St James School (Jersey)

Volunteer of the Year - Richard Johnson (Ireland)

Lifetime Service Award - Clarissa Pilkington (Ireland)

ECC media release

It won't get many column inches in the mainstream cricket press, but the World Cricket League, which started in Nairobi yesterday and continues into next week, features the best of the rest, the six sides just under the ten Test-playing countries. For the two finalists, the rewards are bountiful - a place among the big boys in the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa this September, along with $250,000. For countries used to surviving on annual handouts from the ICC of less than $200,000, that's big money.

With the exception of Bermuda, cricket is not a mainstream sport in any of the participants. And yet it survives, and in some instances thrives, despite the lack of attention and a relatively small number of enthusiasts.

The ICC, who do sterling work in supporting the game's second and third tiers, will rightly use the event to highlight that cricket is not just about the Indians and Australias of the world.

But there remains a nagging worry. The ICC boasts that the game is spreading across the world. But is that right? Is it taking root or is it surviving because more people from its hotbed - south-east Asia - are emigrating and keeping it alive for the duration of their careers?

In last year's Wisden Almanack, Matthew Engel raised this very issue. "Overwhelmingly, the game in non-traditional countries is played by expatriates, mostly South Asian. Journalists were kidded into believing that cricket was about to burst on China, on the basis of some warm comments by civil servants and a couple of coaching courses. I have seen not one shred of evidence to back this up. Are the kids playing with tapeballs on the streets of Shanghai? Are they heck!"

Take Canada. Of the squad in Nairobi at the moment, only three were born in the country, and two of those are over 35. Of the rest, five come from the Caribbean, four from India and each from Pakistan and Uganda. Whereas other Associates have a smattering of expats, Canada are utterly reliant on them.

Engel's comment attracted fierce criticism from those who either argued that England had more than their share of "imports" or that the game only spread in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Caribbean through expats playing it in the first place.

The worry in some countries is that rather the game is not being continued by the second and third generations but is only being maintained by a steady flow of new immigrants

With regards to England, yes there have been quite a few non English-born players who have been picked for the side, but the game still has a massive stronghold in the country. The selection has been more about improving a solid side. And as for the ex-pats argument? Well, yes, but that's the crucial point. In the regions flagged the game was brought in but it was then embraced by the indigenous population and taken on as their own. This is exemplified no better than in CLR James's seminal work, Beyond A Boundary.

The worry in some countries - and again I come back to Canada - is that rather the game is not being continued by the second and third generations but is only being maintained by a steady flow of new immigrants. Canada's cricket heritage is rich but there is little sign that it has been built on. This is best underlined by the selection of former West Indies international Anderson Cummins. Forty years old and without a major match to his name since 1995-96, he made his debut in Mombasa last week. What message does that send out about the strength in depth of cricket in Canada?

It's not just Canada. Look at the USA, whose 2004 Champions Trophy side was a collection of ageing expats whose performances verged on the disgraceful. And the UAE, which is almost entirely dependant on its ex-pat workforce to keep the game alive.

Cricket's expansion should not be about filling teams with expats and expecting the locals to get excited about it. The only way cricket can gain a foothold in emerging countries is by actually getting the indigenous population to embrace the game, and two excellent examples where this is happening are Nepal and Uganda.

Anderson Cummins of Barbados, West Inbies ... and now Canada © Eddie Norfolk

Does it matter? Yes, because as the ICC looks to develop the game in as many places as possible, that means the financial cake has to be cut in ever thinner slices. The ICC needs to concentrate on a smaller number of countries where the chances of the game taking off. It is invidious that Uganda gets the same basic allowance as Belgium.

Cricket is in trouble in its traditional homes in Africa - Zimbabwe are hell-bent on destruction and South Africa seems to be falling out of love with the game. So efforts should be made in Uganda . And in Asia, which everyone accepts is the game's stronghold, a side like Nepal should really be given the leg up. It's about targeting rather than a scattergun approach.

In fairness to the ICC, they have a tough time and a lot of countries scrambling for a share of the spoils. It's about weeding out the weak and really looking to grow the game in areas where it has the best chance of taking root. It's an almost impossible ask. Look at the repeated failure of American Football to crack Europe ... and if football itself still battles for acceptance outside expats and schools in the USA, then the size of the ICC's task becomes clear.

Of course expats have a key role to play in expansion. But if the game is basically played by them, is it the game spreading or is it more about diehards clinging to the traditions of their homelands? In the UK there are baseball and American football sides, but they are almost all expat Americans and so few would seriously claim the games have taken hold. However, basketball and ice hockey are widely played by locals, boosted by some imported players and expats, and, crucially, the national side can stand on its own two feet. That's the difference.

A very interesting article in Kenya’s Standard about Henry Osinde. Born and raised in Uganda, he is back in neighbouring Kenya this week to play in the World Cricket League. But he has turned his back on Uganda and is now a member of the multinational Canadian side.

Without a touch of irony, he said that "Uganda cricket has a good development programme, but the problem is to get it to next level." He added, with another turn of the knife, that he had no plans to visit to offer any support.

An interesting article in the Montreal Gazette on immigrants in Canada who are spreading the cricket gospel. But this raises a bigger question … if the game is played predominantly by first-generation expats, can it be said that game is growing?

Since beating higher-ranked Bangladesh at the last World Cup in South Africa in 2003, Canada has stepped up recruitment of immigrants like him, as well as Canadians living abroad, to play on the team.

And with organizers spending more money on the sport - paying for cricket classes in high schools and colleges, building indoor arenas in Ontario and investing in such specialized training equipment as automatic bowling machines - the future of Canadian cricket looks bright.

Martin Williamson looks at what message is being sent to the Associates by the ICC deciding to appoint Darrell Hair to officiate in their tournament ... and do the ICC even know where they stand.

So Darrell Hair has been appointed to stand in the triangular one-day series in Mombasa next week, the first time he will don the white coat since that gloomy Sunday afternoon at The Oval in August when his world turned on its head.

The announcement - which caught the ICC on the hop as it only intended to release the news on Sunday - caused, inevitably, a flurry of media comment. Some were surprised that Hair was still an umpire, so intense was the criticism of him between the Oval Test and the ICC's decision to bar him from standing in major matches which followed in November.

There are two sides to this. The first is that this is actually a really good move. Hair, for all his stubbornness, was, up to four months ago, one of the top officials in the game, a fact underlined by the ICC's own internal rankings which placed him second only to Simon Taufel. There is no doubt that in Kenya his presence will benefit sides who will for the first time play in a game with such a senior official.

Hair himself will receive a warm welcome. Mombasa Sports Club, which is the home ground of Samir Inamdar, Cricket Kenya's chairman, is a delightful venue and the people there go out of their way to make all visitors feel at home. A few overseas reporters may make their way to the coastal town, but by and large he should enjoy his trip.

But there have to be questions asked of senior ICC officials as to what has changed in the last two months? In November, Percy Sonn, the ICC's president who has a habit of speaking before necessarily thinking, said that the ICC executive board had "come to the conclusion that they've lost confidence in Mr Hair". While Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, has always said he hoped to find a way to keep Hair in the game, he too admitted that the decision was right. Most of those close to the decision-making process left Dubai believing that Hair would not stand in any international match again.

As an umpire, Hair clearly is good enough. So why can he stand here and not in more important matches?
If Hair was not deemed fit by the ICC to umpire then - and the key here is that nobody questioned his decision-making ability - what has changed? The ICC have spent today vociferously stressing that the ban was for Full Member matches only. But surely, either he is fit or he is not.

Perhaps even they don't actually know what they agreed or the best way forward. When Sonn was asked at the November meeting to clarify details regarding Hair's future, he refused, and when pressed snapped at reporters: "You are free to leave if you want. We are not giving any more details." Perhaps Percy was not exactly on message, or perhaps he was as confused as the rest of us.

The Mombasa tournament involves three of the six leading Associates, all of whom will be playing in the World Cup. These are among the best of the rest, and the matches are accorded full ODI status by the ICC. In effect, there is a danger that people will interpret this as the ICC saying that they have no faith in Hair but that the Associates aren't really that important.

This is a unique situation. The ICC could argue with any other official - including Hair's two colleagues also standing in Mombasa - that they were not quite good enough to make the transition from this level to the Elite. But that's not an issue or an excuse here. As an umpire, Hair clearly is good enough. So why can he stand here and not in more important matches? As with every aspect of this sorry episode, the ICC has failed to be clear or transparent in its handling and once more we can expect more smokescreens and sidestepping.

And so, while the Associates ponder just how important they are to the ICC, Hair, who arrives in Mombasa on Monday, is left yet again to face the media on his own. It's something he has become used to in recent months.

Martin Williamson reviews the Kenya-Bermuda one-day series and looks at what the games mean for both sides

Although the three-match one-day series between Kenya and Bermuda hardly registered on world cricket's Richter scale, in the battle for supremacy among the game's second string it had greater significance. And with the World Cup less than four months away, it provided a much-needed fillip to the Kenyans but left Bermuda with many more questions than answers.

The 3-0 scoreline does not flatter Kenya who outbatted and outbowled Bermuda, and who certainly looked the far more professional and fitter side in the field

They came into the series under pressure to perform after some indifferent results. They also needed to start nailing down exactly who would be in their World Cup squad. By the time they wrapped up the series whitewash yesterday evening, the selectors should have had far more of an idea of who will be travelling to the Caribbean in March.

The form of the impressive young batsman Tanmay Mishra and the slow left-armer Hiren Varaiya were real highlights. There remain questions at the top of the order, but Malhar Patel did enough in his one outing to give him a real chance of securing the No. 3 slot with some solid performances in January's World Cricket League in Nairobi.

There is also a sneaking feeling that Kennedy Otieno, the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman who chose to play club cricket in Australia rather than this, may have overplayed his hand. He wasn't missed as much as perhaps he thought he might have been and he is now far from certain to be recalled.

It also seems that those who have chosen to live overseas - such as Hitesh Modi - or play hard to get - such as Ravi Shah - are also out of the reckoning. While both will be missed, the selectors are running out of time to experiment and pander to personal whims and they are to be applauded if they stick with what they have from here on in.

And what about Bermuda? Well, while Kenya scrape by on scraps, they have a massive $11 million investment to underpin their development. However, as lottery winners often discover, money does not buy happiness. The last few months have been dogged by rifts between players and the board, as well as discipline issues, and on the evidence of this series, not only have they not progressed, they might have even taken a step backwards.

The greatest worry for Gus Logie, their coach, is the lack of fitness. Bermuda are not the youngest side, but not are they are approaching the kind of geriatric feel that blighted the USA's participation in the 2004 Champions Trophy either. But several of their side are carrying excess baggage and, in the unforgiving world of one-day cricket, that matters. They also lacked the mental steel which is needed at the highest level.

Time for both sides is running out. But while the Kenyans appear to be getting their house in some kind of order just in time, Bermuda are struggling. They now travel to South Africa where they will face the Netherlands, one of the stronger Associates, and Canada, possibly the weakest side taking part in the World Cup. Unless they show a marked improvement on their Mombasa performances, more gloom awaits them.

According to CricketEurope, the ICC will expand the World Cricket League to five divisions:

The leading five European nations have already won places in the first three divisions: World Cup qualifiers Ireland, The Netherlands and Scotland in Division 1 (which will take place in Kenya in January-February next year), Denmark in Division 2 (planned for Namibia in November 2007), and Italy in Division 3 (planned to take place in the USA in summer 2007).

But with an eight-team Division 5 tournament now planned for the first half of 2008, five places in which are assigned to the next ranked country in each region, Norway are guaranteed a slot, along with Afghanistan, Argentina, Botswana and the Cook Islands.

The three remaining places will be allocated by the ICC Development Committee when it meets in December, and those allocations will be based on the rankings of the next group of countries. This means that Jersey, runners-up to Norway in this year’s European Second Division tournament, and possibly even Germany, who finished third, will be competing with The Bahamas, Panama, Nepal, Singapore, Mozambique, Zambia and Japan for those last three positions.

Read the full story at cricketeurope.net

The ICC, Melbourne Cricket Club and Cricket Victoria have joined forces to establish an equipment drive event for the ICC’s East Asia-Pacific (EAP) Region at the Boxing Day Test between Australia and South Africa. Pads, bats - and in particular, balls - are sometimes scarcely available (or too expensive) and with the game's increasing popularity in the region, organisers hope the public will donate their old equipment to a worthy cause:

The initiative calls on all Victorians to donate their unwanted cricket gear by bringing it with them to the MCG. A collection point will be set up outside Gate 6 on days one, two and three of the Boxing Day Test. The equipment will be distributed to countries such as Fiji, Cook Islands, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.

The ICC's Winter Training Camp has been about more than simply improving players from the six Associate countries to have qualified for the 2007 World Cup, and the rewards are there for all to see. As Richard Done, the high-performance manager, explained:

The future continued development of Associate and Affiliate countries depends not just on the improvement of playing standards but also on the continued improvement of all parts of the cricket support network. Coaching is a key element of this process.

There is real evidence that the players from Bermuda, Canada, Holland Ireland, Kenya and Scotland will benefit from their participation.