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Ireland Wolves go 2-1 up against Namibia after convincing win; Campher impresses on debut

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IRENE, South Africa – The Ireland Wolves have taken the upper-hand in the five-match T20 series against Namibia with a 49-run victory today at the Irene Country Club in South Africa.
The sides were level at one win apiece, with the Wolves bringing debutant Curtis Campher for his first appearance in Irish colours. Namibian captain Gerhard Erasmus won the toss and sent the Wolves into bat, but from the first ball the visitors sparkled with the bat.

Opener Stephen Doheny followed up on his 63* in the last match with a thumping innings of 58 from 33 balls today (including 5 fours and 3 sixes). Debutant Campher coming in at no. 3 hit 45 from 33 balls, and the in-form Gareth Delany continued his good batting form with a quickfire 38 from 22 balls.

Captain Harry Tector (17*) and Lorcan Tucker (16*) smashed 29 runs from the final two overs, and the Wolves finished on 196-5 from 20 overs.

MATCH UPDATE
End of innings, and Ireland Wolves finish on 196-5.
Interesting Wagon Wheel from the innings – a heavily 'off-side' innings. 11 sixes and 12 fours were struck by the Wolves batters.
Live scorecard: https://t.co/rcEwy1by9J #BackingGreen #GoWolves pic.twitter.com/xB7BdJYxXx
— Cricket Ireland (@Irelandcricket) February 21, 2020

Needing a fast start, Namibia lost early wickets, and when the dangerman Erasmus was dismissed for 5, chopping on a ball from Shane Getkate (2-33), the African sides run chase looked forlorn.

Jacob Mulder impressed in the middle overs with 3-23 from 4 overs, and despite a late 58 from 37 balls from Craig Williams, the Namibian side could not keep pace with the run rate required and finished on 147-8 from their 20 overs.

The Ireland Wolves 49-run win puts them in a 2-1 lead with two matches to play on Sunday.

Speaking from the ground, debutant Campher – a 20-year old all-rounder who is born in South Africa but holds an Irish passport – was discussing his background and path to where he is today:

“Basically, my late grandmother on my father’s side was born and lived in Derry/Londonderry. I grew up playing cricket, and in prep school – like most kids – I wanted to do everything, so I used to bowl bat and ‘keep, which meant I was never out the game. My cricket idols growing up were Jacques Kallis and Dale Steyn.”
“My teammates here aren’t all new to me – I first met Harry [Tector] when we was on exchange to South Africa to St Stithians Boy’s College and have kept in contact over the years.”
“In 2018 I also had the chance to play the Irish senior side during their World Cup Qualifier warm-ups. I was fresh out of school and learnt so much that day – I even managed to score 40-odd and took a wicket or two, but just the chance to bowl against the likes of Paul Stirling was amazing.”
“Playing for South Africa Under-19s was a great experience – to play against West Indies in South Africa was a nice challenge, but my best memory was touring England and winning the one-day series away from home.”

Campher’s 45 from 33 balls today included two fours and three sixes, and he featured in a 40-run partnership with Doheny and a 75-run stand with Gareth Delany. He was eventually caught at long-on looking to push the run-rate on in the latter overs.

Ireland Wolves will play two further T20s against Namibia on Sunday, followed by two 50-over matches against Namibia next week, and finishing their tour with a 50-over match against the Northern Titans Invitation XI.

The Wolves tour

The Ireland Wolves is a second-tier international men’s team that was created in 2017 to bridge the gap between domestic first class and international cricket. The squad has played full-series’ against Bangladesh A (both home and away), toured Sri Lanka in 2019 and recorded two victories over visiting senior sides – Bangladesh and Zimbabwe – in 2019.

The squads for the current tour are:

T20 Squad
Harry Tector (capt), Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, Stephen Doheny, Jonathan Garth, Shane Getkate, Tyrone Kane, Josh Little, Nathan McGuire, Jacob Mulder, Neil Rock, Stuart Thompson, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young.

50-over Squad
Harry Tector (capt), James Cameron-Dow, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Stephen Doheny, Shane Getkate, Tyrone Kane, Josh Little, James McCollum, Neil Rock, Jack Tector, Gary Wilson, Craig Young.

The fixtures are:

• 18 Feb 2020 – 1st T20 v Namibia; 2nd T20 v Namibia
• 21 Feb 2020 – 3rd T20 v Namibia
• 23 Feb 2020 – 4th T20 v Namibia; 5th T20 v Namibia
• 26 Feb 2020 – 1st 50 over match v Namibia
• 27 Feb 2020 – 2nd 50 over match v Namibia
• 29 Feb 2020 – 50 over match v Northern Titans Select XI