Cricket and the Absent Irish Flag

There was a pleasant surprise on St. Patrick's Day with the amazing defeat of Pakistan by the Irish cricket team in the World Cup; though Seanachie does not know a single Irish person who has ever wielded the willow, he is an admirer of this fine sport and he whiled away many languorous Spring afternoons as an undergraduate watching games in College Park. But I was disappointed when I logged onto the Cricket World Cup's official site to find that the only country that is not emblematised by its proper national flag is...Ireland. I don't know if the Irish Cricket Union has anything to do with this but one is moved to ask why this is the case. I can understand that there might be some members of the Irish cricket team (as is the case with the rugby team) that profess at least an equal allegience to the British flag, and Seanachie is not so chauvinistic that he cannot respect this. But, considering that both England and Scotland are happy to line out (at least on the ICP's official website) under flags other than the Union one, and that a number of the Irish team originated in South Africa and Australia, one might be forgiven for thinking that the tricolour would serve everyone on the team equally well. Its colours do, after all, embody an equality between two communities that is seen on few other flags in the entire world, and, despite the Republic's many faults, this is something that has never been interfered with by that State. Right-wing nutcases in cases such as this usually rant on about 'political correctness' and whatnot, but Underachievement is above all that. Here's hoping the Irish XI hoist the national flag for the game against the West Indies.