Philander now faces a tougher assignment against India

Philander marked his 22nd birthday by taking 4-12 in a 42-run victory.

"He's done well back home in domestic cricket and that's the reason he got the call-up here.

"He's someone we're trying to mould along the lines of Shaun Pollock. They are big boots to fill, but he started well here," Kallis commented.

Philander now faces a tougher assignment in the three-match series against India, which starts in Belfast on Tuesday.

He was not the only debutant to shine, however, with Alex Cusack claiming 3-15 and then top scoring with 36 not out for the home side.

"We knew he could make the step up. He came out there in tough conditions, against quality batsmen with short boundaries, and he bowled at the top of off stump - that's all I want.

"He got the rewards with three wickets and then went out and showed us he could bat. He will be a guy I hope to see in Irish colours for years to come," said skipper Trent Johnston.

Cusack tries to run out South Africa's Morne van Wyk

Cusack described the match as "great fun", adding: "The main thing for me was that I did the basics right.

"Obviously I am disappointed with the result but I could not have wished for a better start to international cricket."

Johnston blamed the absence of several members of Ireland's World Cup squad for their failure to chase down a target of 174.

"If you took that amount of first-teamers out of any side they would struggle.

"We are an amateur side and are up against these top professionals. We performed well in one discipline, but let ourselves down in the other," he commented.

"We were quite well set at one point but when Kenneth Carroll accidentally hit his own wicket that really summed up our day. After that we were continually losing wickets when partnerships were needed."