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| Personnel | |
|---|---|
| Captain | Matthew Humphreys |
| Coach | Simon Johnston |
| Owner | Northern Cricket Union of Ireland |
| Team information | |
| Colors | Navy and Red |
| Founded | 2013 |
| Home ground | Stormont Cricket Ground, Belfast |
| Capacity | 7,000 |
| History | |
| Inter-Provincial Championship wins | 0 |
| Interprovincial One-Day Trophy wins | 2 |
| Interprovincial Twenty20 Cup wins | 1 |
Northern Knights is a first-class inter-provincial cricket team in Ireland.
The team participates in the Inter-Provincial Championship, Interprovincial One-Day Trophy & Interprovincial Twenty20 Cup.
The team represents the Northern Cricket Union of Ireland, which in turn covers most of eastern and southern Ulster and parts of western Ulster.
History
In 2013, Cricket Ireland formed a three-day Championship, 50 over Cup and 20 over Trophy featuring teams from Leinster, the North and the North West. The NCU team would be known as the Northern Knights. On 8 April, they announced Eugene Moleon as their coach and Gavin Rogers as his assistant coach.[1]
The Knights lifted their first trophy, the Inter-Provincial Cup, in that debut season. A surprise final day victory by the North West Warriors over Leinster Lightning ensured the Knights won the title by a single point.[2]
Up to and including the 2016 Inter-Provincial Championship, the matches were not given first-class status. However, at an International Cricket Council meeting in October 2016, first-class status was awarded to all future matches.[3][4]
In January 2016, Simon Johnston, then head of Waringstown Cricket Club, was appointed head coach of the team, replacing Eugene Moleon.[5]
In would be 2019 before the Knights silverware drought came to an end. The team won 3 of their 6 Inter-Provincial Trophy games in a rain-affected season which was enough for captain Gary Wilson to lift the trophy.[6]
Following Wilson's retirement, Harry Tector took over captaincy duties for the 2021 season.[7] He was succeeded by Mark Adair in 2022.[8]
2023 was the most successful year in the team's history as they completed a List A and T20 double.[9]
Honours
- Inter-Provincial Cup - (List A) - 2 titles
- Inter-Provincial Trophy - (T20) - 1 title
- Winners: 2023
Current squad
- ‡ denotes players with international caps.
- * denotes players qualified to play for Ireland on residency or dual nationality.
| Name | Nationality | Birth date | Batting style | Bowling style | Club | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batters | ||||||
| Ross Adair ‡ |  Ireland | (1994-04-21) 21 April 1994 | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | Lisburn | Captain; Ireland central contract |
| Cade Carmichael ‡ | Ireland | (2002-03-08) 8 March 2002 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Instonians | Ireland central contract |
| Shane Dadswell |  South Africa | (1997-11-18) 18 November 1997 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Instonians | |
| James McCollum ‡ | Ireland | (1995-08-01) 1 August 1995 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Waringstown | |
| Paul Stirling ‡ | Ireland | (1990-09-03) 3 September 1990 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | — | Ireland central contract |
| Charles Swart * | South Africa | — | Right-handed | — | C.I.Y.M.S. | |
| Morgan Topping | Ireland | (1999-03-25) 25 March 1999 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | Waringstown | |
| All-rounders | ||||||
| Mark Adair ‡ | Ireland | (1996-03-27) 27 March 1996 | Right-handed | Right-arm fast-medium | Lisburn | Ireland central contract |
| Adam Leckey | Ireland | (2006-09-25) 25 September 2006 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | CSNI | |
| Jordan Neill ‡ | Ireland | (2005-09-03) 3 September 2005 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | CSNI | |
| Wicket-keepers | ||||||
| Kian Hilton | Ireland | (2005-02-11) 11 February 2005 | Right-handed | — | North Down | |
| Sam Topping | Ireland | (2005-05-06) 6 May 2005 | Left-handed | — | Waringstown | |
| Bowlers | ||||||
| Harry Dyer | Ireland | (2006-03-15) 15 March 2006 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | CSNI | |
| Matthew Foster | Ireland | (2000-01-15) 15 January 2000 | Left-handed | Right-arm fast-medium | Waringstown | |
| Matthew Humphreys ‡ | Ireland | (2002-09-28) 28 September 2002 | Right-handed | Slow left arm orthodox | Instonians | Ireland central contract |
| Thomas Mayes ‡ | Ireland | (2001-01-04) 4 January 2001 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | North Down | Ireland retainer contract |
| Carson McCullough | Ireland | (2005-02-28) 28 February 2005 | Right-handed | Slow left arm orthodox | C.I.Y.M.S. | |
| Cian Robertson | Ireland | (2002-08-19) 19 August 2002 | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | Instonians | |
| Reuben Wilson ‡ | Ireland | (2006-09-17) 17 September 2006 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Clontarf | Ireland education contract |
Grounds
References
- Ireland, Cricket. "Coaches announced for Inter-Provincial Series - Cricket Ireland". www.cricketireland.ie. Archived from the original on 20 September 2022. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
- Easdown, Craig (22 September 2013). "Warriors beat Lightning to give RSA Inter-Provincial Cup to Northern Knights". Cricket Ireland. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
- "Ireland domestic competition awarded first-class status". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
- "Ireland's Inter-Provincial Championship awarded first-class status". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
- Ireland, Cricket. "Interview with New Northern Knights Coach Simon Johnston - Cricket Ireland". www.cricketireland.ie. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
- Callender, Ian (18 August 2019). "Knights lift T20 crown". Irish Cricket Archives. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
- "Tector honoured to secure Northern Knights captaincy". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 30 March 2021. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
- "Mark Adair takes over captaincy of Northern Knights". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 31 January 2022. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
- Morton, Johnny (8 September 2023). "Northern Knights complete historic Inter-Provincial Cup and Trophy double". News Letter. Retrieved 8 January 2024.