T20s await TCL players as Launceston Nepali step up to make 10

Launceston Nepali join the premier league sides, with the 10 teams divided into two pools of five.

Hadspen have won the last two T20 titles and are looking forward to being back, with Evandale Panthers, Launceston Nepali, Longford and Western Tiers in their pool.

"We're just looking to play positive cricket and for our bowlers to execute their plans and enjoy it," he said.

"T20 cricket can go either way real quick, so it's just about wrestling momentum and enjoying the weekend."

Longford have brought in some guns alongside their regulars as they shoot for six T20 titles in eight years.

Jake Williams, who grew up playing for the Tigers, and Ian Labrooy will don the yellow and black throughout the weekend.

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"Jake enjoys coming back to Longford and playing when he can so it's good to have him back. He relishes the opportunities and doesn't like losing cricket and he's got a really good cricket brain as well so hopefully him and Max [Magann] will get together and work things out," coach Richard Howe said.

Evandale Panthers have also boosted their squad - with Hamish Jones (Beauty Point) and Doug Ryan (South Launceston) coming in as coach Jonty Manktelow is looking for his experienced players to stand up.

"The way Rickie Wells plays at the top in the 40-over game, he likes to go hard, so with 20 overs less it will be no different and it definitely suits his style," Manktelow said.

As the new faces in the T20 competition, Launceston Nepali are eager to battle the premier league sides.

"We've been waiting a while - we've been playing 40 overs and finally get the chance to smack some in 20 overs," coach Parash Poudel said.

"A lot of players from our team have played T20s before they were here - on the mainland in Melbourne and Sydney - so it should be a good suit for us."

The Western Tiers will have the opportunity to host two matches on Sunday - facing Longford and Launceston Nepali at their Cressy home deck.

Last year's grand finalists Perth are eager to repeat the feat this season with ACL, Diggers, Legana and Trevallyn standing ahead of them.

The Demons will miss Shayne Goldfinch and Josh Farrell but have plenty of players suited to T20 according to coach Mat Devlin.

"Our assistant coach, who will be captaining the side this week, Zakhan Nizar and Eden Burns are definitely suited to the shorter format," he said.

"We are also expecting big things from Jakob Williams and Jake Smith as well as Matthew Walton, who are looking forward to having back in premier league after Christmas."

Trevallyn coach Drew Clark is looking for his spinners to play a big role.

"I expect Clayde White and Alex Kerrison to do pretty well to be honest. I think they are two of the better spinners going around in the comp and spin usually dominates these games, so I reckon they are going to go pretty well," he said.

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Clark's side will be looking to give several younger players a game throughout the competition, with some regular premier league names unavailable. Legana are in a similar boat, which excites stand-in captain Mike Dunn.

"I'm definitely looking forward to giving a few guys in the lower grades some roles to see how they go and what they've got to contribute," he said.

The Diggers will bring back Tim Crawford for the T20s after the bowler decided to miss the 22-23 season.

Bowling has been a strength for Lockie Mitchell's side, making Crawford's inclusion even bigger.

"All of our bowlers have bowled really well recently, so if we can get a few early wickets, that really sets us up to winning the game," he said.

While his side have some travel ahead of them on Saturday, ACL's Simon Chappell said they are looking forward to playing with a white ball.

"A lot of the guys are going to enjoy it as the ball is a lot different," he said.

"There's not going to be that substantial amount of swing and a lot of the other teams who rely specifically on swing bowling, they're going to be fronted with a scenario that our guys are really looking forward to - they're going to have to change their games up."

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