30 Victorians Named in National Championships squads

For the first time in history at this level, Victoria is entering both a Metropolitan and Country squad to take part in the new eight game 50-over fixture, kicking off across two weeks in late November and early December.

Cricket Victoria High Performance Academy Coach Jarrad Loughman is excited at the prospect of having two talented Victorian squads present at the Championships, which provides a great opportunity for more young talent to feature on the national stage.

“The talent this year is really good, and like with the Under-17s, having both the Country and Metro squads provides for double the amount of opportunities to players which is terrific,” said Loughman.

Both squads feature a mix of bottom and top age players, some new to the state youth competition and others returning with experience.

Loughman believes this also provides for a mixture of different strengths across the squads, with Vic Country featuring eight bottom-age players alone who are eligible for selection again next year.

“We’ve got different strengths across the metro and country sides, but hopefully we can see some good performances individually and as a team,” said Loughman.

“As always selection was pretty tough and there’s still some quality players missing out, but more may not have had the opportunity if there was only one team.”

The goals heading into the competition are not only to be highly competitive in every game, but also for players to develop and test their skills against the best young players in Australia.

With the new format resembling that of the recent Matador BBQs One-Day Cup in New South Wales with eight matches, however, played within just two weeks, Loughman says that it will be an onerous tournament for the players but prepare them for future pathway development.

“It will provide for a great test of their physical and mental strength, as well as their capacity to play at the next level.”

The Championships will also act as a lead up to the ICC Under-19 World Cup next year in Bangladesh, providing great incentives for individuals who perform at their best.

In an added bonus, four other Victorian players were also nominated to take part in the competition and have been invited by the Cricket Australia Under-17 and Northern Territory Under-19 squads to take part.

With the 13-man squads named for Vic Metro and Vic Country, this brings the total number of Victorian representatives at the National Championships to 30.

The Under-19 National Championships is due to begin on November 30 with each team to play eight one-day matches.

Vic Metro Under-19 Squad
Name – Current Club, Pathway Region & Skill

Liam Banthrope – Fitzroy-Doncaster CC, Northern Falcons & RHB, WK
Mitchell Barnewall – Essendon CC, Northern Falcons & RAOS, RHB
Damon Egan – Melbourne CC, South Easy Bayside Breakers & RHB
Nick Fletcher – Fitzroy-Doncaster CC, Inner East Emus & RHB, RAFM
Sam Grimwade – Prahran CC, Inner South East Scorpions & RAOS, RHB
Sam Harper – Melbourne CC, Outer East Eagles & RHB, WK
Jonah Koch – Footscray-Edgewater CC, Western Spirit & RAFM, RHB
Tom O’Donnell – Essendon CC, Inner East Emus & LAFM, RHB
Will Pucovski – Melbourne CC, South East Bayside Breakers & RHB
Gehan Seneviratne – Carlton CC, South East Bayside Breakers & RALS, RHB
Jacob Serry – Prahran CC, Inner South East Scorpions & RHB
Paddy Turner – Dandenong CC, Outer East Eagles & RAFM, RHB
Jackson Waters – Monash Tigers CC, Outer East Eagles & RHB

Vic Country Under-19 Squad
Name – Current Club, Pathway Region & Skill

Liam Bowe – Sandhurst CC, Northern Rivers & LAWS, LHB
Angus Boyd – Geelong CC, Western Waves & RHB, RAOS
Cameron Brown – Casey-South Melbourne CC, South East Country Sharks & RAFM, RHB
Xavier Crone – Carlton CC, Northern Rivers & RAFM, RHB
Tom Ewing – Frankston-Peninsula CC, South East Country Sharks & LHB, RAOS
Ryan Hartley – Prahran CC, Northern Rivers & LHB, WK
Nick King – Prahran CC, Western Waves & LHB
Adam McMaster – Dandenong CC, South East Country Sharks & RAFM, RHB
Jackson Mockett – Frankston-Peninsula CC, South East Country Sharks & RAFM, RHB
Devin Pollock – Casey-South Melbourne CC, Gippsland Pride & RHB, WK
Brayden Stepien – Carlton CC, Northern Rivers & LHB
Blake Thomson – Melbourne CC, Central Highlanders & RHB, RAM
Matthew Underwood – Footscray-Edgewater CC, Central Highlanders & LHB

Northern Territory Under-19 Squad (Victorian Players)
Name – Current Club, Pathway Region & Skill

Sam Elliott – Camberwell Magpies CC, Inner East Emus & RAFM, RHB
Ryan Quirk – Dandenong CC, Southern Pioneers & LHB, RALS

Cricket Australia Under-17 Squad (Victorian Players)
Name – Current Club, Pathway Region & Skill

Jon Merlo – Camberwell Magpies CC, Inner East Emus & RHB, RAFM
Blake Parsons – Prahran CC, South Easy Bayside Breakers & LAOS, RHB