Australian Domestic Cricket

[angryangy]

No he hasn't retired yet, he is simply injured and has not been offered a contract due to the likelihood that he won't recover and retire this season.

It's a good point, a fit Arnberger would probably break into the top order with ease after a few runs in the Premiers.

 

[angryangy]

Angy's 07/08 Preview

West End Redbacks

Coach: Mark Sorrell

Squad
Nathan Adcock
Cullen Bailey (CA)
Cameron Borgas
Jason Borgas
Ben Cameron
Mark Cleary
Mark Cosgrove
Dan Cullen (CA)
Shane Deitz
Matthew Elliott
Callum Ferguson
Peter George
Jason Gillespie (CA)
Daniel Harris
Ryan Harris
Darren Lehmann
Graham Manou
Tom Plant
Gary Putland
Paul Rofe
Shaun Tait (CA)

OUT: Greg Blewett (retired), Trent Kelly (WA)
IN: Jason Borgas, Tom Plant (rookie), Peter George

Rookies
Jake Brown
Andy Delmont
Jason Donnelly
Jake Haberfield
Simon Roberts
Chadd Sayers
Ken Skewes
James Smith

OUT: Oswald-Jacobs
IN: Brown, Delmont, Donnelly, Haberfield, Smith

The ousting of South Australia's favourite son, Greg Blewett and addition of Cullen Bailey to CA's contracts means SA can afford to take another player, in this case, the paceman Peter George, who was dropped from the rookie list a year ago. Also promoted are top order batsmen Plant and Borgas, brother of Cameron, both of which have been playing for the Redbacks, Borgas with considerable consistency, finding 4 50s in his five games. It's a Redbacks side very much at a crossroads, with Lehmann in his twilight and many of their senior players barely more than rookies themselves. The coming season is one in which those young stars need to take things to the next level as much as the few older players need to show leadership.

XXXX Gold Queensland Bulls

Coach: Terry Oliver

Squad
Andy Bichel
Ryan Broad
Michael Buchanan
Daniel Doran
Chris Hartley
Matthew Hayden (CA)
James Hopes (CA)
Mitchell Johnson (CA)
Michael Kasprowicz
Nick Kruger
Martin Love
Jimmy Maher
Greg Moller
Ashley Noffke
Aaron Nye
Clinton Perren
Craig Philipson
Nathan Rimmington
Chris Simpson
Grant Sullivan
Andrew Symonds (CA)
Shane Watson (CA).

OUT: Shane Jurgensen, Brendon Nash, Lachlan Stevens
IN: Michael Buchanan, Greg Moller, Aaron Nye

Rookies
Ben Cutting
Nathan Reardon
Wade Townsend
Worrin Williams

OUT: Bragg, Le Loux
IN: Townshend, Williams

A team that has been able to extract good results from retaining the services of contracted players for most of a season may now have to dig a little deeper. The likes of Hayden, Symonds, Watson and even Johnson may all be required for both Tests and ODIs. While they get Kasper back from a long layoff and also Love from a knee reco, the cracks might begin to show in a lineup that has been arguably the best overall in recent times. Nevertheless, Bichel and Kasper remain a dynamic pair and any team with those two should fancy themselves. Into the list come all-rounders Michael Buchanan, son of the former Australian and Queensland coach; and Aaron Nye, a long time fringe player, whose off spin conjured a famous victory in the one day final last season. Worrin Williams could be one to watch, an indigenous paceman of considerable accolade.

Victoria Bitter Bushrangers

Coach: Greg Shipperd

Squad
Aiden Blizzard
Adam Crosthwaite
Gerard Denton
Shane Harwood
John Hastings
Brad Hodge (CA)
David Hussey
Nick Jewell
Michael Klinger
Mick Lewis
Lloyd Mash
Andrew McDonald
Bryce McGain
Clinton McKay
Dirk Nannes
Darren Pattinson
Rob Quiney
Peter Siddle
Matthew Wade
Cameron White (CA)
Allan Wise

OUT: Jason Arnberger, Robbie Cassell, Brad Knowles, Jon Moss, Shane Warne (retired)
IN: Aiden Blizzard (rookie), John Hastings (NSW), Bryce McGain, Clinton McKay, Rob Quiney, Matthew Wade (TAS)

Rookies
Aaron Finch
Michael Hill
Jon Holland
James Pattinson

OUT: Baldwin, Gale, Holland, Nevill
IN: Hill, Pattinson

While SA and QLD are strong on CA contracts, Victoria have found substantial strength without them. Uncontracted batsmen such as David Hussey, Nick Jewell and the rising all-rounder McDonald combine with Hodge and White to form a strong batting lineup that very nearly took the Bushrangers to all three finals last season. However, with White's return to the CA payroll, two things are evident. Callups to the Vics' best batsmen are getting more likely and they need their squad to be fit when it happens. In 06/07, an injury blight on the pace attack, that worsened towards the end, severely hampered their attempts to claim victory in the 4 and 1 day competitions. With full fitness at hand, expect vigorous competition among Harwood, Lewis, Denton and Wise for the new ball. Look to Nannes, Siddle and McKay as they battle for scraps, or perhaps oust the old guard. Perhaps the young, tall pace bowler Hastings has something to offer. Also, marvel at the signing of Bryce McGain, a 35 year old leg spinner offered a late renaissance in the wake of Warne and expect young Matthew Wade to pressure Adam Crosthwaite's position as keeper.

SpeedBlitz Blues

Coach: Matthew Mott

Squad
Aaron Bird
Doug Bollinger
Nathan Bracken (CA)
Mark Cameron
Beau Casson
Stuart Clark (CA)
Michael Clarke (CA)
Ed Cowan
Scott Coyte
Peter Forrest
Brad Haddin (CA)
Nathan Hauritz
Moises Henriques
Phil Jaques (CA)
Simon Katich
Grant Lambert
Brett Lee (CA)
Stuart MacGill (CA)
Greg Mail
Matthew Nicholson
Aaron O'Brien
Ben Rohrer
Craig Simmons
Daniel Smith
Dominic Thornely

IN: Peter Forrest (rookie), Ben Rohrer
OUT: Murray Creed, Jason Krejza (TAS), Tim Lang, Glenn McGrath (retired), James Packman, Grant Roden

Rookies
Tom Cooper
Philip Hughes
Usman Khawaja
Stephen O'Keefe
Martin Paskal
Steven Smith
David Warner

IN: Hughes, Smith
OUT: Hastings (Vic)

An indifferent NSW squad considering the horde of Australian players, the Blues nevertheless snuck into the Pura Cup final. The Blues can expect less use of MacGill, Bracken and Jaques all of who are highly rated for Test selection this summer, so another confusing year could be on the cards, especially as another casualty is coach Trevor Bayliss, who has replaced Tom Moody in Sri Lanka, replaced by former Victoria and NSW batsman, Matt Mott. With a lot of senior selections looking tenuous, the Blues will look to their rookies and younger players for the stars of the future. The most interesting Blues recruit is Ben Rohrer who stood firm with 163 late in the season against the rampant Tigers. Peter Forrest is a young batsman who NSW have invested much in and will now be looking for a return. Usman Khawaja and David Warner are batsmen who played alongside Henriques for the Australia u-19s and could well see matches in 07/08.

Cascade Tasmanian Tigers

Coach: Tim Coyle

Squad
Dane Anderson
George Bailey
Travis Birt
Luke Butterworth
Sean Clingeleffer
David Dawson
Michael Dighton
Michael Di Venuto
Xavier Doherty
Brendan Drew
Chris Duval
Brett Geeves
Adam Griffith
Ben Hilfenhaus (CA)
Jason Krejza
Tim Macdonald
Daniel Marsh
Tim Paine
Ricky Ponting (CA)
Damien Wright

IN: Dane Anderson (rookie), Chris Duval (rookie), Jason Krejza (NSW), Tim MacDonald (WA)
OUT: Michael Bevan (retired), Andrew Downton

Rookies
Alex Doolan
James Faulkner
Jason Shelton
Jeremy Smith
Jonathan Wells

IN: Faulkner, Smith
OUT: Wade (VIC)

The surprise packet Tassie have extended their list following the release of rising star Hilfenhaus, recruiting two disgruntled former opponents and promoting two promising rookies. The strength of the Tigers is their long batting lineup which blunts the most fierce of new ball spells. It is a fanciable top order starting with the young Paine, the devastating Di Venuto and the reinvented Dighton, but much later, skilful all-rounders like Damien Wright allow the batting to extend as low as no. 9. It's something that NSW were blown away by in the Pura Cup final, as a seaming wicket had Tassie 6/176, but young all-rounder Luke Butterworth combined with keeper Sean Clingeleffer to build a game breaking 460. Not to be underrated, however, is their compliment of seam bowlers, now bolstered by the off spin of Krejza. Hilfy may be destined for bigger things, but Griffith, Drew, Geeves, Wright and Butterworth have been seen to hold their own.

Retravision Warriors

Coach: Tom Moody

Squad
David Bandy
Brett Dorey
Theo Doropoulos
Ben Edmondson
Sean Ervine
Adam Gilchrist (CA)
Shawn Gillies
Aaron Heal
Clint Heron
Brad Hogg (CA)
Mike Hussey (CA)
Mathew Inness
Trent Kelly
Justin Langer
Steve Magoffin
Shaun Marsh
Danny McLauchlan
Marcus North
Luke Pomersbach
Chris Rogers (CA)
Luke Ronchi
Adam Voges (CA)
Darren Wates

IN: Trent Kelly (SA), Theo Doropoulos (rookie), Danny McLauchlan, Luke Pomersbach (rookie)
OUT: Andrew James, Tim McDonald (TAS), Damien Martyn (retired), Scott Meuleman, Peter Worthington

Rookies
Nathan Coulter-Nile
Liam Davis
Chris Hansberry
Michael Johnson
Matthew Johnson
Josh Mangan
Christopher Wood

IN: Hansberry, Michael Johnson, Matthew Johnson, Wood
OUT: Crawford, King

Much moving and shaking has been done at the WACA, as a team with a very convincing batting lineup failed to challenge for the title in any of the three tournaments. The Warriors have enlisted star coach Tom Moody and now have the full services of Justin Langer, although they might lose Rogers or Voges to callups. In comes former SA seamer Trent Kelly, hot up and coming paceman Danny McLauchlan, potent all-rounder Theo Doropoulous and blazing batsman Luke Pomersbach. WA seem to be able to create stars with a flick of the wrist, so expect two of these new players to establish themselves. Aaron Heal was a quiet achiever, his left arm orthodoxy netting a 10 wicket bag at one point (and yet he was dropped for the next match) and all things considered is a far more consistent player than any of the pace bowlers. Former Vic Mat Inness is still lurking and if he can stay fit, he can be most damaging, though that is a big if. Edo, Mal and the towering 203 cm behemoth Brett Dorey all have their good days and bad days, but maybe some pressure will help them click (or be destroyed). Even if the team can get in order, their oldest ally might be working against them. Questions will have to be answered over the WACA pitch and where it is headed; frequently offering nothing and sometimes even playing more like a dustbowl than the classic ribcracker.

Thanks for reading. Now I'd just like to make one last observation. Four of the teams are sponsored by beer, one by a company that sells fridges and one by their state's Road Traffic Authority. Food for thought.

 

[aussie1st]

That was a nice read, got myself a few more players to look out for from that list now.

 

[aussie_ben91]

I trained with Grant Lambert last night.

 

[Gilly Fan]

Marcus North has been named skipper of the Warriors with Adam Voges vice.
Langer has relinquished the captaincy but will still play.

 

[mattfb]

O'Keefe isn't really a rookie for the blues.
Nice stuff there

 

[smssia0112]

Shane Harwood is ridiculously injury prone, my friend and I were at a game joking about it, then at lunch he tripped down the stairs and was not seen for a couple of weeks! We need a fitter pace attack, Cassell is an example of getting injured at the wrong time.

 

[angryangy]

O'Keefe isn't really a rookie for the blues.

Well they should stop lying about it, then.

It's not only the injuries that wear thin, but when was the last time Victoria had a really good bowler coming through the ranks? There's a dependence on having fit bowlers because none of them alone are quite enough to rip up a team. Probably Inness was the only one; since the days of Merv, Fleming, Reiffel, Warne and even Harvey; who looked like he might have had something if he had less injuries, but still, that's not much over a long period. I guess Cassell is young enough to get back into the side, but 5 games in 5 seasons suggests he's well off the radar.

Hopefully we'll see good returns from Wise this season. I think there's plenty of potential in McKay and Siddle, while I'm interested to see how Hastings grows. Unfortunately, it says a lot of selector's concerns that Dirk Nannes is being retained.

 

[Left_Hander]

Every team has sold out there team names. That is really dissapointing.

Looking foward to the start of the season. I can't wait to start watching cricket again. Does anyone know if Fox got the rights for the Pura Cup as well or do they only have the Ford Ranger Cup?

 

[mattfb]

Well last year they only showed the Pura Cup Final but they showed all the Ford Ranger games, i think it will stay the same.

 

[smssia0112]

Well they should stop lying about it, then.

It's not only the injuries that wear thin, but when was the last time Victoria had a really good bowler coming through the ranks? There's a dependence on having fit bowlers because none of them alone are quite enough to rip up a team. Probably Inness was the only one; since the days of Merv, Fleming, Reiffel, Warne and even Harvey; who looked like he might have had something if he had less injuries, but still, that's not much over a long period. I guess Cassell is young enough to get back into the side, but 5 games in 5 seasons suggests he's well off the radar.

Hopefully we'll see good returns from Wise this season. I think there's plenty of potential in McKay and Siddle, while I'm interested to see how Hastings grows. Unfortunately, it says a lot of selector's concerns that Dirk Nannes is being retained.

Well injuries have really stunted Cassell's growth and opportunities, he could have easily gotten into the side last year when almost every contracted bowler in the VIC squad was injured, but beign injured himself didn't help.

 

[cricketmad09]

Yes, I'm also disappointed that Rob Cassell's constant injury setbacks have forced Victoria to drop him from their squad, when you look at his limited opportunities, he seems to have made the most of them, with impressive stats in his few games.

Let's hope that he can get his chance too.


No he hasn't retired yet, he is simply injured and has not been offered a contract due to the likelihood that he won't recover and retire this season.

Crostwhaite had a breatkhrough season though, his keeping was good as always, and his batting was incredibly improved. I'm not sure why you think he isn't any good?

If the board at cricket victoria are bemused as to why he is in the team, well that pretty much speaks for itself.

 

[smssia0112]

If the board at cricket victoria are bemused as to why he is in the team, well that pretty much speaks for itself.

When did they say that?

 

[cricketmad09]

When did they say that?

The old mans a Cricket Victoria umpire, so things get around.

 

[smssia0112]

Well mate, I don't listen to rumours on message boards personally, but I can tell you right now that Adam Crostwhaite had a great season last year, batting was much improved and his glovework is and always has been excellent. Not sure who would have done a better job than that.