Saturday sees the GMcG Junior Cup Final between Instonians II’s and Cooke Collegians at Larne (11am).

There’s a familiar face captaining the Shaw’s Bridge side, with James Shannon, capped 18 times by Ireland between 2012-18 at the helm.

CricketEurope spoke with the 35-year-old former International ahead of the cup decider.

Instonians have a very young squad. How are you finding skippering them?

It is young but that was very intentional by the club at the start of the season. We identified the role that the second team needed to play, and really, it's a developmental team.

We are trying to make sure that young kids who have a dream of playing professional or international cricket get into the system as quickly as possible and try to play as many matches against adults and test themselves at that level. I'm firmly of the belief that if you're good enough you're old enough.

I think that has been backed up by a lot of our young guy’s performances. It's been great captaining them. Obviously, captaincy isn't something that's alien to me but I've been coaching these guys. I've done a lot of coaching in the past, building rapports, understanding their development, what's important to them, what they're trying to achieve and give them the best option to do that. 

We also have some on the fringes of our firsts, identifying them as specific role-fillers either at the top of the order, finishers at the end, guys who can bowl in the middle overs, spinners, so I've really enjoyed the experience of guiding them.

What players should we be keeping an eye on in the future?

It's a very difficult one as they are so young at the minute, but very hungry and dedicated. How they will develop is up to them. All we can do is give them the opportunity, and if they take it with both hands, what to learn, from watching and playing, then I think all of them have a very bright future for Instonians First XI, maybe next year.

Also, for some of our 13/14 year-old moving on into Irish youth squads, then the 19's and hopefully into the Ireland team or in England. Some guys who have been good this year include Hridaan Salian - he has taken a few five-wicket hauls, and he also got a six-wicket haul for the NCU Under-13s earlier this week as well. He's been an opportunity thanks to the club's refocusing and done really well.

We have another very good leg-spinner and top-order batter, Pranav Saran. He's only 13 too but got three wickets at Waringstown including James Cameron-Dow, who he bowled.

Batting wise, we have David Agnew who has just been selected in the Ireland U15s, he's a good all-round prospect. 
We are also looking at seamer Max Willmott, who I think also has a lot of potential with the bat as well. He's a possible first team all-rounder next season, as is George Craigan. He got 50 off 30 balls against Woodvale and looked as good as any in the top six. He's very much an impact player, who bowls good lengths as well.

One other worth mentioning is a player called Jamie Jones, who joined us from Larne and is physically tall and strong. I think he's an excellent prospect. Cricket Ireland these days are looking at guys who can bowl 85mph plus and if he continues on the path that he's on I think he can achieve that. Jamie would be probably be my stand-out, along with Hridaan and David Agnew.

The Junior Cup has brought out the best in you, with a century and an unbeaten 99. Any chance of another one in the final?

I have enjoyed batting but hopefully the rest of the team will get runs. The main purpose for me is to steer them in the right direction, not to score the runs for them. I will do it if the team requires, but it's not about me personally any more. 
It's about development, it's making sure they do the right things, learn from their mistakes, and follow the process over the season. If I get runs, so well and good, but I would much rather see one of the young kids score a hundred, that would give me a lot more joy on Saturday.

What advice will you be giving the team ahead of the final?

Nothing out of the ordinary. It's just another game of cricket. If we stay present and focused, react well, because Cooke Collegians will no doubt put us under extended pressure at times. I like that as we will then be able to see the character of our guys. That's another aspect of what representative coaches look for, to see how they react under pressure, so it will be a good test for them.

You’ve played at the highest level. Still get excited by a Junior Final?

Of course, I love playing cricket for Instonians. I wanted them to get a run in the cup, to see who stand up at various points. We have had some really good individual performances along the way, although maybe lacking a bit of consistency. I'm excited. Obviously, I want to win, but I want the younger guys to win rather than the older hands. That's not really what we are about.

What do you know about your opponents, Cooke Collegians?

Cooke Collegians have had a real re-emergence over the last few years. They have got some really good players now. I went down to watch them recently against Ardent Blues and got to look at their bowlers. I know some of the parents, with Luke Willmott, Max's dad playing for them.

Vinoth Srinivasan, also is a fantastic player who got a century, three wickets, and two run-outs on his 41st birthday against DSK, so he's obviously in good form. I was actually joking with him that I was going to pick his eight-year old son to bowl against him as he is a serious talent even though only in P4!

They are a dangerous, impact team who on their day could beat anyone. We won't be taking them lightly. They've obviously played some very good cricket to get to the final, and are quite high up in Section Two.

Any other thoughts on the final and what it means for Instonians?

We are trying to produce as many players as we can who could go on to play for Ireland. Enjoyment is also an important element for us. It's also about inclusion, diversity, integrating different communities, giving kids the opportunity to enjoy the game we all love.

That's going to be one of the aspects about Saturday that I'm going to enjoy about playing against Cooke Collegians. The fact that we are so close, not just in terms of a ground share, but parents, coaches and friends on opposite sides. 

I think it will be a really good, competitive game, but also played in the right spirit. It's a nice relationship builder between two clubs that maybe always haven't seen eye-to-eye. I'm really looking forward to playing at Larne. I haven't played there since I was 14, but some of our younger guys have, so hopefully that's to our advantage.