All you need to know: Male U19 National Championships

This time last year, Sam Konstas was among 14 NSW Metro players holding aloft the Male U19 National Championships trophy after his side defeated Queensland in Albury.

A year on and Konstas has scored centuries for NSW and the PM's XI to throw his hat in the ring for Aussie Test selection.

This year’s seven-day U19 National Championships could see the next future star of Australian cricket with a number of promising talents preparing for 10-team tournament.

It all begins on Thursday, December 12 and finishes with the grand final a week later on Thursday, December 19.

The format

There will be a 'Pool A' and 'Pool B' with the top two teams from each pool going through to the semi-finals on Wednesday, December 18.

The winners of those two semi-finals will go through to the grand final on the following day where the champion will be crowned. 

How can I watch?

All matches will be live streamed on the Cricket Australia YouTube channel.

How can I follow the score and results?

All fixtures and the ladder can be accessed online here or through the PlayCricket app. You can also follow the PlayCricket social media channels for best moments and highlights from the competition.

The Grounds

Karen Rolton Oval - a magnificent ground that is shaped like a dome so expect balls to race to the boundary. Situated just beside the Adelaide city, South Australia has its state teams play many domestic games at the venue including WBBL and Sheffield Shield matches. 

Park 25 Ovals - Situated just next to Karen Rolton Oval, the Park 25 Ovals present tip-top outfield surfaces and potentially the chance for some shorter boundaries.

Prospect Oval - The home of SACA Premier cricket club Prospect, this ground is surrounded by picturesque grandstands. Depending on which side the pitch is on, you may find a shorter square boundary.

Glenelg Oval - You will get a nice sea breeze at Glenelg Oval keeping temperatures a bit cooler compared to inner city grounds. The dimensions are pretty even right around the ground, a little bit shorter square if anything. It is the home of SACA Premier club Glenelg.

Campbelltown Memorial Oval - The ground was treated to a new two-storey multi-use building not long ago. It is the home of SACA Premier club East Torrens, situated in the north eastern suburbs of Adelaide.

Players to watch

Ollie Peake (Victoria Country)

A classy left hander who has been at the tournament before and performed strongly. Peake recently featured in a Victoria 2nd XI game against Tasmania where he made 22 and 41no. On his return from a foot injury in the off-season, Peake scored two hundreds for the Australia U19's in a five-game tour of India.

Riley Kingsell (NSW Metro)

The hard-hitting opener scored 91 for Bankstown in a two-day game in late November. It follows a successful U19 Australia tour of India in mid-September which was highlighted by scores of 53 and 48 in a Chennai four-day match.

Aidan O’Connor (Tasmania)

The allrounder from Tasmania featured in the recent Prime Minister's XI game against India. An invaluable experience for the Australia U19 representative. 

Callum Vidler (Queensland)

The Queensland and Brisbane Heat contracted fast bowler made his debut for the state earlier this year and took five wickets, showcasing just how good a talent he is. The U19 Australia representative from the World Cup winning side earlier this year is coming back from an off-season groin injury and is set to feature in Adelaide. 

The squads

ACT: Ansh Tiwary, Nick Allen, Akshay Joseph, Raakin Rahman, Jake Smith, Tom Hogan, Lukas Boorer, Nick Kent, Dylan Shillington, Jeet Mehta, Kai Brunker (c), Hugh Taylor, Jos McIntyre, Sineth Herath

Northern Territory: Archie McCormick, Nicholas Fleming, Cadell McMahon, Max Menzies, James Hatton, Charlie Bignell, Josh Gawthrope, Advith Boreddy, Josh Malone, Hayden McCarthy, Ryan Percival, Suhas Challa, Malay Doshi, Jack Appleton

NSW Country: Bailey Abela, Kasey Barton, Blayde Burke, Angus Campbell (c), Ryan Cattle, Kai Croft, Zak Graham, Riley Keen, Blake Mackrell, Harry Roscarel, Harry Scowen, Shaun Smith, Ted Waterman, Sam Weir

NSW Metro: Will Adlam, Andrew Boulton, Jaiveer Dhanoa, Ryan Gupta, Coby Holland, John James, Riley Kingsell (c), Alex Lee-Young, James Moore, Everett Oxenham, Oliver Patterson, Andrew Salian, Addison Sherriff, Dhanvi Vemulapalli

Queensland: Jack Balkin, Aidan Firman, Jayden Draper, Bailey Garnham, Steven Hogan (c), Saxon Jeh, Charlie Lachmund, Brayden Meegama, Seth McGinty, Tighe Morris, Alexander Procopis, Ben Ramsbotham, Callum Vidler, Luke Wegner

South Australia: Lachlan Agnew, Logan Banyer, Thomas Brown, Roman Crawford, Lucas Doe, Jackson Gillespie, Kane Halfpenny, Dylan James, Matthew LeRay (c), Thomas Menzies, Lachlan Ranaldo, Hayden Schiller, Haard Shah, Luke Szabo

Tasmania: Hayden Clark-Sullivan, Ethan Clark, Lachlan Clark, Tom Dwyer, Blake Garrett, Joe Groom, Pat Harnwell, Oliver Knowles, Joe McGann, Harry McHugh, Aidan O’Connor (c), Luke Quinlan, Mason Wright, Jaxon Thorpe

Victoria Country: Archie Lalor, Ashton Frost, Brodie Reaper, Harry Hoekstra, Harry Jones, Henry Edwards, Jaskabeer Singh, Kane Scott, Kyle Parrott, Lincoln Koliba, Lucas Cavigan, Ollie Peake, Xavier Wishart, Zane Attard

Victoria Metro: Aiman Nadeem, Alex Turner, Archie Flynn, Bailey Toseland, Christian Howe, Cooper Rojko, Gurbir Singh, Josh Pace, Moe Spencer, Muhammad Abdul Rafay, Nick Brennan, Reyaan Farooq, Thomas Paddington, Vishwa Ramkumar

Western Australia: Simon Budge (c) Ethan Benson, Matt Carroll, Albert Esterhuysen, Zed Hollick, Will Malajczuk, Zeph Netherway, Jake Pattison, Jordan Quiggin, Adam Solomons, Connor Southam, Sean Thompson, Wiehan Vorster Beukes, Wyatt Wilson