Brisbane believe they have the list to challenge again after missing the finals following their BBL|13 win
Heat to tweak balance after tough title defence: BBL|14 review
Brisbane Heat have their sights set on rebalancing their line up after a disastrous title defence saw them as the first team eliminated from the finals race in KFC BBL|14.
After winning their first two matches with an understrength side, the Heat only managed one win for the rest of the season as they crashed to second last in the standings.
While their run to the BBL|13 championship the previous season was one of stability, their BBL|14 campaign was marred by disruption with as many as nine players from their first-choice XI missing games due to injury and international selection.
Joe Dawes, the Heat's general manager of elite cricket, believes the club still boasts a list capable of winning titles, but as a group they failed to adapt to the challenges they faced in BBL|14.
"They don't become bad players overnight because we had a bad year," Dawes said.
"It's going to be a really good learning experience for all the players that they can't just stand still, they need to constantly adapt and continue to improve and that'll be the feature of what we're taking into next year.
"We've got a really good group of people and they're capable of winning titles, we just need to keep improving and adapting our game."
After using the same six bowlers during their entire BBL|13 championship campaign, the Heat's depth was tested immensely in BBL|14 with star quicks Michael Neser (hamstring) and Spencer Johnson (foot) injured to start the season.
Returning English draftee Paul Walter also wasn't at his best and missed games with a shoulder complaint, while spinner Matthew Kuhnemann missed the final game of the season after dislocating his thumb.
Fellow overseas recruit Colin Munro also had a tough campaign with both injuries and form, and draft pick Tom Alsop missed the first six games after suffering a quad injury at training prior to their season opener against Melbourne Stars.
Mitch Swepson, who has since left the club to join the Stars on a lucrative three-year deal, stepped in as captain, while emerging fast bowlers Will Prestwidge and Tom Whitney gained valuable experience on the big stage.
But that dependence on those six bowlers has left the Heat looking to their top six to provide overs next season with Nathan McSweeney, Matthew Renshaw and spin-turned-fast-bowling allrounder Jack Wood potential options among those that played in BBL|14.
"We've talked a lot about roles and potential changes of roles," Dawes said.
"We're looking at really challenging some of our people and changing some of those roles to make up for some of the areas that we weren't really at our best this year.
"We'll be trying to get overs out of our top order and create a bit more balance in our group."
Season snapshot
BBL|14 result: Seventh (3 wins, 6 losses, 1 no result)
Most runs: Matthew Renshaw (280 at 35.00)
Best strike rate (min. 50 runs): Marnus Labuschagne (175.00)
Most wickets: Spencer Johnson (13 at 17.76)
Best economy (min. 10 overs): Spencer Johnson (8.25)
Contracted for BBL|15: Xavier Bartlett (contracted until BBL|18), Max Bryant (BBL|18), Spencer Johnson (BBL|17), Usman Khawaja (BBL|15), Matt Kuhnemann (BBL|15), Nathan McSweeney (BBL|16), Colin Munro (BBL|15), Michael Neser (BBL|15), Jimmy Peirson (BBL|15), Callum Vidler (BBL|16)
Out: Mitch Swepson (Stars)
Uncontracted: Tom Alsop, Tom Banton, Daniel Drew, Marnus Labuschagne, Will Prestwidge, Matthew Renshaw, Tom Straker, Jack Wildermuth, Paul Walter, Tom Whitney, Jack Wood
International impact
It was a largely forgettable season for the Heat's overseas recruits as all three missed games due to injury. Prized pre-signing Colin Munro picked up a hamstring injury prior to their opening game before dislocating a finger later in the season. When he did play, the Kiwi opener failed to have the same impact as previous Big Bash seasons, managing just 46 runs in six games with a top score of 23. Heat general manager of elite cricket, Joe Dawes, said it was a "disjointed tournament" for the left-hander but he remained an important leader at the club and backed him to rebound in BBL|15 when he returns for the second year of his contract.
English allrounder 'Tall' Paul Walter returned for his second season with the Heat but he too struggled to find the same form that he had during their BBL|13 win. He took just four wickets compared to 17 the previous season and his economy rate (9.26) was also higher, while scoring 67 runs in his six games. The left-armer also suffered a shoulder injury midway through the season that saw him miss three games.
But wicketkeeper-batter Tom Alsop finished his first season in the BBL strongly after overcoming a quad injury with scores of 39 against the Hurricanes and 42 not out against the Renegades. Fellow Englishman Tom Banton (39 runs at 13) returned to the Heat for three games while Alsop was injured.
Season recap with GM of elite cricket Joe Dawes
"It's obviously disappointing. It's never ideal when you win BBL|13 and come second last in BBL|14 and shows we didn't adapt as well this year as previously and probably just expected to roll out and do what we did again, and it would be successful. We became the hunted instead of being the hunter previously and we didn’t adapt to that very well."
Disjointed season
"We didn't get our championship side until game seven of the season. There were changes with 'Bilbo' (Sam Billings) leaving and Tommy Alsop (getting injured) but our first choice XI without the big boys on Test duty, we didn't get until game seven, so that's never ideal.
"And when you're coming in halfway through the tournament returning from injury, you're underdone and trying to find your form and T20 is a pretty horrible place to try and find your form and rhythm."
Max Bryant's maturity
"Max's last two years, the numbers have been exceptional at number five and that's probably one of the hardest spots to bat in T20 cricket and Max has made it his own. He's a great asset for us and we're seeing him mature on the field and off the field as well as a great young bloke.
"Everyone thinks that he's nearly 30 because he's been around for so long, but he's still only 25 so it's pretty exciting what he's got ahead of him."
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Building depth
"One of the things we will take out of this year is guys got an opportunity and we tried to give them a decent run at it. 'Presto' (Will Prestwidge) didn't really nail it but showed that he's got what it can take and can develop into a good player at that level.
"'Woodsy' (Jack Wood) is probably the same; he made a couple of impressions there with the bat but didn't get the big score he was hoping for in four opportunities. But he still showed that he can do a job for us at the top as we have a look at how we shuffle and get our top order in place for next year.
New coach
"Johan (Botha) and Wade (Seccombe) are very different characters … so in a new environment, that has taken a little bit for that group to gel at the Heat. Johan brings a lot of T20 cricket experience for us, and we've also had a lot of other new staff with Ross Taylor coming in and 'Boof' (Darren Lehmann) leaving us.
"So there was a lot of change this year that probably didn't gel quite as quickly as we had hoped, and that's something that we've spoken a lot about. We're really looking forward to having them all back for a second year next year and build on those relationships that are starting to form."
Looking ahead to BBL|15
Priority re-signings
"Just because the results didn't go our way, it's not going to lead to wholesale change by any means. We're really comfortable with the group that we've got, we've learnt a lot about them and ourselves this year. There will only be subtle changes to our crew and we've come to non-biding agreements with a couple already and we're looking to lock in the rest of them in the first few weeks of that embargo period lifting.
"We've come to terms with Matt (Renshaw) for the next few years, which we're excited about. He obviously had a good Big Bash this year and is doing really well for Queensland as well. We absolutely want Marnus (Labuschagne) on board, he's a huge part of the Heat. And in his one game this year, we saw just how dangerous he can be in this format."
Rebalancing act
"Like every team whether you win or come last, there's been plenty of debriefs and reviews and more the further down the table you go – we've talked a lot about roles and potential changes of roles. We're looking at really challenging some of our people and their roles … to make up for some of the areas that we weren't really at our best this year."
Squad gaps
"It's hard to replace Mitch Swepson at the end of the day. By his own admission he'll be disappointed with his output this year but he goes with our blessing – an opportunity like that to set his family up is fantastic and we wish him all the best as he heads off to the Stars.
"We'll be trying to get overs out of our top order and create a bit more balance in our group. We probably lacked that this year with a couple of the guys who didn't do as well this year as what they did last year, and we struggled for balance. We'll be looking at different roles for who we have so that we're getting overs out of our top three and potentially our top six to help us with balance."