IT WASN’T a shock. Well, maybe the ease of victory over the West Indies - by nine wickets with 15 balls to spare - was far more comfortable than could have been expected but Ireland’s advance into the Super 12 of the T20 World Cup will not raise too many eyebrows.

The leg spin bowling of Gareth Delany, the return to form of Paul Stirling and a quality all-round performance in the field are all to be lauded but perhaps the celebrations in Hobart last night were indicative of how times have changed.

A few beers with the focus on tomorrow’s first Super 12 match against Sri Lanka at the same Bellerive Oval were in stark contrast to the scenes when Ireland first announced themselves on the global stage at the 2007 World Cup.

That famous three-wicket win against Pakistan in Jamaica, sparked the mother of all parties, with players and fans dancing till dawn and drinking the hotel bar dry in Ocha Rios.

It wasn’t a shock because the two-time World T20 champions are not the force they were, with Chris Gayle retired and several other established stars in the short form choosing to sit this one out and recharge batteries for the next big franchise pay day.

There was talk of Ireland needing to see off the threat of Alzarri Joseph but instead of nurdling singles and keeping their powder dry, the Ireland batsmen met fire with fire and Stirling smashed two sixes and three fours as the fearsome paceman disappeared for 39 from his four overs.

It wasn’t a shock because the West Indies are notoriously suspect against spin bowling and Delany’s career-best 3-16 from four overs, which won him the Player-of-the-Match award, was well supported by a couple of tidy sets and a wicket from Simi Singh.

Barry McCarthy bounced back from his mauling by Scotland to claim the other wicket that fell in a total of 146-5 and Mark Adair was excellent in the powerplay as all the bowlers stuck to their plans to make the West Indies hit to the longer boundaries.

Delany paid credit to the tactics of spin bowling coach Nathan Hauritz who had him delivering slowly and drifting the ball wide to the left-handers, forcing two of them to hole out, while the dangerous Rovman Powell was also held in the deep.

It wasn’t a shock that when Ireland needed a positive start Stirling shrugged of a poor run of form that had seen him fail to add to 26 T20 international half-centuries in 21 innings since making 51 against Oman in his first outing of the year.

The 64 runs he and skipper Andy Balbirnie piled on in the first six overs settled more than just nerves and Stirling got his head down to see the job to completion, returning to the acclaim of his team-mates with 66 not out from 48 balls.

Add that top score to the 92 he made the last time Ireland beat the West Indies in a World Cup - the 50-overs version in 2015.

When Balbirnie was caught at point in the eighth over, after clearing the ropes three times, Lorcan Tucker picked up the baton, striking 45 not out with another show of fearlessness.

After losing to Zimbabwe, who beat Scotland by five wickets yesterday to top Group B, Ireland had no margin for error and produced two wonderful performances. They will now look to take that momentum into Super 12 games against Sri Lanka, England, Afghanistan, Australia and New Zealand.

And it won’t be a shock if the Boys in Green win a couple of those games too because Heinrich Malan’s young side and their exciting brand of cricket are very much there on merit.