Ireland pulled off the first 'upset' of the ICC Cricket World Cup when they defeated West Indies by four wickets in Nelson.
The fifth match of the tournament broke protocol and saw the chasing team triumph for the first time, with the industrious, hardworking Irish reaching their target of 305 with 25 balls remaining.
Paul Stirling led the chase, scoring 92 from 84 balls. He had terrific support from Ed Joyce with 84 and Niall O’Brien, who was unbeaten on 79 at the close.
Earlier, West Indies recovered from 87-5 to reach 304-7 after Lendl Simmons and Darren Sammy shared a partnership of 154 for the sixth wicket. Simmons made 102 and Sammy scored 89, with George Dockrell taking 3-50 with the ball.
Tipped my many to have a strong chance of over-turning the twice former winners, Ireland inserted the West Indies, despite the surface and the conditions appearing to favour batting.
Kevin O’Brien, who played for Nottinghamshire in 2009, made the initial breakthrough, dismissing Dwayne Smith in the eighth over.
A poorly judged run then cost Darren Bravo his wicket, run out by a direct hit from Andy McBrine, Bravo, another former Outlaws player hadn’t faced a ball.
Somerset’s Dockrell then picked up three huge wickets in just a couple of overs, having Chris Gayle caught in the deep by Kevin O’Brien, before gaining positive lbw verdicts against both Marlon Samuels and Denesh Ramdin.
Simmons and Sammy’s stand deflated the Irish bubble somewhat but the eventual total was only around par but ensured that the West Indies had emulated the four previous sides who had batted first in the tournament by passing 300.
Those other teams had been able to defend their score but it proved more difficult for the Caribbean stars.
Stirling and William Porterfield put on 71 for the first wicket but stands of 106 and 96 then followed to take Ireland to 273-3 in the 40th over.
Andy Balbirnie and Gary Wilson went cheaply and when a mix-up between the O’Brien brothers had Kevin run out for nought the West Indies had a glimmer of a chance.
Niall O’Brien and John Mooney, both playing in their third World Cup, weren’t to be denied and crossed the finishing line to scenes of great jubilation.
Stirling was awarded the Man of the Match award for his innings, which included 9 fours and 3 sixes.
After recording wins over Pakistan, Bangladesh and England, plus a tie with Zimbabwe, during their first two World Cup adventures, the self-proclaimed ‘Boys In Green’ have now added the scalp of another major Test-playing nation to their cv and will be looking to emulate their 2007 performance by advancing from the Pool stage.
They will be looking to make it two wins out of two when they face the United Arab Emirates in their next match, in Brisbane next Wednesday.
The West Indies next play Pakistan, another side that lost their opening fixture, in a crucial match in Christchurch on Saturday.
Trent Bridge hosts the fourth Royal London One-Day International between England and New Zealand on Wednesday 17 June. Don't miss the chance to take in what promises to be an absorbing contest and secure your seat now.