Sport

12 December, 2025

Shield squad selected

The Maryborough District Cricket Association (MDCA) has announced their squad that will represent the competition in their quest to retain the esteemed Sharp Shield this Sunday.

By Jonathan Peck

The MDCA has elected for a 12-man side plus two reserves to take on the Grenville Cricket Association, with this year’s annual repre-sentative game to be played at Hedges Oval.

Captain Sam Bartlett, vice captains Lachlan Oddie and Tom Hannett, as well as Laanecoorie Dunolly all-rounder Alex Cook, are the returning faces from the MDCA’s seven-wicket victory last season, searching to repeat that success with a new cast of teammates.

Five of the six MDCA A grade teams are represented in the selected squad, with five players coming from current ladder-leaders Laanecoorie Dunolly.

In an exciting sign for the MDCA’s future, two of the region’s hottest prospects, Elliot Cullinan and Oliver Cassidy, have been selected as reserves for Sunday’s team, deserving recognition for their recent senior performances.

Bartlett said the selected squad has the talent to win the MDCA’s third consecutive Sharp Shield.

“We have obviously got plenty of overseas players in there, which will provide plenty of depth to the squad along with a few locals as well,” he said.

“It’s good to get some new faces in there and a couple of young blokes as well (like) Elliot Cullinan from Carisbrook and Ollie Cassidy from Maryborough.

“It’s good to get both of those guys in there. Ollie has been playing some pretty handy cricket so far this year, and Elliot over the last three or four weeks has started to dominate a fair bit with the bat.”

With nine of the selected 12 players listed as all-rounders, the MDCA possesses a plethora of difference makers who can impact matches in multiple facets of the game.

All members of the MDCA A grade top five run-scorers have been picked for Sunday’s encounter, giving the team a stunning amount of offensive firepower.

Leading a stacked batting lineup is Laane’s duo of Nafis Shaikh and Hannett, combining to score 611 runs in the first nine games of the season.

Following them is Colts Phelans powerhouse Asim Akhtar in third, Carisbrook’s Cullinan and Maryborough’s star opener Oliver Bennett.

The team’s wicketkeeper, William Coutts from Carisbrook, has also been very handy with the willow this season, currently on 208 runs with two fifties to his name.

While A grade’s top wicket-taker in Clunes’ Noah Davies hasn’t been selected for the Sharp Shield, the MDCA’s bowling attack is still supremely talented with seamers Josh Fitzpatrick, Theo Trevelyan-Clark and Ahktar alongside spinners Cook, Oddie, Brandon Walsh and Ben Evans.

“I think the strength is definitely the batting, we have certainly got plenty of depth there, all of our players can certainly hold the bat,” Bartlett said.

“With the bowling, we don’t really have any out and out quicks, so it will be our medium pacers and then we think we have got a really good group of spinners who can hopefully do the job for us through the middle overs.”

The Sharp Shield is named after Terry Sharp, who has done a bulk of work across both associations for many years.

Bartlett said the MDCA is keen to retain the shield in Terry’s honour.

“We really want to make sure we hold onto the shield for as long as possible, so we will put our best foot forward,” he said.

“Hopefully, we can build from there towards Melbourne Country Week earlier next year.”

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