Ireland will have the backing of Tourism Ireland when they take part in the World Cup finals in Australia and New Zealand next month, but it was the new playing strip which attracted most of the attention at yesterday's sponsorship announcement in Dublin.

Vice-captain Kevin O'Brien was the first to appear in the fluorescent green shirt which the squad will play in, with navy trousers. Certainly if the lights go out in any of their five floodlit games, the Ireland players will still be seen!

National Coach Phil Simmons admitted too many batsmen were "out of nick" at the recent Tri-Series with Scotland and hosts Afghanistan but with three more matches in Sydney next month before the World Cup opener in Nelson, he is happy the players have time to get it right.

Craig Young, one of the bowling successes of the trip, was also at Trinity College yesterday and he admitted his confidence is growing with every game.

"As long as I'm taking wickets and we're getting good wins under our belts I'm happy. I got a lot of swing in Dubai and hopefully can repeat that at the World Cup. We are now just looking forward to it all kicking off," he said.

Neil Gibbons, chief executive of Tourism Ireland, said: "It's wonderful to be involved in a sport that has such a wide appeal in many of our tourism markets."

Cricket Ireland CEO Warren Deutrom added: "Cricket is Ireland's fastest growing sport and has enormous prominence in a number of key overseas markets.

"We are confident we can deliver for Ireland plc."

The Ireland squad leave for Australia next Friday.