Ireland coach Phil Simmons was in upbeat mood as he reflected on the past few months, and looked ahead to the African tour next month. "It's been a good end to the season for us, winning our last 11 games, after we lost badly to New Zealand and Scotland. We have areas we can improve on, especially in pressure situations, and also in the bowling department, by taking wickets in the middle overs. Hopefully the return of Boyd (Rankin) can see us address that."

Did he feel that the squad had what it took to emerge undefeated from their African travels, "Yes, I'd like to think so. We know what to expect from Kenya, having played them recently, but obviously in much different conditions. We now it's going to be hard in their country, and it'll also be difficult against Namibia in Windhoek. It won't be easy, but I'm confident we'll acquit ourselves well."

The squad isn't with its injury concerns - did he feel happy that Andrew White, Kevin O'Brien and Phil Eaglestone would play a full part? "There's still some work to be done - Kevin is doing some fitness work on Monday, and sees the specialist again on Wednesday, and Andrew will have a batting session early next week, and we'll know then where we stand. I'd be happy to play Kevin solely as a batsman, as it might be too soon to expect him to bowl. It'll be good to see a fully fit Phil Eaglestone in action. We need him as cover for our opening attack, as although we have a few seamers in the squad, we don't have much cover for our opening attack"

On the exclusion of Eoin Morgan from the squad, Simmons said, "Morgan has a few niggling injuries, and for him to leave County cricket on the 27th or 28th, fly to Africa for the 2 ICup games, and then fly back to be with Middlesex for their games in the West Indies might be hard. He's asked for these games off to give him a chance to recuperate, and I've agreed."

There are a few changes to the squad, and Regan West is in there instead of Gary Kidd - had Simmons seen enough of West to include him? "I haven't seen very much of his batting, but I've seen him with the ball, and he can certainly bowl. You have to listen to certain people, and take advice from some of the players, and if Kyle (McCallan) tells me that Regan would bat higher than him in the team, then you have to respect that opinion, because Kyle is an experienced and good judge of a player."

John Mooney has also forced his way back into contention, and Simmons paid tribute saying, "The reports came back about his impressive displays in the 'A' team (he won player of the tournament), where he bowled, batted and fielded well, and just edged out Thinus (Fourie)."

The big news to emerge from the conference was the revelation that Trent Johnston was now available for the whole tour, and has rescinded his earlier decision to retire form 50 overs ODI's. "Trent is back playing full ODI's for us, and I think it's a good thing for us, because he brings a lot to the team int erms of his all round abilities with both bat and ball, and of course his experience. It's great to have him back on board."

Simmons confirmed that Johnston would indeed be available for the World Cup Qualifiers, although their location and timing is still surrounded in doubt, "That's a great boost for us, and should help us. The rest has obviously done him good, and his batting at 7 or 8 strengthens our team."

What then about the players who missed out on selection - how difficult was it to leave out the likes of Paul Stirling, Gary Kidd, Thinus Fourie and Reinhardt Strydom? "That's one of the hardest parts of being a coach. It wasn't easy having to phone these guys and tell them that they hadn't made the fifteen. They've played a big part in our success this year, but it had to be done."

Simmons is excited by the new ball pairing of Peter Connell and Boyd Rankin saying, "They both looked good during the first Kenyan ODI, and it'll be interesting to see how they perform on different types of wicket in Africa, and see what they can add to the armoury down there."

Ireland play two InterContinental Cup games against Namibia and Kenya, and follow that up with a triangular ODI Series involving Kenya and Zimbabwe.