MEN'S CRICKET: Ireland face a struggle on the last day of this InterContinental Cup match, still 16 runs behind Scotland with eight wickets left, knowing they will have to bat most of the day if they are to avoid another defeat to the Scots.
They have been in trouble since the first over of the first day on Saturday when captain Jason Molins edged Paul Hoffman to the wicket-keeper and, having only played one-day cricket this year, the different challenges of the three-day game have got the better of Ireland.
They will have to show patience, discipline and courage in the face of what is a good Scottish pace attack, backed up with two fine spinners in Ryan Watson and Gregor Maiden. A draw would be a good result for Ireland considering they have been on the back foot all along.
On an uneven pitch prepared with bowlers in mind, Scottish captain Craig Wright stuck Ireland into bat and when play finally began at 3.15pm, having been delayed due to rain, he had them 1-2 with Molins and Andre Botha back in the pavilion.
Molins has had a shocking season so far and the fact he was out in the last over of the day in the second innings yesterday for 18 won't help his mood. He has made a grand total of 145 runs in 11 innings for Ireland this season at an average of 13.
He wasn't the only one to under-perform. There were four ducks with Botha, Peter Gillespie and Conor Armstrong also failing to get off the mark. Four batsmen got to 20 but none was able to push on and get a big score.
The Scottish bowlers put the ball in the right areas consistently and the irregular bounce of the wicket, coupled with some poor shot selections by the Irish, did the rest. At one stage, Ireland were 128 for 9 but a staunch 10th-wicket partnership between Adrian McCoubrey and teenager Greg Thompson saw them through to the close of play with that final wicket intact.
Yesterday morning they looked just as good, Thompson making 35 and McCoubrey 8 not out as they compiled 44 to give Ireland a more respectable-looking total of 172 all out. That partnership could prove crucial.
The Scots batted with a lot more application on the difficult wicket and although they were tied down during the middle of the day, they managed to eke out a 62-run lead. Cedric English batted well for his 66 while Stephen Knox (38) and Neil MacRae (44) also contributed.
Although they did not bowl with as much discipline as the Scots, Ireland's attack acquitted themselves reasonably well, with McCoubrey, Kyle McCallan and Paul Mooney picking up two wickets apiece.
Scotland's disappointing, rain-affected match against the Netherlands a couple of weeks ago means Ireland could even lose today and so long as they beat the Dutch next week in Stormont, they will more than likely qualify for the knock-out stage of this competition in Namibia at the end of October. A draw today, however would make qualification so much easier.
