Cricket Ireland is looking to smash one over the boundary in its search for new corporate partners, with the insurance company RSA due to end its more than seven-year sponsorship of the game in Ireland in December.

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of Cricket Ireland, tells me its current annual income from all of its various sponsorship deals is about €750,000.

Ireland’s stature in the sport is growing rapidly. With a new deal, Deutrom hopes to nudge the figure well north of €1 million. Howzat for confidence? “We believe we are in a strong position. RSA has had exclusivity over most of our sponsorship opportunities, but now we are going to carve it out into different packages,” he said.

The key package is the main shirt sponsorship for the senior men, senior women, and also the A and B teams. With the world cup in Australia and New Zealand next spring, it could be a juicy opportunity for exposure.

Deutrom says talks are ongoing with several potential sponsors, but no deal so far. “We’d like to get close to €1 million annually for [the main package], but we could negotiate downwards from there.”

I’d wager on a foreign financial institution with a big Irish presence, but one that is also seeking exposure Down Under and in places such as India.

Other packages are on offer for its academy and underage teams, the domestic game, and at a grassroots level.

Deutrom wants a five-year main sponsorship deal, by which time he hopes Ireland will be a test nation.