Is Stormont now stadium priority no 1?

Cricket Ireland announced funding for the Belfast project - what does this mean for Abbotstown?

📸: Cricket Ireland

You’d be forgiven for thinking a shift had occurred.

Last Thursday, Warren Deutrom announced he would step down as CEO of Cricket Ireland. The next day, the governing body’s board revealed they would be contributing £1 million towards the redevelopment project at Stormont.

Coincidence? Plenty have drawn the conclusion that, with Abbotstown widely seen as Deutrom’s baby, focusing on Stormont as soon as he said he was off was a statement from the board. Could the Belfast ground now be priority number one, especially as CI also explicitly stated their goal of hosting 2030 T20 World Cup matches north of the border?

This was not just mere social media chatter. Writing in the Daily Mail, Ger Siggins said that “Deutrom’s exit is also likely to see the sidelining of the Abbotstown stadium scheme, which he had largely driven.”

For many a year, we have been told that Abbotstown would be Irish cricket’s saviour. Is this the end?