Cricket: Ireland have given teenage batsman Paul Stirling the chance to stake his claim as Eoin Morgan's long-term successor by naming him in their 15-man World Twenty20 squad. Morgan will appear in next month's event in the colours of hosts England, meaning a place for Stirling.
The 18-year-old has been part of Ireland’s Friends Provident Trophy campaign this season.
The only other change from the squad which won the recent ICC World Cup qualifying tournament sees Jeremy Bray drafted in in place of Andrew Poynter.
Ireland coach Phil Simmons said: “Paul has been in such good form in the Friends Provident Trophy, with two exceptional knocks.
“It’s not just been the fact that he’s scored runs, but the manner in which he has played. He’s been confident, powerful and dominant. It’s hard to believe innings of such maturity can come from one so young.
“He looks the part and has a great attitude to the game which will stand him in good stead in years to come.”
South-Africa born Andre Botha also makes the cut despite worries over an ankle complaint, although teams can replace injured players at any point.
“Andre will undergo rigorous testing on his ankle in two to three weeks’ time, and we’ll make a final decision then,” said Simmons.
“He definitely won’t bowl in the tournament, but I’d be very confident he can play a major role with the bat.
“We have struggled a bit with the ball in the current Friends Provident campaign, but we’ll have a lot of experience coming back in Trent Johnston and Alex Cusack, as well as big Boyd (Rankin).”
Ireland squad: William Porterfield (captain, Gloucestershire), Andre Botha (North County), Jeremy Bray (The Hills), Peter Connell (North Down), Alex Cusack (Clontarf), Trent Johnston (Railway Union), Kyle McCallan (Waringstown), John Mooney (North County), Kevin O'Brien (Railway Union), Niall O'Brien (wicketkeeper, Northamptonshire), Boyd Rankin (Warwickshire), Paul Stirling (Carrickfergus), Regan West (Civil Service North), Andrew White (Instonians), Gary Wilson (Surrey).