English avoid repeat Irish upset

IRELAND’S cricketers suffered an 11-run defeat to England in yesterday’s RSA Challenge one-day-international in Dublin.

William Porterfield’s men were thwarted by three rain breaks during the course of the day, bringing into play the Duckworth-Lewis method, a statistical programme that revises the target score.

It eventually required Ireland to score 129 off 23 overs, a task that was beyond the means even of Kevin O’Brien, despite the Railway Union all-rounder briefly threatening to repeat his match-winnings innings of Bangalore.