Oliver sees super line-up
City skipper relishes chance to show his wares against the best
RICHIE Oliver says he will happily forgo his regular place at the top of the order to be part of Geelong’s T20 outfit in the Vic Super Slam.
The Geelong City import, who has been drafted into the Cats squad for the new franchise-style competition, says he will not rock the boat when it comes to his position in the side.
“I’m just happy to be there,” Oliver said.
“If they wanted me to open, I’d be happy to open. I’m really glad to be in the side and I’ll soak it up, to be honest.
“I practised with the lads last night and I threw a few balls at (Geelong captain) Eamonn Vines and I thought ‘wow’. He reminded me of myself four or five years ago when I was just getting into the first-class set-up and how sharp he was.
“When I looked at that, I thought, ‘there’s no way I can bat in front of him’. So I’d be just comfortable to be part of it and hopefully I can bring my best form.”
Arguably the best batsman in the GCA, Englishman Oli- ver has agreed to play in Premier cricket’s new T20 tournament, which boasts a $20,000 winning prize. Teams have the ability to recruit players from outside their club, from local cricketers to Big Bash League players.
The Geelong City skipper will bolster the Cats’ batting line-up, which already includes Melbourne Renegades’ power hitter Tim Ludeman and gifted strokemakers Hayden Butterworth and Josh McDonald.
“Looking at the top order, I imagine I will slot in somewhere in the middle,” Oliver said. “I can only tell you what I would do . . . I would go Ludeman, Butterworth, McDonald, Vines, Oliver. But I don’t know what they would do.”
He said he had been in constant discussions with Cats coach Liam Buchanan about suiting up in the tournament.
“When they asked if I was interested, I said, ‘I’ll bite your bloody hand off’,” he said.
“I’ve been desperate to play as soon as they were interested in me playing.
“It’s an opportunity for me to go up another level again, it’s something I haven’t done in a while, and I’m looking forward to it.
“You want to play as high as you can for as long as you can, and to play on those grounds with good players, I think it only gets the best out of you as a player.
“Hopefully I can bring something to the table. I’ve known a lot of them for a long time and I’ve been around the traps in Geelong and . . . I’m looking forward to the experience of it.”
Lining up in the Melbourne Renegades’ conference, the Cats will meet the Lions (Fitzroy Doncaster) in the season opener at Princes Park on Sunday.
Oliver will be hoping to end a run of outs after returning 53 runs in his past five digs.
“I’m not hitting the ball very well at the moment,” he said.
“I’m not feeling it, but sometimes that’s when you do some of your best work, isn't it?
“I thought I was hitting the ball well from the very start of the season, but all of a sudden you have a few low scores and then you just need a bit of luck.
“I don’t feel like I’m far away, I just need a bit of luck and get one away, but at the moment I feel like I need to knuckle down and spend some time at the crease.”