Locked in: Experience, starpower, youth to represent Warrnambool and District Cricket Association at Melbourne Country Week

A mixture of experience, firepower and youth will represent the WDCA in the time-honoured regional cricket tournament, which returns on Monday, February 13 for the first time since the 2019-20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The WDCA will compete in division two and will begin its campaign against Portland and District at the Carlton premier cricket ground.

Fresh from an excellent individual campaign in the title-winning Vic Country squad, Russells Creek playing-coach Cam Williams will captain the group and don the wicket-keeping gloves, while fellow Victorian representative Ethan Boyd has also been named.

Coach Jason Mungean said he was delighted with the balance of the squad.

"There was a couple who were unavailable due to work but aside from that, it's a really strong and balanced team I think," he said.

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Mungean said there was plenty to be excited about, including an electric top-order batting line-up featuring Geoff and Cam Williams, Englishman Jack Burnham, Chris Bant and reigning Brebner Cup winner Ben Threlfall.

"We all know what Cam can do, and his brother Geoff's in career-best form I reckon with the bat so they will be up near the top," he said.

"We've also got Jack Burnham, who has pretty much destroyed nearly every team in the competition so far so we're looking forward to that.

"(With the ball) we've got a lot of options, pretty much everyone bowls aside from Cam and Banty. There's a few quality quicks in there, about four different spin options so it'll be horses for courses when we get down there."

Reigning division one premiers Russells Creek is the most heavily represented team in the squad with four players picked.

The WDCA mentor said to mix some of the competition's most seasoned and experienced cricketers with emerging talents such as Boyd, Bailey Jenkinson and Zavier Mungean was vital for the region's representative teams moving forward.

"You've got to keep bringing the youth through or else the same old guys keep going and no one is prepared for when they drop off," he said.

"By bringing in a couple of new ones each year, it brings fresh blood and at a young age they can get an understanding of what country week is all about so when they're in their prime they are ready to smash it."

Country Week squad: Geoff Williams (Nestles); Cam Williams (Russells Creek), Jack Burnham (Northern Raiders), Chris Bant (Allansford-Panmure), Ben Threlfall (West Warrnambool), Bailey Jenkinson (North Warrnambool Eels), Zavier Mungean (Wesley Yambuk), Todd Lamont (Mortlake), Lachlan Wareham (Mortlake), Ethan Boyd (Allansford-Panmure), Matthew Petherick (Russells Creek), Joe Kenna (Russells Creek), Craig Britten (Russells Creek)

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