All that can be expected of Ireland at this stage of a world event is to make life difficult for better-trained and more gifted rivals. But yesterday they made life easy for a side that had come limping into the game.

New Zealand were missing three of their finest exponents of Twenty20 cricket – Dan Vettori, Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor - and had to hire a club professional from the Bolton League to complete a recognised top six.

Instead of playing to their strengths to scrutinise the Kiwis, Ireland's wayward bowling invited them to dominate from the very first ball and man of the match Aaron Redmond took full advantage, running up 63 off 30 balls.

It was a minor moral victory that the Irish managed to keep Brendon McCullum's men below 200 but their batsmen were never in the contest and were hustled out with 20 balls to spare, losing by 83 runs with the most fancied team in Group F, Sri Lanka, lying in wait at Lord's on Sunday.

The Super Eights script, as it did at the 2007 World Cup, threatens to unravel like one long reality check after what William Porterfield admitted was a missed opportunity.

Now Ireland's hopes of adding to their success over Bangladesh surely lie in the Hyde, rather than the Jekyll version of Pakistan turning up at The Oval on Monday.

Dropping the expensive Boyd Rankin had its roots in common sense, even though the giant pace bowler had shown improvement between Monday and Wednesday.

It was very quickly exposed as a mistake, but few could have expected both his replacement, Peter Connell, and Trent Johnston, the scourge of Bangladesh, to bowl so badly at the outset.

Redmond, 29, was playing league cricket at the weekend and was only registered as a squad member on the morning of the game. This was his first limited-overs international but he hardly batted like it.

Invited to a buffet of full tosses and half-volleys, Redmond helped himself to seven fours in the first two overs and raced to 30 off 10 balls.

Kevin O'Brien calmed matters down briefly but the carnage continued until Porterfield opted to give Kyle McCallan the last over of the Powerplay. The spinner justified his faith by persuading McCullum to drive to mid-off.

New Zealand were not deterred by the loss of a man who hit 166 against Ireland last time out. O'Brien caused a few more problems but two Redmond reverse sweeps took McCallan out of the attack and he reached a remarkable 50 off 23 balls.

The opener was denied the chance to make further inroads when he was wrongly given out lbw to Alex Cusack, having stepped way outside the line of off stump, but Scott Styris picked up where he had left off.

Taranaki-born Regan West was in the same Under 19 World Cup team as three of the Black Caps in 1998, but he was a fast bowler then and it was a fast bowler's attempt to catch Styris off his own bowling that gave the No 4 a life on 16.

McCallan showed a bit of fight when others around him were floundering, and the Kiwis needed 12 an over for the last six to reach 200.

That they didn't quite make it was down to sheer persistence in the face of fire: both Styris and Jacob Oram freed their arms repeatedly but went for one six too many and found fielders in the deep.

Johnston came back well - a yorker accounted for Peter McGlashan, and the veteran's last five balls went for just four runs - but the damage was well and truly done.

In reply, only Andre Botha (28 off 17 balls) scored at the necessary rate for Ireland while the game was still live, with Alex Cusack (20 off 12) impressing in the formalities that followed.

All hope evaporated the second Niall O'Brien mishit Kyle Mills to mid-on - Porterfield had already been cruelly run out, backing up too enthusiastically at the non-striker's end, by the fingertips of Kyle Mills in the first over.

Botha, kept company by Gary Wilson, upped the tempo in the eighth over with consecutive fours off Styris but in the blink of an eye both were out, Botha correctly sent back after lurching off for an unlikely single.

Cusack found the gaps and Johnston got one six away, but too often Ireland tested the amazing reflexes of McCullum, who ended the day with a diving catch and two run outs - not to mention an opening partner who could keep him company all the way to the final.