South Australia
First Class: Div 2
One Day: Div 1
The up and coming team in WCC for mine, heavily targetted one day promotion last season and got there on the final day, this season they are looking for First Class glory and it may very well happen. They picked up A Mukund in third round of the draft which is just criminal as he was the best First Class bat available from the start, he should have a cracking season, their second round pick K Demming was one of the leading wicket takers at last years academy while first round pick B Watts was player of the series in last years all star competition. That is an excellent mix. The retirement of M Elliott has been offset by gaining M Love, he is also expected to take over the captaincy. They also have one of the best One Day batting line ups going around, Watts, Rickman, Carter and Doshi is a powerful top four, while they wicket takers in the bowling line up with the likes of Tait, Demming and Bailey. They should do very well in both forms this year.
First Class Prediction: 3rd
One Day Prediction: 1st
South Zone India
First Class: Div 1
One Day: Div 2
Hung on to their division one status in first class last season and it could be a similar fight this time around. They have good players in the batting line up but their bowling is probably the weakest in the division, they should draw quite a number of games again on the back of Dravid, Badrinath and Chalker but outside of youngster L Hatch the bowling lacks a wicket taker. M Cleary has been out of WCC for a year and had a fine academy season but it remains to be seen wheather he truly learnt anything in his time away and if he can lead a bowling attack. Same sort of story in one day cricket, they did get relegated so in theory the opposition should be easier, I cant see them having a much better time of it though. Balaji is a genuine strike bowler and they again have some good bats, but so does everyone else. Theres no one in this squad who will strike fear into opposition teams, they will go into most games as the underdogs and will probably win some, but not enough to get them into the top half of the table.
First Class Prediction: 6th
One Day Prediction: 7th
Tasmania
First Class: Div 2
One Day: Div 2
Recovered last year to post some more than respectable results, they seem to me to be plotting for something big in the future, some very astute signings in the draft look to have them going even further on the up. Pathirana will finally give them some balance in their bowling attack, he shuould start as the spinner in front of Subramanya although a spin duo could be likely given that some of their bowlers are more than capable batsmen. Ponting needs to finally stand up, hes got support in Midlane, Adhikari and Le Roux so he has no excuses for not scoring a lot of runs this season. They are pretty similar in strength to their opposition but I like their balance and depth, I'm expecting a good year. We're unlucky to miss out on promotion last season in One Day, they were top three all year and just missed out, again with a bit more strengthening they look like they may be finally ready to take that step up. L Bond is a key member of this team, now thats its likely he wont have to worry about FC matches he can fully concentrate on One Day cricket and give it his all. Another guy looking to cement his spot in the team is L Butterworth, after a stint at the academy he is now a genuine all rounder.
First Class Prediction: 2nd
One Day Prediction: 3rd
Titans
First Class: Div 2
One Day: Div 2
Last year they looked genuine title contenders the whole way but just fell at the final hurdle in both forms, this year much is expected again. I can't be confident they'll do as well as season two though, the Darden trade in hindsight was a huge mistake and could cost them dearly this season. They look slightly worse if anything in First Class but not terribly. LF Simpson was a good get in the draft and you'd expect him to be the leading wicket taker, but Steyn needs to produce more than he did last year. Holland was super at the top of the order in season two and he has to be again, without runs from him they will struggle. Titans have a well rounded one day side, plenty of guys who can bat and bowl but perhaps again lack a star. Can't see a whole lot of match winners, rather just a bunch of guys who have some ability. The fast bowling looks to lack a bit of bite, with the likes of Nel, Steyn and Akram all being no better than solid. R Tate could be the X Factor for this team, can bat and can bowl very well and if he performs then they might do better than expected.
First Class Prediction: 4th
One Day Prediction: 4th
Victoria
First Class: Div 2
One Day: Div 1
If any team can be classed as one day specialists its Victoria. Last seasons division 1 champions were bottom of the pile in division 2 of the First Class game and I think thats something they will want to change. Theres no reason they cant be a better First class team with Hussey, Hodge, Raza and North in the batting line up. Theres plenty of runs in the team this year while the bowling looks to improved with the aquisions of Rabie and Pattinson. With a batting line up they have they should be a top four side however its hard to ignore their bowling, outside of their front line four there is practically nothing and it's going to cost them big time this year. I see them having some good results early in the campaign but falling away in the middle part of the season. They should again go well in One Day, the team is built for one day cricket, Francis and Beasley are top notch with the stick while all the bowlers are classy, North dominated with bat and ball last year and could do so again. I get the feeling they may end up just short this year of where they were in season two though.
First Class Prediction: 6th
One Day Prediction: 3rd
Western Australia
First Class: Div 1
One Day: Div 1
One of the few teams to be in division one in both forms have been under rated in this competition since day one. Most teams go into matches against them expecting to win but WA have pulled off more than one surprise in the past two seasons. They again will win a good number of games this season but it will be more of the same, not challenging for titles but doing enough to stay away from the bottom. It's hard to ignore their batting line up, you'll be hard pressed to find another team with Langer, Pomersbach, Hussey and Watambwa's numbers. It's again probably their bowling where things fall apart, although picking up one of WCC's all time leading wicket takers N Tahir, there isnt much to be excited about. Thompson looks a likely prospect but hes very inexperienced and may take some time to settle. Everything in One Day rests on the shoulders of Voges, he has been brilliant thus far but you'd think something would have to crack again, I'd be surprised if they have won many games where he has failed. The bowling is pretty good, Suraj is a genuine star in this form of the game and again Thompson could be a great if he has a good first year. They are a hard team to judge but I'm expecting this year is the one where something might finally give way.
First Class Prediction: 5th
One Day Prediction: 7th
West Midlands
First Class: Div 2
One Day: Div 2
under the guidance of loudmouth manager Hamish McTavish they have put together a team capable of challenging this year. The squad barely resembles anything that was put out last year with only a few youngsters kept. The most important signing for me was Y Khan, a class wicketkeeper batsman with experience could make all the difference this season. Their batting is pretty immense for a division 2 side though, with Samaraweera most likely coming in at 8 with a career average in excess of 40. The bowling has improved out of sight, it looks very spin dependant though and injuries to fast bowlers would see them brought back to the field a bit. D Dabengwa could be the make or break player for West Midlands, he was an absolute star at the academy last year and is one of the few genuine all rounders going around. At just 17 years old though it could be a big ask for him. The one day team isnt nearly as strong, it definitely looks a work in progress with the likes of Dredge and Lance needing good performances to imrpove and become future stars, the batting has some good bits and pieces players but outside of youngster T Pratt no one that is going to score big. It could be a long One Day season if things dont go right.
First Class Prediction: 1st
One Day Prediction: 6th
Yorkshire
One of the stranger sides in WCC. Have had a good First Class team on paper but have been poor in that form while have massively over achieved in one day cricket. Its hard not to think that they may have disadvantaged themselves by largely ignoring the trading periods, it's practically the same squad as last year and while others have improved they haven't. Atapattu was a good signing for them in the draft but hes pretty much just replacing the retired M Vaughan. EP Van Wyk could be the player to turn their fortunes around though, a swing bowling all rounder is capable with both bat and ball but again is probably not a huge stand out with either. J Patel looks to be a matured wicket keeper batsman and runs from him could be vital. They have been very good in one day cricket largely thanks to their top order, C Taylor is Yorkshire's star here and he again needs runs for them to be a force. The bowling has never been more than solid and the changes here look to be for the worse. Pyrah is still part of the attack though and he togethher with Mushtaq should take enough wickets for Yorkshire to win half their games this season.
First Class Prediction: 5th
One Day Prediction: 4th
