Stuart Poynter is one of a group of young men who have their eyes firmly set on the 2015 World Cup and say "I can be there".
While Ireland are well-stocked with fine wicket-keeper batsmen in Niall O'Brien and Gary Wilson, Poynter is coming up fast on the rails.
This summer he has already seen off rival third-picks Rory McCann and Fintan McAllister, and is well on the way to carving out a career for himself in county cricket.
"I scored 172 for MCC Young Cricketers against Durham 2nds in June, and John Lewis asked me to play a few games for the county on trial," he told Inside Edge.
There he made 53, 33, 100 and 23, against the 2nd teams of Worcester and Leicester.
"They were pretty positive but I don't want to get ahead of myself," he said.
Poynter, like his brother Andrew, has been down this road before.
Nephew of former Ireland opener Deryck Vincent, he grew up in London and was a feature of the Middlesex youth sides from U13 all the way up.
But he played only one game for the county - 43 v Oxford - before he was released.
"I just didn't get enough runs", the 22-year-old admits.
Run haven't been much of a problem this year for Poynter who, with his club Sunbury in a spot of bother at 60-4, passed the just-out Ireland opener Andrew Balbirnie on the way to the wicket.
"We have a strong batting team so I was batting six, and put a few good partnerships together before I had a bit of fun towards the end."
By ‘having a bit of fun' he means scoring an unbeaten 150, his first century in the Surrey Premier League where each side they meet has a county star or two.
Sunbury are challenging hard for the prestigious title, which means he hasn't been able to turn out as often as he likes for Clontarf.
"Hopefully I'll get over before the season's over but it's hard to fit it all in."
Besides Sunbury, MCC and Durham, he has come over to play for Leinster Lightning and Ireland this summer, scoring fifties for each.
"The Australia A game was a great experience, playing against the bowlers who played in the Ashes (Nathan Lyon, James Pattison, Peter Siddle and Ashton Agar).
At Stormont he made a feisty 63, but admits "I play it as I see it, I didn't really think about it too much."
With the World Cup coming around in early 2015, he listened to last week's draw with hopes that he might be on the field when those fixtures are fulfilled.
"I'd like to think so," he says, "(Cricket Ireland performance director) Richard Holdsworth has been in touch to say that I'm in Phil's thoughts, so I just have to keep working hard and keep putting in the performances."
Five of Poynter's six caps to date have been in four-day games, and he is likely to feature next when Ireland play Scotland in September.
CLONTARF'S stunning RSA Bob Kerr Cup semi-final win over YMCA was a blow to the Sandymount club. In more than 30 years of trying the Claremont Road men have yet to reach the Irish Senior Cup final, and 2013 will go into the book alongside 1988, 1992 and 1998 as final fences they failed to hurdle.
It was a win plotted by Tarf skipper Eoghan Delany, who now follows his father, Gerry, as they only such duo to captain sides in the final. Gerry was at the helm in the 1982 decider when Leinster lost to NICC.
It's the seventh all-Leinster cup final since 2002, and a large crowd is expected at Malahide on the 24th when the preparations for the RSA Challenge the following week will provide added atmosphere.
Tweet of the week: "@CoachSim: Semi final in the bag. #uptheDubs" That's not Phil Simmons showing delight at last-four wins for Clontarf and Merrion, but at his other sporting passion up in Croke Park.
MALAHIDE have got phenomenal value out of their import Ryan Gallagher from Strabane. On Saturday he helped secure a place in the National Cup final with an unbeaten 101 and 3-41 against Rush. That makes more than 550 runs and 25 wickets for the season.
With two Dublin clubs badly burnt this year when Aussie pros upped and left mid-contract, a recruit from closer to home could well be a better bet - and lead to an increased domestic transfer market in 2014.
Performance of the week: 16-year-old Gareth Delany shows great promise, and his 137 for Leinster 3rds continued his fine season.