World Cup Qualifiers...

ICC announces schedule for World Cup Qualifiers
Cricinfo staff
February 10, 2009

Three ODI venues are among the nine set to host the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa, according to the schedule released for the 12-team tournament from April 1 to 19. Willowmoore Park in Benoni and Senwes Park in Potchefstroom will be used for first-round and Super Eight matches, while the final will be held at Centurion's SuperSport Park.

The ICC fark up alot of things, but I do like how they feed the Associates into the World Cup...

Any of you smelly yarpies going to catch some games?

Willowmoore A and Wanderers 2?

Good luck to them

I agree with Zim.

I'll be barracking for Uganda, Afghanistan and Kenya, and (to pick a fourth team) Ireland.

"Why?" you ask?

Oh, you asked "WGAF?". My mistake.

But I'll tell youse anyway.


UAE and Oman teams are full of Pakistani and Indians. And I mean _full_. Got nothing against a bit of P&I but it doesn't seem there's much talent in the homebuilt Arabical populations.

The Canadian team, too, is made of migrants, and that country already has its favourite sports.

Bermuda's basically harmless and I couldn't complain if they made it through, but it would only be for laugh value.

Netherlands and Denmark teams are largely composed of the Dutch and the Danes, but again, it's just hard for me to imagine cricket being able to get a real foothold against football. Despite the Netherlands regular appearances at the WC (indicating they are certainly one of the best teams outside the Test sides), Dutch people I've spoken to are unaware that their country has a cricket team, or that there is such a thing as a cricket world cup. Pity, really: they are healthy sporting people and could probably put together a good team if it caught on.

I'm lukewarm on Namibia and Scotland.

Kenya, Uganda, Afghanistan teams are large countries, and their teams are made up of native born people, and no other sport owns those countries: there's some chance that cricket can be their major sports. With proper development support they could achieve a reasonable level of success.

I've thrown Ireland in: although there are some foreign born players, the squad is two-thirds local born and there seems to be a decent club structure. Gaelic football and hurley are the major sports, but in terms of sports that can be played internationally, RU and soccer have been in decline perhaps due to a lack of success. Could be an opportunity. Maybe.

All matches in the WCQ are List A. Additionally, those matches between two nations with current ODI status (ie those six that qualified for WC07) will be classed as ODIs. Of course, some or all of those might be losing ODI status after this tournament.

Although only four teams qualify for WC11, the top six teams will have ODI status for four years.

agree with your analysis on teams to support...those with home grown players are the ones...having some irish ancestry I would like to see them do well...one of my favourite playwrights and authors - beckett - opened the bowling for Dublin University

Afghanistan would be a great story. I think these guys won two divisions below, then finished high enough in the next division to get a crack at this. They may be out of their depth, they may just fight through.

And give that country some good news.

Till they get pounded in the WC proper.

And I can't imagine too many sides wanting to go there to play, which would be a shame.

Invader Zim wrote:ICC announces schedule for World Cup Qualifiers
Cricinfo staff
February 10, 2009

Three ODI venues are among the nine set to host the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa, according to the schedule released for the 12-team tournament from April 1 to 19. Willowmoore Park in Benoni and Senwes Park in Potchefstroom will be used for first-round and Super Eight matches, while the final will be held at Centurion's SuperSport Park.

Where will Australia be based?

He lives.