Selection hopes for Bathurst heading into Western Zone Under 18 carnival

The under 18s tournament sees Bathurst facing Dubbo at Jack Braham Oval before facing either hosts Orange or the Chairman’s XI side the following day.

The carnival is a selection process for the Western under 18s side and Bathurst have plenty of players who will be trying to throw their hands up for a place.

Among them are Nic Broes, Ben Mitchell and Tanvir Singh, a trio who were big threats across the recent Regional Bash carnival held on their home turf. 

There’s also several under 16s selections who will have a chance to test themselves against tougher opposition, and Bathurst coach Shane Broes is interested to see how they fare.

“We’ve got young Cooper Brien and Tom Lynch in and it’s great for them to get some experience,” he said.

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“Cooper’s a good little bat and Tom’s a good all-rounder, though we’ve picked him as a lower order batsman. It’s more to give them a taste of the next level.

Broes believes you can always count on Dubbo fielding a side with depth.

“I’m not sure whether Brock Larance will play and I’m sure Henry Railz will not play but they’ve got a great side on paper,” he said.

“It will essentially be the under 16s side we played two years ago. We always had very good contests against that team and I expect the same this time around.

“In saying that, I think a few of our boys have kicked on a bit now and playing senior cricket has helped them.”

Broes and Singh have recently tried their hand at NSW Premier Cricket with strong results while Mitchell has hit 109 and 99 in his past two appearances in ISA Cricket.

Ethan Ivory has made a sturdy start to his Bathurst District Cricket Association first grade season with the ball.

“It’s a bonus having Nic and Ben and obviously Ben can play again next year,” Broes said.

“Tanvir has been great and Bailey Brien and Sam Hall are two kids who have had a lot of experience through junior representative cricket and have played senior men’s for a couple of years, which is a bonus.

“I think there’s probably six to seven of our guys who are vying for a spot in that Western side, which is really great for Bathurst cricket.”