Twenty20 cricket is fast paced and action packed and with that in mind the Sloggers have selected a side to complement the unique skill set.
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As the Wagga team looks to book its place on the SCG, coach Owen Thompson has placed an emphasis on the players’ ability to field, not just their prowess with a bat or ball.
“We’ve tried to pick a side that can field very well,” Thompson said.
“We find that a very important aspect of T20 and hopefully we can save us some runs so we don’t have to chase as many down.
“We are a fairly young and fit side who can cover the big spaces of Robbo Oval pretty quickly.”
Following a dramatic reshape of country cricket, Wagga’s new team is looking to make the most of its chance to play on the same ground as some of their idols.
The new Regional Bash competition gets under way on Sunday against an old rival.
The Sloggers will take on Murrumbidgee Rangers at Robertson Oval with a win putting them one step closer to playing on the SCG.
Last year’s leading runscorer David Bolton is unavailable heads the unavailable list but Thompson is still confident the team will do the job.
“Three blokes are unavailable this week who probably would have been stand up starts but I’m happy with the side we have go though,” he said. “It will perform pretty well even though the T20 format is a bit unknown for us.
“We don’t play a lot of it and it will be a bit of a culture shock.”
Thompson believes being able to turn over the strike quickly will be one of the keys and thinks the vast expanses of Robertson Oval will help do that.
The Rangers team have a number of familiar faces including two Lake Albert players, Brett Davies and Jesse Hampton, as well as Riverina representatives Paul Plummer.
No matter who result, the winner will take on Border Bullets, who defeated Southern Riverina last week, in Albury.
From there the games head to the SCG with the semi-final and final to be held on December 6.
WAGGA SLOGGERS TEAM: Joel Robinson (captain), Jon Nicoll, Mitchell Sykes, Dean Crane, Josh Thompson, Kurt Robertson, Jake Hindmarsh, Sam Perry, Jordan Lawrence, Jack Harper, Brayden Ambler. Coach: Owen Thompson. Managers: Eric Koetz, Shaun Perry
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