THE tour that was supposed to give Ireland’s likely World Cup squad invaluable match practice in Australia and New Zealand just keeps on taking.

National Coach Phil Simmons left his squad today, 48 hours before the end of the four-week acclimatisation tour, to return home to Trinidad to be with his gravely ill mother. His exit is, unbelievably, the third premature departure from the squad following captain William Porterfield, for personal reasons, and Ireland’s most capped player, Andrew White, with a broken finger.

Fortunately, for the remaining players and officials there is only one game left – assistant coach Pete Johnston is expected to take charge against Otago in Christchurch tonight (10pm BST) – but the end cannot come quickly enough. And it showed in some of the players’ performance yesterday against Canterbury when they crashed to a second successive defeat and their fourth in six games.

The margin was a huge 117 runs but although the bowlers conceded a massive 382 for six, it was the batsmen who were even more culpable on a blameless pitch, bowled out in 48 overs.

Three players, Andrew Balbirnie, Niall O’Brien and Andrew Poynter all scored 50s but none reached 60 as their attempt to maintain a run rate of nearly eight an over proved well beyond them.

Balbirnie and O’Brien gave Ireland the perfect start with an opening stand of 112 in 18 overs but both fell in the space of 16 balls and with Stuart Thompson and skipper Kevin O’Brien falling either side of Balbirnie, the Ireland XI slumped to 125 for four.

John Mooney with 25 off 28 balls and Poynter 57 from 71 tried hard, but with four of their top five batsmen not available, the depth was just not there to threaten a memorable chase.

The biggest worry is Thompson who has yet to reach double figures after five innings on this trip and the four runs yesterday was his second highest score! He is averaging 3.6 and for the third time the Eglinton all-rounder did not bowl a ball.

“He will bowl on Thursday,” promised O’Brien after the game. “I was trying to get him on today but circumstances didn’t allow it. Thommo needs to bowl a long spell, not just two or three overs, so hopefully will try and get him 10 overs on Thursday.”

The biggest plus yesterday was Andrew McBrine who may not have taken a wicket, again – his only one on tour came in the first match – but his eight overs among the mayhem cost only 38 runs and as O’Brien added: “It was a case of looking after the young bowler – his last two overs could have gone for 20-30 and ruined his figures. This spell will stand him in good stead and help his confidence.”

Apart from the captain, who took one for 21 in his four overs, it was a day to forget for the others, although Graeme McCarter again bowled economically in his first two spells. But although six wickets fell only three were taken by the bowlers, with two runs outs and, embarrassingly, Ronnie Hira, who had never scored a 50 in 76 List A games, being retired after hitting 170.

There may be only one game left but O’Brien admits the squad, what’s left of it, is still learning.

“We have to be harder on ourselves, said the stand-in skipper. “We are playing international cricket and it’s not going to be easy all the time. We have to continue to learn on our feet as a team, not just the young guys – it’s the whole squad of 15 and we need to try and continue to put the good things into practice and finish off with a win on Thursday.”

There’s actually only 14 players left in the squad and Gary Wilson seems certain to again be unavailable for selection tonight with his shoulder injury. But as the coach leaves in unhappy circumstances, it is almost impossible to keep count.

At Lincoln: Canterbury 382-6 (R Hira 170, H Nicholls 71, P Fulton 57) Ireland XI 265 (A Poynter 57, A Balbirnie 55, N O’Brien 55, J Mooney 25, G McCarter 24; W Williams 3-32). Canterbury won by 117 runs.