In this one-off documentary ‘Batmen’ tells the story of cricket in Ireland from the earliest origins of the game in this country to the recent halcyon days when the national team has forged a reputation for swashbuckling cricket and the giant killing of cricketing superpowers.
It is a tale of a sometimes loved and often little understood sport in Ireland and the sport most impacted by the enormous political changes of the last 200 years. War, famine, revolution, emigration, immigration and economic boom and bust have all taken their toll on the fortunes of Irish cricket.
While ‘Batmen’ looks back on the highlights of Ireland’s cricketing history, it is very much rooted in the here and now. Behind the scenes footage with international and club teams is intercut with archive footage and stills and interviews with current and former cricketing greats, sports journalists, commentators and sports historians.
Over the course of the programme we see The Hills of Skerries win their first All-Ireland Senior club title, we spend time with one of Ireland’s most famous cricket families, the Mooneys; we travel to Dubai to see the senior men’s national team qualify for the 20/20 World Cup and we discover why much like rugby in Limerick, Cricket is the working man’s game in North County Dublin.
We also meet former Irish wicket keeper Ossie Calhoun to hear the incredible story of how Ireland beat the West Indies in ‘69’ bowling them all out for 25. We discover the surprising passion the GAA’s founding father Michael Cusack had for the game; we examine how cricket successfully managed to straddle the community divide in Northern Ireland and we relive the glorious World Cup win over England in 2011.
Interviewees include John Mooney, Ed Joyce, Michael Halliday, Paul Rouse, Andrew White, Peter Gillespie and Ger Siggins. The programme is narrated by former Irish cricketer Alan Lewis.
‘Batmen’ is a Motive Television production for Setanta Sports. The documentary is directed by Maurice Sweeney and produced by Jamie D’Alton and Anne McLoughlin. The project was made with the support and research of cricket writer Ger Siggins.
Recent Motive Television sport documentaries include ‘We Got Game’, ‘The Gambler’ and ‘Man On A Mission’ which won the 2012 IFTA for Best Sports Programme. If you have any further questions or comments please contact jamie@motive.ie.