NSW preview: New recruits, young guns to lift Blues

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If last summer was a turning of the corner for New South Wales, the state's lofty historical standards suggest this coming season must be one where they are again challenging for national supremacy.

A particularly talented bunch of youngsters learning from a sage group of veterans and an impressive coaching pair in Greg Shipperd and new deputy Matthew Mott certainly has the signs pointing that way, but now is where the real work begins for the Blues.

Veteran head coach Shipperd knows this better than anyone. He takes plenty from last season's turnaround – third place in the Shield, runners up in the One-Day Cup – but is acutely aware of the expectation that comes with being at the helm of the most successful cricket state.

"We think last season was a real season of growth," Shipperd tells cricket.com.au. "The fellas have really settled now into the themes that we're throwing at them, and we're hoping we can consolidate the gains of last year.

"So from a nervous start (last summer), where losing was a familiar taste, we've turned it around, and there's an expectation now that we can compete and potentially win something this season.

"There's a nice pot of young ones coming through along with our experienced characters, and there's been a real nice blend of education and learning going on in that context. And even more recently, the re-addition of some of the Australian players around our training environments, we're doing our best to capitalise on that."

2024-25 squad: Sean Abbott*, Jackson Bird, Pat Cummins*, Oliver Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Matt Gilkes, Chris Green, Ryan Hackney, Ryan Hadley, Liam Hatcher, Josh Hazlewood*, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Hayden Kerr, Sam Konstas, Nathan Lyon*, Nic Maddinson, Blake Nikitaras, Jack Nisbet, Kurtis Patterson, Josh Philippe, Tanveer Sangha, Steve Smith*, Mitchell Starc*, Chris Tremain, Adam Zampa*. Rookies: Charlie Anderson, Joel Davies, Ryan Hicks, Will Salzmann, Lachlan Shaw

Ins: Nic Maddinson (Victoria), Josh Philippe (WA), Sam Konstas.

Outs: Baxter Holt (WA), Blake MacDonald, Ross Pawson, Jason Sangha (SA), David Warner (retired)

*Cricket Australia contract

Last season

Sheffield Shield: Third

One-Day Cup: Runners-up

Possible XIs

Potential XI for one-day cup opener (v WA, Sept 22): Daniel Hughes, Nic Maddinson, Josh Philippe (wk), Moises Henriques, Oliver Davies, Jack Edwards (c), Hayden Kerr, Chris Green, Jack Nisbet, Will Salzmann, Tanveer Sangha

Sheffield Shield XI (at full strength): Daniel Hughes, Steve Smith, Nic Maddinson, Moises Henriques (c), Oliver Davies, Josh Philippe (wk), Jack Edwards, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

The inside word with coach Greg Shipperd

The pre-season

The batting group, which has notably been boosted by the return of Nic Maddinson and the arrival of Josh Philippe, has recently benefited from the wisdom of legendary Blue Michael Bevan. A master of his craft renowned for the methods he used to work his way through an innings, Bevan has been passing on some of those secrets to the current generation.

"When I said to the players his second-last (Shield) season at Tasmania was 1,464 runs with eight hundreds, their jaws all dropped," Shipperd grins. "So I said, 'Well, if you can halve that and get 700, we'll actually be happy' – but don't set any limits on that'.

"He broke down the way he played, and the elements of consistent high-level cricket; a bit of strategy, a bit of process, some game stuff. He's also talking to our youth squads on the same topics, and I've got a program for our left-handed batters that he'll be working with them on – 'lifting the lefties' – and he's jumped in boots and all, and we're really happy to have him."

Among the fast-bowling contingent, veteran quick Jackson Bird has been occupying a dual role.

"Jackson's been doing some coaching," Shipperd says. "That's been a test to see whether he could balance his own needs around preparation with feeding our emerging bowling crop with the knowledge that they need.

"He's done that all pre-season and seems to really have hit the ground running from a young coaching point of view. So that's possibly something for the future for him."

Players to watch 

"Nic Maddinson will bring a tempo that subliminally takes the pressure off a couple of others around him," Shipperd says. "His red-ball record in Victoria was unbelievable. I like his intent, and I like where he wants to get to. He's been a real calming influence, but he's also showed the others in our group what attacking batting looks like. So we're keen to see that unfold.

"I think what Ollie Davies did in Shield cricket (670 runs at 67) was as good as anything across the competition that I saw last season. In his first year, that was pretty special. So we would be really hoping that he can consolidate and build on that. He's got a nice rhythm to his play. He's very hard to contain. He's confident, and he's got ambition – he's hungry. That's a good combination."

Young guns 

"Sam Konstas is, from a batting perspective, one of the most mature young players I've come across. He's got a real poise about himself at the crease. But equally, he's got a really open mind about batting. His work ethic is terrific. So he's fitted into our team like a glove, and there's just an assuredness about his game. I think he can go all the way – I'm fairly confident of that.

Injury update 

"(Chris) Tremain has had a bit of a neck and shoulder issue that we're working on, and it could be a quick fix, too. 'Jacko' (Bird) is just working towards the season without flying as well, but we don't need him flying right now.

"Charlie Anderson has had a stress fracture in his back so he's had a limited pre-season, but what we saw last year was a beautifully balanced, Damien Wright-like wrist – terrific control for someone so young. As he builds into his body, we think he's going to be a fantastic first-class cricketer.

Areas for improvement 

The Blues were ultimately short of runs last Shield season in what was across the board a challenging competition for batters. Only Davies topped 500 runs.

"More hundreds – more big hundreds in our red-ball team – I think that's our big room for growth," Shipperd says. "I think there may be some assistance in that space with Cricket Australia talking with us around improving the balance between bat and ball; I think the statistics were that some of the wickets were over-juicy, or not quite right last year, and that re-establishing that balance may work in the batsman's favour.

"I want our batters to be all-conditions batters – to be able to survive and thrive whether the wicket is good, poor or otherwise. And I do think that's our big room for growth. I'm pretty comfortable with everything else we're doing, but with our Shield batters, I'd like to have a couple in the top five run-scorers in the season. I'm thinking 700-800 (runs) plus is where I'd be aiming if I was one of those batters looking to take the next step."

Gloves off 

Matt Gilkes played all 10 Shield matches last summer and though he collected 30 dismissals and posted four half-centuries, a return of 350 runs at 20.58 was below where Shipperd wants his gloveman to be. The 25-year-old will be competing with Philippe for his place this summer and potentially also a couple of dashing young keeper-batters in rookie duo Ryan Hicks (19) and Lachie Shaw (21).

"I want a lot of runs out of our wicketkeeper – a lot of them," Shipperd says. "Gilkesy was growing as a cricketer, and all of them are, so it's a very open field. We've got a pot of four of them at the moment … they all know the contest is on and they're all working on. But all of those can be a batsman in their own right. There's likely to be one 'keeper, maybe two across the formats, but the other boys are chasing batting spots across the group.

"(Hicks) and Lachie Shaw have both got that (Josh) Inglis type 'go get 'em' approach, with shots all round the wicket.

"Josh (Philippe) has settled in really comfortably. I probably didn't realise how hard he works at his game – he's extremely thorough and just ticks every box as far as preparation is concerned. We've been working on a couple of little things around red-ball batting. I think his white ball game is fine, and his 'keeping is fine. So we'll see how he unfolds in the season."

Captain Jack 

"Jack (Edwards) has had a real appetite to try and nut out his batting recipe. He's had a variety of roles in white-ball cricket. His bowling looks elite in both red- and white-ball cricket on last year's performance and we believe that can sustain itself. We've thrown the captaincy in white-ball cricket at him as well – we feel he's leadership material within our group. He's a next-generation leader beyond Moises (Henriques) so while Moises is around, we've thrown the white-ball team at him and hopefully that can be a growth moment for him. He's a pretty sharp young cricketer and he's been involved long enough now for us to set him free."

Team to beat: "WA are so well oiled, so well drilled. They've got a real affinity with their conditions … their spinner (Corey Rocchiccioli) works beautifully on that (WACA) ground … their crafty quicks do their stuff, and they're deep in batting. They're always a benchmark. I think all teams have got very accomplished squads this season, and there are a couple of teams with some points to prove as well."