Bulls preview: New coach, captain to lead Queensland

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The winds of change swept through Allan Border Field in the off-season as Queensland Cricket's heavy-hitters demanded a shake-up following a first Sheffield Shield wooden spoon in a generation.

The Brisbane Heat of course took out their first Big Bash title in more than a decade but with a fifth-placed finish in the one-day competition extending Queensland's longest trophy-less run in that tournament, all but the most BBL-blinkered fans would suggest the negatives outweighed the positives.

Replacing the outgoing Wade Seccombe is first-time head coach Johan Botha, a former South African off-spinner turned naturalised South Australian who – on first impressions at least – seems to have mellowed somewhat since his playing days.

In addition to new head coach Botha and the appointment of a new captain in Marnus Labuschagne, Queensland have delisted four players – Joe Burns, James Bazley, Blake Edwards and Aryan Jain – and lost Matthew Kuhnemann and Will Prestwidge to Tasmania.

Six fresh faces earned a contract for the new summer: Angus Lovell and Callum Vidler, who were both given debuts at the end of last season, plus Lachlan Hearne, Lachlan Aitken, Jem Ryan and Tom Straker. Six changes were the most of any state squad.

The Bulls have also named Mitch Swepson as back-up skipper of both the one-day and Shield sides; he is set to take on the job this week in two matches in Melbourne and will continue doing so whenever Labuschagne is unavailable due to national commitments.

Swepson, who has been in the state's leadership groups in recent seasons and led his Queensland Premier Cricket club Sandgate-Redcliffe to the Final of the KFC T20 Max competition earlier this month, will fill that interim captaincy role in place of regular back-up Jimmy Peirson, who was a surprise omission from the one-day squad released Monday by Queensland Cricket.

Appointed head coach in all three formats in May, Botha has a challenging task ahead of him. Firstly, what to make of a 2023-24 season that included both a title and a spoon? And how to develop consistency in changing rosters and formats across a seven-month season?

The 42-year-old's first answer to these questions was to take a novel approach in pre-season to ensuring some fundamental building blocks are in place: connection, culture, and camaraderie.

2023-24 season: Sixth in Sheffield Shield, fifth in one-day cup.

Head coach: Johan Botha

2024-25 squad: Xavier Bartlett*, Max Bryant, Hugo Burdon, Jack Clayton, Liam Guthrie, Lachlan Hearne, Usman Khawaja*, Marnus Labuschagne*, Angus Lovell, Ben McDermott, Michael Neser, Jimmy Pierson, Matthew Renshaw, Gurinder Sandhu, Jack Sinfield, Mark Steketee, Connor Sully, Mitch Swepson, Bryce Street, Callum Vidler, Hugh Weibgen, Jack Wildermuth. Rookies: Tom Whitney, Lachlan Aitken, Jem Ryan, Tom Straker

Ins: Angus Lovell, Lachlan Hearne, Callum Vidler, Lachlan Aitken, Jem Ryan, Tom Straker

Outs: Joe Burns, James Bazley, Blake Edwards, Aryan Jain, Matthew Kuhnemann, Will Prestwidge

*Cricket Australia contract

Possible XI for first one-day game (v Tas, Sept 25): Matthew Renshaw, Max Bryant, Jack Clayton, Ben McDermott (wk), Lachie Hearne, Hugo Burdon, Jack Wildermuth, Michael Neser, Mark Steketee, Mitch Swepson (c), Tom Straker

Possible XI for first Sheffield Shield game (v WA, Oct 8): Usman Khawaja, Bryce Street, Marnus Labuschagne (c), Matthew Renshaw, Ben McDermott, Jimmy Peirson (wk), Jack Wildermuth, Michael Neser, Gurinder Sandhu, Mark Steketee, Mitch Swepson

The inside word with Johan Botha

The pre-season

Queensland is blessed with good weather – and therefore the availability of turf pitches – right through their winter, but Botha has been careful to ensure that didn't accidentally become a curse.

"We held the guys back – we actually went outside for the first time on turf in the middle of July," he tells cricket.com.au. "The first six weeks was purely fitness based with a bit of fun on Fridays – we had Olympic Fridays, where the guys played different Olympic sports, and then they'd have a players only team lunch afterward.

"Wednesdays they'd have off, and then Saturday mornings we'd meet around different locations in Brisbane for some non-compulsory park runs."

The team also went on a pre-season camp on a farm in Croftby Downs, 90 minutes south-west of Brisbane, where they spent their time disconnecting from the digital world, tuning into nature, turning timber logs into fence posts and sitting by the fire spinning yarns.

"We just set up camp close to a creek," says Botha. "We did a couple of jobs – splitting posts, took down a fence. But it was just about connections, really; we've got a mixed squad – probably 12 to 14 older guys, and then 10 young guys all under 24.

"I thought it was one of the highlights of the whole pre-season."

Two other significant factors worked in Botha's favour through pre-season. The first was player availability. Unlike 2023, when the majority of the squad was playing cricket elsewhere (mainly the UK), he has had a full contingent at his disposal.

"For me as a new coach coming in, that's been really helpful," he says. "It's hard to do things like (a camp) when there's only 12 here. I thought, while everyone's here, we've got to use that opportunity."

The other factor was the quality of the T20 Max, staged through August and September, as players warmed into the summer via the shortest format. The competition has quickly established itself as arguably the country's best preparation for the Big Bash, while also doubling as a valuable scouting opportunity; both Spencer Johnson and Josh Brown have in seasons prior shone to earn Heat contracts.

In early September, the Bulls also played two red-ball practice matches in three days against Tasmania in Brisbane, then a week later took on South Australia. Among the headline makers was right-hander Hugo Burdon, who hit 122 against the Tigers, while young quick Straker took 6-27 against South Australia.

"We went at five an over (in the first match against Tassie) but we kept getting wickets throughout the day," Botha says. "Everyone chipped in and it was good for the guys just to get the red ball in their hand for once … they were consistent, they challenged the batter, and overall we were really happy with that.

"We've got to be confident we can turn things around. We've got (Usman) Khawaja and Marnus (Labuschagne) in our top three for the first three games, so we don't have any excuses with our batting line-up."

Areas for improvement

Queensland didn't boast a single player among the 2023-24 top 10 Shield run-scorers so Botha has pinpointed that as an obvious area for improvement, but elsewhere, he has identified a lack of new-ball wickets as a telling factor in last season's struggles.

"Speaking to a few of the guys, we were a little bit ineffective in getting those early breakthroughs," he says. "And then you're asking ‘Nes' (Neser), Gurinder (Sandhu), ‘Stek' (Mark Steketee) to just bowl overs and overs and overs.

"I'm hoping we can change that and spend less time in the field this year. That's something we've reflected on; you've got to strike early with the Kookaburra. The ball doesn't last that long – it goes soft and the seam is so flat.

The heat is on

"Max Bryant. Can we unlock something there? There's always the talk of talent and, you know, ‘How good can he be?' But we need to see it now. He's 25, he's been in the professional setup for eight years, and if he's not careful, these guys are overtaking him.

"And speaking to all our guys, they feel so far in this pre-season, every innings matters. There's no (attitude of): ‘I made runs yesterday, I'm just going to cruise through today'. They all feel under pressure to keep scoring, and that's where we want it to be; we want these guys to push each other for spots.

"I think that's the bonus with me coming in fresh. I'm picking the guys who are in form – who are doing good things and making runs. Everyone's equal. I'm not picking guys who made runs two years ago. That doesn't work for me."

Player to watch

"Jack Clayton's the one from last season who showed a lot but didn't quite nail it to go into that top 10 (Shield run-scorers). He made a lot of runs (555 – 11th in the competition), but his average was still only 32 or 33. But he's had a good winter. He went to India with (the) MRF (Academy), and I think if he gets a nice start to the season, he can be one who can really go big this summer."

Injury update

Neser is continuing to recover from a calf injury that has set back his pre-season somewhat, while Renshaw is dealing with an ongoing issue with his right wrist. He batted for a couple of hours in a practice match in early September and, according to Botha, felt some pain, but with the help of support staff and a specialist, the left-hander is experimenting with different strapping methods and is hopeful he can manage it through the early season.

Exciting young quick Callum Vidler, though, will be out of action for the early part of the season as he looks to manage his way through osteitis pubis.

"Callum is the only one who won't be ready for the start of the season at this point," Botha said. "We're hoping we can unleash him for the Brisbane Heat, but for now, I'm not sure we'll have him for the first three months of the summer."

Young guns

The Bulls continue to be blessed in the pace-bowling stakes, though U19 World Cup winner Tom Straker arrived from south of the border during the winter after being recruited from the Blues.

"With Vidler and (19-year-old right-armer) Tom Straker, we've got probably two of the best Under 19 bowlers in the world now in our squad," Botha says. "If we're smart and we can look after them well, they'll become leaders of our attack hopefully in the next three or four years.

"(Straker) is a great learner. You don't have to tell him twice. He'll try something, and if it works, he'll stick with it. If it doesn't quite fit, he'll say that. He's a very mature 19-year-old who really knows his game, and he's definitely quicker than I first thought.

"Jem Ryan is the other one. He's a right-arm seamer who played second grade club cricket last season and is now definitely going to be knocking on the door for our Shield team. Our boys are excited (by him). They face him day-in, day-out and they think he can fit straight into a Shield attack. He's only 20 and he's a real unknown – so that's an exciting one.

"With the bat, Hugo Burdon played beautifully (in warm-up v Tasmania), Hugh Weibgen's played great for his T20 Max team, and I'm hopeful a lot of our young guys can do well."

Team to beat

"Stats would say WA – they've just been very consistent over the past three years," Botha says. "The only team that's taken a trophy from them was the Brisbane Heat. I also think Tassie have been playing nice cricket in the last couple of years and they'll be desperate to go one step further in the Shield."

One-Day woes

It's more than a decade now since the Bulls won a one-day title. Botha feels Ben McDermott shining in this format but he also sees the tournament as a potential pathway for his young batting guns.

"Benny hasn't had much support, but with these young guys coming through – Hugh Weibgen and Hugo Burdon – they could easily help him in the top six," he says. "These guys have grown up with one-day cricket so they play it pretty well – and then their challenge is to fit into the Shield top six."

With Kuhnemann exiting to Tasmania, an opportunity for Swepson in the 50-over competition has opened up. Swepson played three ODIs in the first half of 2022 and will doubtless relish the prospect of returning to the format for the Bulls.

Final thoughts

"We know that this group can do it – there's obviously different formats – but we've got our focus on turning things around and being in the race come the Big Bash break," Botha says. "That's the way we're looking at it; we've got six Shield games, five one-day games and out theme for this pre-season has been, ‘We want to be in contention come December'."