![Spencer Hayes, Aidan O'Connor and Cooper Anthes are heading to the under-19 champs. Pictures by Phillip Biggs, Paul Scambler Spencer Hayes, Aidan O'Connor and Cooper Anthes are heading to the under-19 champs. Pictures by Phillip Biggs, Paul Scambler](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/8mt7fPj3AeZSAF4grZ2EUc/5c1e7958-d107-47c6-843a-27a278b8f117.jpg/r0_8_1885_1068_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Tasmania's under-19 men's cricket side are going to the national championships with the ultimate goal - taking home the trophy.
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Flying to Adelaide on Wednesday, the side play their first match against the hosts on Thursday, with coach Alistair Taylor excited about his young group's chances.
"I think if you speak to everyone, you always go into a championship wanting to win it, no Tassie team's ever won it," he said.
"We had a good opportunity last year and didn't quite make the final but this year hopefully we're looking at potentially playing off in a final which I think's really exciting."
With only several players who aren't eligible to play in the tournament next year, Taylor and captain Cooper Anthes are taking a young squad - with Jack Callinan and Aidan O'Connor also in the under-17s.
"It shows the sort of work all the coaches are doing and what the clubs are doing, for the players to be upskilled enough to be able to play two or three years potentially in the under-19s program," Taylor said.
"It's really good that the selection group have put the faith in the kids as well to give them this opportunity young and stretch them as much as we are."
The squad features players from the North and the South, with no North-West players making the 14-player outfit.
Taylor said the squad were able to train together "once or twice" as a full group on top of their regular sessions with high-performance, pathway and club coaches.
Captain Anthes, young gun O'Connor (both from Riverside) and Mowbray's Spencer Hayes are the three Northern players in the squad.
O'Connor comes into the championships following "a different lead-up", having broken his leg and dislocated his ankle playing football for Tasmania in the under-16 titles.
"We just got him back playing cricket about a month ago, I think his first game was for Riverside," Taylor said.
"His lead-up has still been really good, he's been hitting a lot of balls for a long time and he's been bowling in the nets for a long time - it's just trying to get that trust back in his leg when under pressure.
"Aidan's a pretty confident young man so we're pretty pumped to be able to select him, give him an opportunity as one of these three-year players.
"The other two boys have probably been in and out of form with the Raiders but they are playing at that really high level coming up against some really good cricketers so that should hold them in good stead coming into a national championships."
The tournament runs from December 15 to 22.
SQUAD
Darcy Allen, Cooper Anthes (c), Ryan Borsboom, Jack Callinan, Spencer Hayes, Tom Murrell, Aidan O'Connor, Tom Pears, Will Sartori, James Scott, Louis Smith, Sam Voss, Jesse Willmott, James Wilson.
Head coach: Alistair Taylor, assistant coach: Harry Nichols