All change as Morgan skippers England for warm-up ODI in Dublin

After total domination over India on the Test stage, England’s one-day players prepare for the forthcoming 50-over series with a game against Ireland in Dublin today. The team, however, will bear little resemblance to their full-strength outfit as the England selectors have given the majority of their stars a week off, with only Irish-born Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara of the victors at The Oval, heading to Dublin.

England’s 13-man squad contains just five of their team from their last ODI outing against Sri Lanka with Craig Kieswetter, Jade Dernbach and Samit Patel joining Morgan and Jonathan Trott, who is using the game as part of his recovery from a shoulder injury.

With Andy Flower and captain Alastair Cook both absent, there is no doubt the game is being used to test the next generation of England players as they start their preparations for the 2015 World Cup in Australia.

Rising stars such as James Taylor, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes will make their debuts, with all three enjoying excellent domestic seasons for their counties and the England Lions.

While the squad is undoubtedly a shadow one, it is comprised of players desperate to make a strong impression and further their claims for permanent places in the England side.

They may well be more motivated to succeed than their illustrious team-mates who are celebrating reaching the status of top Test side in the world.

Stars such as Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, James Anderson, Gareme Swann, Tim Bresnan and Stuart Broad may well not have fancied the short hop to Dublin to play on a club ground only a few days after receiving the plaudits of the cricketing world.

The English management are taking a risk, but a calculated one. If they play well, they should still leave Ireland with a victory.

One thing England won’t do is underestimate the Irish, who beat them in their last clash thanks to Kevin O’Brien’s once-in-a-lifetime innings in the World Cup in Bangalore.

And the Irish, coming off the back of two losses to Pakistan, and a defeat at the hands of Scotland in their last game, will be eager to re-establish their |credentials as the leading force in Associate cricket.

England’s selection will, however, make life difficult for them as, rather than having nothing to lose, a heavy defeat to an England second team will dent their burgeoning pride.

The Irish top order will be keen to impress and, in players of the calibre of William Porterfield, Paul Stirling, Ed Joyce and Niall O’Brien, they have the ammunition to cause England problems.

Their fear will be their ability to bowl effectively and either take wickets or restrict the scoring rate.

In Edinburgh last month, their frailties were exposed by Scotland who chased down 320 for the loss of just five wickets with more than an over to spare.

On an excellent surface, the Scots batters looked in no trouble and, towards the end of the innings, simply destroyed the Irish attack.

Ireland will have prepared a slow, seaming wicket to assist their bowlers and help nullify the English attack.

England’s Morgan, will be in the unique position of captaining his adopted country against his native land in the city of his birth. He will, therefore, be under immense pressure to perform in his debut as captain, especially in front of a hostile but, at the same time, appreciative Irish support.

His former colleagues will be desperate to target their friend who will be the centre of attention for the whole day.

How he handles this pressure, and his success or otherwise, may be a crucial factor in the overall outcome.

Ireland have proven over the past four years that they have a side capable of competing on equal terms against the world’s best, and today’s game gives them another chance to take a major scalp.

If they manage to do that, the ICC rankings won’t reflect the fact that it was against a shadow English side.