WARREN DEUTROM has resigned as Chief Executive Officer of Cricket Ireland and will “hand over the baton” at the end of August bringing to an end an extraordinary 19 years in charge of the governing body.

It is hard to understate Deutrom’s achievements in the job, and his passion for it, as he led the Boys in Green towards Full Membership of the International Cricket Council and a first Test match in 2018. 

Indeed, on one occasion his devotion to the cause went as far as lending the organisation EUR 100,000 to see it through a cash flow crisis.

But the leadership and priorities of Deutrom and his senior management team have come under criticism from supporters in recent times, especially the lack of matches played on the island, and the focus on white-ball cricket.

“What’s the point of being a Test-playing team if you don’t play any Tests?” has been a common complaint, with only one five-dayer hosted since the inaugural match against Pakistan seven years ago.

There is also a feeling that spending ICC funds on building an empire of support staff has taken precedence over staging games of cricket.

After two decades, a change at the top and fresh impetus is probably overdue but Irish cricket will always owe a huge debt of gratitude to a man whose drive and diplomacy has achieved so much.

“It’s hard to explain my feelings since making this decision,” Deutrom said. “The role of CEO has covered more than a third of my life and two-thirds of my professional career. It has felt more like a vocation and a true labour of love than a mere job.

“The attainment of ICC Full Membership and Test status is the most significant achievement I’ll look back on with pride.

“Indeed, if the first decade of my role was about trying to achieve Test status, the next decade has been about trying to live up to that privilege.”