By Nick Creely
There could very well be 20 hungry cricketers looking to squeeze into reigning Victorian Premier Cricket champion Dandenong’s first XI come the opening round on 6 October against Ringwood.
It’s the perfect scenario for the reigning premiers – their squad pushing each other and their standards to an even higher level, all with the common goal of defending their crown.
Dandenong skipper Tom Donnell will once again lead a group well and truly in their prime, and said that the feeling around Shepley Oval isn’t any different after breaking through for the premiership last season.
“It’s pretty same same – there’s probably less pressure because the guys have got a bit of success, but the feeling around the club is pretty similar, we’re a pretty casual and upbeat group,” he said.
The Panthers have welcomed back seamer James Wilcock to the club after a stint at DDCA club Berwick, while Jak Jowett is the only noticeable loss from a first XI group that will stick together and look to build for another tilt at a flag.
Donnell said the biggest positive for a stable off-season with little player movement was the chance to improve the overall depth and quality of a list that’s been building for a few years. But as a result, will give the selectors plenty of headaches in picking the sides next Thursday.
“We’re trying to develop our own guys – our twos were really strong last year, and even our thirds, so it’s a good chance for the club to promote their own, which leaves the whole club in good stead,” he said.
“If a batsman gets injured or a bowler does, we know we’ve got a replacement that can come in and do the job.
“It is very hard and challenging (for selection), because there is so many guys around the mark, so there will be a lot of really unlucky guys come round one. It’s a very long season, so they’ll get plenty of chances to prove themselves and get to where they want to be.
“And the core group is still there from last year, and hopefully we’ll see a bit of James Pattinson early on in the year, maybe as a batsman and maybe to bowl a bit, so we’ll see on that one, but it’d give us a boost.
“We’ve certainly got some selection problems, but it’s a good spot to be, and hopefully the seconds can be strong again. It’ll be tough, but it gives guys a good chance to perform.”
While Donnell expects the usual suspects in veterans Brett Forsyth, Darren Pattinson and James Nanopoulos to be at the top of their game, he said that some of the club’s most promising youngsters will get their chances to shine.
“Dane Heverin did well on the weekend and will look to push through, he’s a good bat. Another young opener in Andre Fernando will get a good chance in the seconds to do well, so guys like that – they’ll have experience in Pete and Mick Sweeney around them pushing for first selection too,” he said.
“There is a couple of good leggies coming through – we’ve got some great youngsters, so there’s some positives signs from those grades to do well this year and push for selection.”
The champion skipper compiled 752 runs last season, and said that as the leader of the batting group, they’ll look to ensure they can emulate their stunning consistency, and once again pile on big scores.
“One thing we did extremely well last year was spreading the load – we’re looking to do that again this year, our batting’s as deep as its been in my time at the club I believe, and it shows great signs,” he said.
“Ed Newman’s playing well, LJ (Edwards) is an extremely good player, Nano (James Nanopoulos) as the all-rounder, and blokes like Cam Forsyth, Comrey Edgeworth and Josh Slater will get their chances.
“If one person doesn’t do the job, our main focus is for the next person to step up.”
And as they prepare to take on a fired up Ringwood – who will be looking to start the season off brightly after a disappointing 2017/18 – Donnell said nothing will change from his perspective, they’ll play Dandenong cricket, and only be worried about things within their control.
“Winning a couple of premierships, we know sides will come after us a lot more – we’ll think about our own plans and how we play,” he said.
“When teams do come after us, we always seem to be able to play a bit better, so it may be a good things for us.
“But we’ll worry about our own game – our aim is to just make finals like we want to every year, and just go from there.”
Coach: Nick Speak
Captain: Tom Donnell
President: Gary Davidson
Specialist Coaches: Paul Boraston (senior assistant)
Chairman of selectors: Darren Dempsey
Last Year: Premiers and One Day Premiers
Club Championship: 3rd
Most Runs: Brett Forsyth (825 runs at 48.53)
Most Wickets: James Nanopoulos (40 wickets at 16.63)
Ins: James Wilcock (Berwick)
Outs: Jak Jowett (Clayton), Ryan Quirk (Casey-South Melbourne), Matt Wetering (Springvale South), Luke Gandy (Frankston Peninsula), Matt Davis
2nd XI captain: Mick Sweeney
3rd XI captain: TBC
4th XI captain: Mark Boraston and development coach
