There's no doubt that the Irish Under 19 World Cup squad travelled with genuine optimism to Malaysia, harbouring genuine hopes of capturing a Test scalp, and hopefully reaching the latter stages of the Plate Competition.

However the reality has been 3 comprehensive defeats to the Test playing nations, and an even more disappointing 20 run loss to in truth, a pretty poor Bermuda side.

Why have the results been so poor thus far? One area which we are obviously deficient in is fielding - while the majority of the squad may be fit, there is a distinct lack of speed and mobility which has been brutally exposed in the sweltering conditions being faced by the players this week.

Brian O' Rourke

"If you compare our lads with the Test nations, it's obvious we're nowhere near their standard. This week has shown there's a massive gap in fitness levels, and they've also done a lot of work in the areas of strengthening and conditioning. The Asian teams have caught up with the South Africans and the Australians in this regard."

"Fitness was one of my key areas prior to the tournament, and we did a huge amount of work. However no amount of 5k runs and swims can adequately prepare you for conditions like the heat and humidity we're faced with. It's not an excuse, just an explanation of how draining this climate is."

How then do we reach the standard of the Test Nations? This was the one facet of the Senior squad which stood up to examination in the West Indies, and drew praise from all quarters.

"Unfortunately, the nature of our playing schedule, means we can only do outdoor fielding work during the summer months. We concentrate on indoor nets in the winter, given how we meet so infrequently. As has been seen, there's a lot more to cricket than net practices."

"We are making progress in the amount of support that is being offered to the squad in terms of fitness. We are becoming more professional in the set up - we have a video analyst (Peter Johnston) withus, and that is a big plus. I have seen progression in these areas in the 3 World Cups I've been involved with. We've got to become even more professional otherwise the gap will get even bigger and bigger."

"What's been so frustrating for me out here is that I've had to go back to basics too often - we should be moving along to a higher level, but I haven't been able to do that. While I've been hoping to talk about the Powerplays, and tactics during when the spinners are on, I've had to go back to running between the wickets, strength of throwing arms, and shot selection. Players have been pre-determining their shots, and it's cost us dearly. At times it's been like dealing with an Under 13 team - run the first quick, play straight and so on.It doesn't seem to be registering - that's just so frustrating - you'd like to think they would know these things coming to a World Cup."

From the sidelines it has been evident that there is a distinct lack of team spirit and togetherness. Why has that been the case?

"There are certainly no cliques in the squad, not that I'm aware of anyway. They are all getting along off the field, but I agree there is a lack of buzz around the side that you'd expect from a team representing Ireland. They are a quiet bunch of players - I'd love to have a Gary Wilson in the squad - what he offers in terms of personality and encouragement can't be under estimated. It's just that we don't have the type of extrovert players that a squad needs."

"I can't fault the players in terms of their discipline - they are all practising hard, and the training sessions have been full on. The facilities are good, and we can only hope that the hard work eventually pays off."

Although it's been a poor display so far, which players have enhanced their reputations?

In the bowling department Andrew Britton has performed really well and worked hard. He wouldn't have been an automatci pick at the start, but he's come through. He bowls straight at a nice pace, and he impressed the England management in our game with them.

In the batting Chris Dougherty and James Shannon have both looked good. Chris cuts and pulls very well, and is willing to spend time at the crease. Shannon is a good timer of the ball, who plays aggressively. He's one of the seven 17 year olds in the squad. Hopefully although we've been poor, lessons have been learned and we'll come back stronger. James Hall and Shane Getkate did well in our game with West Indies, showing good technique and application."