Ahead of the men's Australian Country Cricket Championships, Tasmania can confirm its squad of fourteen that will be taking on the rest of the country in Busselton, Western Australia, next week.
Playing their first game on Saturday this weekend, Tasmania will play five 50-over and four T20 matches against the other five states across eight days of the competition.
With only one rest day on Tuesday, there will be plenty of playing opportunities available for Tasmania’s squad, which has a great blend of talent from around the state.
There are five players who represented Tasmania at the U19 National Championships: Zac Curtain, Tom Dwyer, Hayden Clark-Sullivan, Louis Smith, and Bailey Barwick.
There is a strong presence from the north of the state with Cooper Anthes, Brayden De Vries, and Jack Pearce, while also having talent who have graduated from the Cricket Tasmania pathway and have put in strong performances in the Cricket Tasmania Premier League in Jayden Vince, Jesse Willmott, Caelan Maladay, Brandon Kopper, Cameron Walter, and James Scott.
Harry Nichols, Cricket Tasmania Pathways Coach, will head the team, joined by Burnie Cricket Club coach Shaun Redman, who was chosen by Cricket Tasmania for his emerging coaching talent within the North West coaching ranks.
Nichols is looking forward to seeing what Tasmania can do at the Country Championships.
“We are very pleased with the squad we have put together for the Country Champs, with players from all three regions in the state.
“There’s a great blend of young and up-and-coming talent, with some experienced players who have played for the Tasmanian Second XI, Tasmanian indigenous squad, and plenty of CTPL 1st Grade matches.
“We are also looking forward to having Shaun Redman join our coaching staff, as he is someone Cricket Tasmania believes can help get the best out of this group in Western Australia over the next week and a half,” said Nichols.
The full squad is as follows:
Cooper Anthes – Riverside Cricket Club/Greater Northern Raiders
Bailey Barwick – North Hobart Cricket Club
Hayden Clark-Sullivan – Clarence Cricket Club
Zac Curtain – Kingborough Cricket Club
Brayden De Vries – Ulverstone Cricket Club/Greater Northern Raiders
Thomas Dwyer – Mowbray Cricket Club/Greater Northern Raiders
Brandon Kopper – Glenorchy Cricket Club
Caelan Maladay – New Town Cricket Club
Jack Pearce – Ulverstone Cricket Club
James Scott – Kingborough Cricket Club
Louis Smith – University Cricket Club
Jayden Vince – New Town Cricket Club
Cameron Walter – Kingborough Cricket Club
Jesse Willmott – New Town Cricket Club
Head Coach: Harry Nichols
Assistant Coach: Shaun Redman (Burnie Cricket Club)
Their first match is against New South Wales Country on Saturday, matches can be followed by the Play Cricket App via this link.