Barry Chambers was in the Caribbean for the whole of Ireland's 2007 World Cup campaign and reported regularly for CricketEurope.

It's about time I returned to the written word after concentrating on photos and audio during the last few campaigns. Can you believe that we're in the last 8 of the World Cup? Is the reaction at home as incredible as we're hearing out here in the West Indies? 159 media requests were in my inbox on the Monday after the Pakistan win, and Roy Torrens had 43 phone calls looking for interviews!

The players all enjoyed seeing the clips on YouTube of the fans going crazy in the pubs and clubs around the country. It's great to bring a feelgood factor to the nation, especially during the winter/spring months.

It's been a surreal competition so far - the atmosphere and excitement of the Zimbabwe game I thought would struggle to be bettered, but that was nothing compared to the Pakistan game. Has a low scoring game ever produced such drama? It must have made for great television.

The players are quite understandly annoyed about the allegations of the game being fixed - how could you account for the catch that Trent Johnston took off Kamran Akmal? Will it be bettered in the tournament? The courage of the Irish batsmen facing the Paksitan barrage, in what has to be said was poor light - poorer than when Scotland got offered the light in Aberdeen, and then they didn't have Mohammed Sami and Co. bowling at 90 mph.

If ever the addage that form was temporary, and class permanent, then Niall O'Brien was the epitomy of that. His match winning 72 will surely rank as one of the finest ever displays by an Irish batsman. I saw his parents Ginger and Camilla shortly after the game, and they were so proud, particularly when you consider thevital contribution that Kevin made as well.

The Irish fans have come across in numbers, and won the adulation of the worldwide sporting media. They brought colour, character, and charisma - (my late English teacher, Paul Wilkins, may he rest in peace, would be proud of my alliteration!), and enhanced our standing as a nation on a global stage.

My abiding memory is the photo taken of Adrian Raftery - the 6 foot 4 inches leprachaun, doing the conga with Raymond Mitchell of Killymallaght. You just have to admire sometimes the positive impact that sport has, and cricket is right up there in breaking down social and religious barriers.

The deaths of Bob Woolmer and Bob Kerr cast a long shadow over the competition, and it was hard to fathom what had transpired. I had met Bob Woolmer on 3 occasions, and each time I was struck by his openness, and love of the game. I don't think I've still recovered from the shock of the loss of Bob Kerr. If ever there was an example of a man who loved Irish cricket, and who worked tirelessly for its improvement, it was Bob. Peter Gillespie has already spoken movingly about him, and there's not much more I can add. Words sometimes don't do justice about how you're feeling.

The West Indies game was an indication of what awaits the team in the Super 8 phase. A clinical display by a highly professional team - that's not to say we played badly. Out score of 190 was about 40-50 short of par, but we bowled okay, and fielded superbly. Shiv Chanderpaul gave as good an exhibition of strokeplay as you're ever likely to come across.

The show has moved onto Guyana, where it rained for the first 3 days, severely restricting the practice sessions. Thankfully, Tuesday saw a good work out, with everyone making full use of the facilities on offer at the old Test ground at Bourda.

This evening saw Adrian Birrell, Matt Dwyer, Roy Torrens, Phil Simmons and myself being invited to the renaming of a street in honour of Lance Gibbs, the former West Indian Test legend who took 309 wickets. We were made to feel especially welcome, and were granted the freedom of the city of Georgetown, Guyana. Quite what that translates to, I'm not quite certain.

The team have taken over the hotel that Pakistan had originally reserved, and the rooms are excellent, although the team were initially concerned about the absence of a swimming pool and gym. The staff have bent over backwards to make us welcome, and rectified this by arranging the use of a nearby sports facility. I have to confess that free internet, a cheap bar and good restaurant,nwere more of a priority to me than exercise facilities!

The game with England approaches on Friday, and an opportunity for immortality awaits. If we win, I think we'll have to name O'Connell Street, Birrell Avenue, or Johnston Gardens.

Wouldn't it be great to win, if only to silence the World Cup doubters? Mary Gillespie - get the prayers beads out which worked against Pakistan. We'll need all the help and support we can get over the next 4 weeks.

The general feeling after the 48 run loss to England is one of a sense of pride tinged with a little disappointment. There's no doubt that for 80-90% of the game, we competed with them in every department. Only for the fireworks of the last 5 overs in their innings, we would have been chasing around 230-240, which would have given us a real chance of another major upset.

We were given a dream start by 'the sheep farmer from Bready', Boyd Rankin. He removed Ed Joyce with his first ball, as he shouldered arms. I was thinking of the roar that must have gone up in pubs and clubs across the North West and beyond when that happened. It got even better when he then nipped out Michael Vaughan, and England were wobbling.

There are quality players throughout the England team, and Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen all batted well, playing some great strokes. I thought our fielding in the ring was first class, although both Trent and Adi were a little disappointed with our work on the boundary.

We lost two of our top batsmen early on, with Jeremy and Eoin going cheaply. William Porterfield and Niall O Brien consolidated our position, and for a while we dared to think we could be on for a win. However the England attack took the pace off the ball, and we struggled to keep up the momentum. Monty Panesar in particular proved hard to get away, and Vaughan himself bowled well.

Trent Johnston and Andy White entertained the 7,000 crowd at the end, but when Flintoff came back, the end was nigh.

It's a sign of how far the team has come that disappointment was the primary emotion. As Adrian Birrell rightly said, 'a few years ago we were playing cricket against the Club Cricket Conference and the Free Forresters – now we're playing against 9 of the top 10 teams in the world. You only learn from competing against teams which are better than you.' Add to that the fact that there are 9 Friends Provident games against the English counties and a tri series with the West Indies in July, and we are now getting the quality and quantity needed to develop.

Off the field of play, the sun has come out, and I'm now wanting to see the rain again. It really is incredibly hot, and which is worse, humid. The players look as if they have been taking a shower after 15 minutes in the nets. They all look super fit, a testimony to the hard work they have put in during the last months, when they have gone full time.

They were clearly happy at the 50,000 Euro bonus donated by the Bank of Ireland – I might even get a drink off a few of them.

It's been a busy week for me with the English media in town – everybody wanted a piece of the team, and we tried to be accommodating as possible. We need all the publicity we can get, and the players have understood that and responded magnificently. Our press conference on Thursday was attended by 50 journalists and 5 camera crews – we'd have settled for that as a crowd not that long ago!

Thankfully most people have now worked out the time difference back home, and I've stopped getting calls at 6 o clock. For two solid days the phone didn't stop ringing with media requests – makes a change from having to ring around pleading for some papers to put in a paragraph. There's no doubt that Irish cricket is now on the world map.

The challenge will be of course how to kick on from here. We all know how fickle supporters can be, and it's up to us to maintain that momentum. Performances on the field will help, but we've got to look at our marketing and promotion of the game. We're lucky in that our Chief Executive, Warren Deutrom, is an expert in that field. The party stand concept is a good one, and the fans have all relished it. We've got to get the domestic clubs interested, and packages for them at a reduced rate would help. I think there's also a case for blank days when Ireland are playing at home.

I've recovered from getting bitten on the legs by every domestic insect in Guyana – the trick is to have the room absolutely freezing, so I'm sleeping in near sub zero temperatures, with tracksuit bottoms on. The local rum is proving to be a good sleeping tablet as well!

I've lost a bit of weight, and am thinking of making a comeback in domestic cricket. I 'm going to get a few bowling tips from Matt Dwyer, as tomorrow, I reach the age at which he won his first cap for Ireland. I don't reckon I've 51 caps in me, but maybe might manage a few games for Ardmore.

We've been out with the people from Digicel a few times, and I have to say the food and people of Guyana have been superb, despite the reservations of a few of the international media. The manager of our hotel, Sean McGrath has organised a trip for the Irish journalists on Monday, so that should be entertaining.

South Africa beckons on Tuesday, and I watched them in the nets this morning. Justin Kemp looked awesome and took great delight in smashing the ball continuously out of the park, and into the middle of a busy intersection.

Jonty Rhodes spoke to myself and Ian Callender after practice, and admitted he was impressed by the improvement in Ireland over the years since he saw them. He told us that Adi had asked him to have a look at their fielding, and he was very complimentary. The only improvement he saw would to be look at a few of our throwing techniques. It has to be said that the strength of throws from the Test nations on the boundary have been awesome.

We're still here and fighting – sure beats work, doesn't it?

Welcome to sunny Guyana - as I write this the rain is torrential yet again - in the 12 days we've been here, I think it's rained on 10 or 11 of them! Of course on some of the scorching hot days, I was wearing plasters to cover the insect bites which were in danger of becoming infected, and I now have the funniest tan lines on the back of my legs, that you've ever seen!

April Fool's Day, my birthday, saw me put the lead story on the site that myself and Matt Dwyer were called into the team for the South Africa game. Now it didn't fool anybody who has ever seen me play, but there were a few unsuspecting souls around who thought it genuine.

That wasn't the only joke played that day as two of the squad were stitched up - Unfortunately I was in the middle of it, and am now awaiting the retaliatory strike from Messrs White and McCallan - I'm on red alert, but it can only be a matter of time before they get their deserved revenge.

Andy has recaptured his form with the bat of a few years ago, and it's good to see him with a smile on his face. His batting gives us yet another option in that department, and we haven't been found lacking so far.

His BBC blog caused quite a bit of a stir, with a huge response to his observations about sections of the English media. There's no doubt that some have been less than kind - but thankfully others seem to be able to see the bigger picture. Is it just me or have Sky and the BBC some of the most awfully patronising sounding people?

On the positive side, Ian Botham has been full of praise for our efforts, while big Colin Croft has backed us from the very start, after he witnessed our displays in the warm up games.

To the South Africa game yesterday, and it was a bad toss to lose. Ntini and Pollock bolwed well in helpful conditions, and the rain delay meant that we were up against it when play resumed. Most of our batsmen played cameo knocks, with some great strokes - two from Niall O'Brien will live in the memory, and I'm sure Lanky will tell the grandchildren one day about his six over midwicket.

Boyd Rankin again impressed - he's been the talk of the competition so far. The media love him - sheep farmer - 6 foot 8 inches tall - size 15 boots that have to be specially made - you couldn't make it up. It takes me back to last year when myself, Matt Dwyer and Ivan Lapsley were looking after the Ireland 'A' side in Abu Dhabi. The games were live on tv and Boyd was bowling - there were giant screens inside the ground, and they kept zooming in on his feet - The Indian commentator said "Boyd Rankin, he is a giant of a man - size 15 boots!"

Jacques Kallis is a class act, and Graeme Smith gives it a frightful thump, but we still competed, and certainly can hold our heads up high.

A few days off now, before back to hard work in training - there are still 4 games in 9 days to be played. New Zealand are next up, and Shane Bond. The players will have to be at their best to combat him.

Here's hoping.

We've departed now from Guyana, and landed in paradise! Or to be more exact, The Hilton Hotel in Barbados, which is real picture postcard stuff. The hotel is opulent, and right on the beach. It is a bit pricey though, especially by Guyana standards.

Last week saw us bump into HRH, Duke of York, Prince Andrew. I had hoped to get him to pose under the triclour which the hotel was flying, but the dollar signs in front of my eyes disappeared, when his not too undercover security staff, informed me that he wouldn't pose for photos.

He did however stop for a chat with myself and Roy Torrens. He knew all about the cricket, and wished us well in our forthcoming games.

Back on the field, and a real curate's egg performance against New Zealand. We let them get off to a flyer, but pulled it back well. Boyd Rankin looked out of sorts, and was 10mph down on his usual speed. Lamky came back well, and the Guyanese Public got the chance to witness 'The Ferret Dance' - which caused much debate on Test Match Special. Incidentally, there has to have been a first on that programme - two Irishmen providing commentary - John Kenny from RTE, and Roy Torrens! John Arlott and Brian Johnston must be revolving in their graves.

Back to the Kiwis - the spin twins of White and McCallan were excellent, but the last 7 overs went for 73, and 263 was always out of reach on a low, slow track. Kevin and Niall O'Brien offered a glimmer of hope at 110 for 3, but Vettori and Patel wrapped things up quickly after a mix up saw Kevin dismissed for 49.

On Sunday we paid a visit to an orphanage and kid's hospital - all the minor grumbles were quickly put into perspective when we saw the plight of the children we visited, and the great work which is being carried out by the First Lady of Guyana. It does the team good to get a dose of the real world every now and again.

Barbados and its sandy beaches now are home for the next 6 days - life doesn't get much better then this - work is however looming on the horizon in less than 2 weeks - going to be hard adjusting back to reality after 4 months of practically non stop cricket. Still there's the domestic season starting, and Ireland have 9 games in the Friends Providnet Trophy - small problem though - I think I'm up to about 2009 for my annual leave.

We've left Barbados behind for the lovely island of Grenada. Barbados saw one of the finest ever performances by an Irish team in comprehensively outplaying Bangladesh. Skipper Trent Johnston called it "The most complete display in his 4 years in the team"

The much maligned top order of William Porterfield and Jeremy Bray came good with an opening stand of 91 - in their previous 7 outings they totalled just 23. Porty won a deserved MOM Award, and there was no prouder man there than Kendrick Marshall, the former Donemana pro, who had coached him as a young boy. I'm sure Noel Dunn at Donemana would have been delighted as well - not to forget his first club, Killyclooney.

It was good to catch up with Hendy Wallace who is now the Richie Benaud of the West Indies. Joel Garner made a request to talk to Boyd Rankin, and he spent an hour on run ups and different types of delivery, and cricket in general.

Adi also met one of his heroes - Mike Proctor - my first memory of cricket on tv was a Gillette Cup match between Gloucester and Hampshire in the early 1970's, when he took 4 wickets in an over, including two of my heroes, Gordon Greenidge and Barry Richards. By a strange quirk of fate, Greenidge was presenting the MOM to Porterfield, and there was a scramble to be photographed with the legend.

My cousin David McAllister and his wife Claire arrived out for the Barbados leg, and it was great to see a familiar face after such a length of time away from home. They both really enjoyed the games and the special atmosphere - they danced and sang along with the barmy and blarney armies. Special word of praise to Michael and Mark Gillespie - who landed unexpectedly along with Tom Feely from the 33rd County - Kilburn! Enjoyed Lawrence Moore's quip that Michael Gillespie had been on Sky more often that the Simpsons!

Had the hangover from hell after the Bangladesh win - still not 100% if truth be told - looking forward to Sri Lanka tomorrow - hopefully Adi will bow out with a win.

Expect a few tears between now and Thursday.