All four captains locked in ahead of the NDCA’s Namoi Super Slog T20 campaign

The captains have been locked in for Narrabri District Cricket Association’s 2023/24 season Namoi Super Slog franchise-based T20 campaign, which will get underway in just eight days.

Tourist Hotel first XI co-captains Luke Meppem and Lachlan Woolford had been locked in to skipper sides as the two men were retained by the franchises they led last year, J and D Weed Management for Meppem and finalists Specialised Civil Services for Woolford.

The other two franchise’s skippers were announced earlier this week, with gun RSL duo Nathan Trindall and Cooper Brayshaw chosen to lead the way.

Trindall will captain the WTC Group franchise and Brayshaw will lead NKT Excavations and Fencing.

Brayshaw’s services are a major coup for the competition’s newest franchise after he captained the Priag Patriots to their second consecutive premiership last season in what was his first campaign in that role, and he also finished as the top wicket-taker.

He also played for the Patriots when they won their first final two years earlier, either side of a flood-affected 2021/22 season that did not include the Super Slog.

The Patriots will not defend their premiership this season after opting against going around again.

Trindall was also a part of those two premierships for Priag, and being the NDCA representative first XI skipper and one of the best quicks in town, it comes as no surprise that WTC Group has acquired his services to lead them in season 2023/24 as they go in search of their maiden premiership.

As recently reported in The Courier, the franchises are unable to retain any players from their previous roster at the season four player auction at the Narrabri Bowling Club this Friday as they were able to do in seasons two and three.

Every player who’s registered, aside from the four captains, will go into the player pool and will able to be bid on by the franchises.

Tourist Hotel’s Hamish Duncan was the most expensive player at the 2022 auction and is expected to be one of the most highly sought-after players this year as well.

The 2022/23 campaign premiership winner with Priag is one half of the greatest NDCA Namoi Super Slog partnership ever after he combined with Tatts skipper Jakeb Nipperess for a 176-run first-wicket stand at Hogan Oval in the sixth and final round of the season earlier this year against J and D Weed Management. Duncan batted out the entire 20 overs that night to finish unbeaten on 86.

He is in impressive form in the first grade one day competition this year, and most notably leads all red ball bowlers in the maidens category with nine from five games.

His Tourist Hotel teammate Josh Trindall will also be a player that all four franchises will target on auction night.

While he has only played two of Tourist Hotel’s six games this season, he was one of a few players who were part of both of Priag’s premiership victories and will now be lining up for a new team.

Other players who will attract keen interest include RSL’s Will Ford, who is currently the NDCA one day first grade competition’s top run-scorer and has struck the most boundaries with an impressive 16 fours and three sixes this season, his RSL teammates Cody Kember and Jake Brayshaw as well as Tourist Hotel’s Matt Conroy, who have all proven themselves as key men with both bat and ball in the local comps, Western Razorbacks skipper Dylan Smith, who is the most dominant bowler available and can also hold his own with the bat, Tourist Hotel’s Nick Tomlinson, who was the top run-scorer in last season’s Super Slog campaign and is currently the top run-scorer for Tourist in the one day campaign, and some big-hitters including Nipperess and his Tatts clubmate Ryan Steel, and Western Razorbacks trio Matt Bradshaw, Greg Melton and Josh Schwager.