An eight-team first division cricket draw opens this weekend and many are happy to see renewed strength in the draw.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Eden cricketing stalwart Drew Mudaliar says the line-up is "ideal"
While cricket is the main summer draw for many, Mudaliar heaped praise on smaller towns in the area for mustering the numbers to take on the top level of play.
"It's a credit to teams like Wolumla and Bermagui and a lesser extent Pambula that they step up to play first grade - without them there wouldn't be much competition so it's a credit to those clubs."
The Bega-Angledale Bulls open their account with a round one fixture against the defending premiers from Eden.
An association spokesman said the Bulls will be looking to build on their semi-final finish from last season with Cody Hazelgrove-Danvers again on deck to skipper the side.
Officials said the Bulls had lost a couple of key players to other clubs this year including Mitch Jessop and Liam Cooper, but the Bega-Angledale club had a wealth of quality in its junior base with some of those fresh players likely to get a run in the top grade.
The Tathra Sea Eagles will welcome long-time clubman Chris Dwyer in the captaincy with the squad retaining a core structure that includes some of the most explosive top order batsmen in the Far South Coast association including Adam Blacka, Ben O'Reilly and Peter Bennett.
Dwyer himself is also a proven contender with the bat and an association spokesman said the club had maintained a good core of players, while the Eagles will also welcome a couple of new recruits this year.
He said the Eagles had been a dominant force in the local game over many years and it was a shock exit for the club to miss a finals place last season, but the Eagles would be out to set the record straight this summer.
The Eagles face Bermagui in the season opener at Lawrence Park on Saturday with the Bermagui outfit to look to Liam Cooper and captain Ben Tett for some big scoring opportunities.
The association spokesman said the Bermagui squad hadn't lost any players from the past season, while a couple of handy pick ups should only strengthen what he said was already one of the more prominent batting orders in the competition.
Meanwhile, the spokesman welcomed the inclusion of Wolumla in first division and said the club would be something of an unknown quantity ahead of round one.
The spokesman said the Wolumla club boasted some seasoned campaigners - and big hitters - in the likes of Ross Oldham and Tim Hodgkin and Tom Adams, who are all rumoured to be making a comeback on the pitch. Wolumla will host Merimbula on Saturday. Both the seniors and rep ladies will wear black arm bands in tribute after the passing of Alan Gale earlier this week.