Laura Delany: 'We will be targeting certain teams in order to advance'

We are looking forward to the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifiers 2017 in Sri Lanka to claim a spot in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 in England and Wales in June-July.

Australia, New Zealand, the West Indies and England have already qualified, leaving four spots open. If we are to position ourselves in the top four, not only would we qualify for the World Cup but we would also then be included in the ICC Women's Championship, meaning a lot more cricket against the top seven teams.

Like any tournament, there are certain teams we will be targeting to ensure we make it out of our group. We had a successful summer, beating both Bangladesh and South Africa twice. We approached these games with a clear mind set, with batters building key partnerships and bowlers hitting a consistent line and length.

As a team, we were confident and knew we were capable of defeating our opposition. Whilst the age profile of the squad is young, there is a vast amount of experience within the group that I know will stand us in good stead when the pressure is on.

As a squad, we have been building up to this event and have been working incredibly hard over a number of months. We have a great mix of experience and youth within the current squad. Several players have been based in Australia during our off-season, leveraging great opportunities to develop their game against quality opposition, as well as learning from the teams around them.

At the start of the year, Ireland-based players travelled to La Manga in Spain to train using their outdoor facilities. The La Manga resort contains outdoor nets and artificial wickets, allowing the team to practice fielding outside under specific game scenarios. The club has an indoor and outdoor pool which the team used for recovery sessions after training, as well as a spinning studio used by the team for a conditioning hit.

Our journey to the World Cup Qualifiers began in Dubai on 24 January when the entire team travelled there for a preparation camp ahead of the Sri Lanka tournament. The camp was a great opportunity for us to train as a squad in top class facilities, in conditions that are somewhat similar to those in Sri Lanka.

We planned some warm-up matches against Scotland in Sharjah and the final warm-up match will be in Sri Lanka against Bangladesh. The warm-up games will be a vital part of our preparation. The transition between training indoors and playing games in different conditions to those in Ireland, can often take players some time to adjust. These games will allow players the freedom to put into practice that which is being worked on in the nets out in the middle. The last time the squad trained and played together was in September 2016.

Both Kim Garth and Isobel Joyce are returning to the side off the back of their involvement in the Women’s Big Bash League. They will have played with and against players that will be playing in the tournament, so it will be great to hear what they have learned and for them to share their experiences with us.

The 2016 Irish Women's Player of the Year, Ciara Metcalfe is another key player for Ireland. Ciara proved to be one of our most reliable bowlers last year and relishes every opportunity of playing for Ireland. At times, playing in these tournaments can be slightly daunting as there is so much weighing on the outcome. We need to stick to what we know, what we have learned, trust our technique and not over-complicate the situation.

We have made great progress over the last eighteen months, playing good cricket against some top sides. I have no doubt that we will face tough challenges while at the qualifiers, whether that be different playing conditions, the heat and humidity or the calibre of our opposition. But I have every confidence in this squad and I believe that we are very prepared for what lies ahead in the coming weeks.

What I would ask from the girls in this tournament is that we work hard and play with clarity, freedom, confidence and enjoy it. If we do, that I know we will do ourselves justice.