Manawatu bank on new bowlers for Wanganui

Manawatu will wheel out a new bowling attack for their Hawke Cup game against Wanganui this weekend.

Palmerston North Boys’ High School’s Jack Harris will play his first game for Manawatu and take the new ball for the Hawke Cup game in Wanganui on Saturday and Sunday.

Leg-spinner Braden Rowe, who has just finished at Boys’ High, will play his second game after he debuted against Horowhenuakapiti at the end of last season.

Spearhead Navin Patel has been called up to play for Central Districts, who start the one-day competition this weekend, so is

unavailable and they are still without the services of seamers Caleb Gaylard and Jack Gleeson.

Gaylard and Gleeson are both coming back from injury, but should play club cricket this weekend.

Spinning all-rounder Arana Noema-barnett missed out on selection with Rowe coming in.

Harris and Nick Blundell will open the bowling on what could be a slow and flat Victoria Park, which is where Rowe should offer something, as will off-spinners Henry Collier and Scott Davidson, who has left Old Boys and is now with Boys’ High as a player coach.

Blundell, who will be playing against his former side, and medium pacer Thomas Kuggeleijn bowled well in Manawatu’s last outing against Horowhenua-kapiti before Christmas.

All-rounder Collier, who is also a former Wanganui rep, played for CD A at the provincial A tournament last week.

Even with a couple of new bowlers, Manawatu still has a strong batting lineup, which includes Mitch Renwick, who also spent the week with CD A.

Manawatu are well behind Hawke’s Bay and Taranaki in the Furlong Cup standings and need results to go their way in the final two rounds if they want a Hawke Cup challenge.

With two washed out games this season, Manawatu coach Mike Mason wanted two full days of cricket this weekend.

‘‘We’ll just soldier on and hopefully we do well this weekend,’’ he said. ‘‘We’ll get in there and do our best and see what happens.’’

Wanganui, who are coached by Warren Marr this year, have most of the usual suspects, but will have two players away with the Central Districts under-17s in Akash Gill and Connor O’leary, while veteran Dom Rayner is at a wedding.

Wanganui will have former Manawatu Turbos outside back Craig Clare, who played 10 games for Manawatu between 2001 and 2004. Clare is now working in Wanganui and playing club cricket for Marton.

Another Manawatu player is in the Wanganui team is Boys’ High batsman Thomas Walshe.