Whiting Financial Services Men's A head coach Luke Woodcock has selected an experienced 17-man wider training squad in preparation for the 2020-21 season.

The squad includes a host of players with first-class or List-A caps, as well as a handful of specialist white-ball players for an A programme that will likely be similar to last year's schedule.

Luke Georgeson and Brett Johnson both made their debuts for the Wellington Firebirds last summer, while James Hartshorn and Adam Leonard were both selected in Firebirds squads in the Plunket Shield.

Left-arm spinner Jeremy Benton is the obvious addition to the squad after making the move North from Canterbury.

The 25-year-old adds another quality spin option to the bowling ranks and brings added experience having played both List-A and T20 cricket for Canterbury.

"We're really excited to finally be getting back to cricket with another talented group of players," said Wellington A head coach Luke Woodcock.

''We were really pleased to see several of our A guys get opportunities at the Firebirds level last summer and we want to build on that this year and continue to make the A programme a really effective development step for future Firebirds.

''We've got a good mix of players who have had experience at the top level and players who are just breaking into the A setup so we're looking forward to helping these guys develop."

The wider squad will begin their winter training programme on August 10.

Whiting Financial Services wider training squad:

Jeremy Benton

Nish Desai (white-ball only)

Luke Georgeson

Nick Greenwood

James Hartshorn

Brett Johnson

Adam Leonard

Josh Mann

Callum McLachlan

Chander Ravi

Zac Ringrose

Mitch Scott (T20 only)

Gareth Severin (white-ball only)

Ben Skilton (white-ball only)

Jesse Tashkoff

Rakitha Weerasundara (white-ball only)

Jed Wiggins

Coaching & Support Staff

Head Coach - Luke Woodcock

Programme Lead - Chris Nevin

Bowling Coach (Pre-Season) - Hamish Bennett

Bowling Coach (In-Season) - Andrew Lamb 

Strength & Conditioning - Andrew Smith

Article added: Monday 03 August 2020