Queensland have included four recent Australian representatives in the under-19 team for the national championships in Perth next month
Australian youth cricket reps Steven Hogan, Jayden Draper, Charlie Lachmund and Ben Gordon will lead Queensland’s charge at the national championships in Perth. Get to know the bumper 14-man squad here.
The best teenage batter, the best fast bowler and the best wicketkeeper in Australia headline the team of teen titans set to fly the Queensland flag high at the National Under-19 cricket championships.
Batting ace Steve Hogan, fast bowling tearaway Charlie Lachmund and emerging Valley wicketkeeper batsmen Jayden Draper headline a talented squad of 14 Queenslanders that will travel to Perth next month for the annual tournament starting on December 1.
Queensland came third last season but with this squad, as follows, a better finish beckons: Ben Gordon (Sunshine Coast), Charlie Henderson (University of Qld), Charlie Lachmund (Cricket Ipswich), Eddie Leslie (South Brisbane), Harley Malpass (Wynnum Manly), Jayden Draper (Valley), Lachlan McClure (Redlands), Lakshdeep Singh (Sandgate Redcliffe), Louis Morris (Northern Suburbs), Michael Neumann (Western Suburbs), Steven Hogan (Sandgate-Redcliffe), Theodore Bacalakis (University of Qld), Thomas Town (Sunshine Coast), Tighe Morris (Valley).
This year’s 10-team tournament, with the final to be held at the WACA ground, holds added significance as the final selection event for the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup, to be held in Zimbabwe and Namibia in January 2026.
MEET THE YOUNG MAGIC MEN OF QUEENSLAND CRICKET
Ben Gordon (Sunshine Coast)
The Coolum Cricket Club product has been a standout over the past 18 months in club cricket and continues his run of fabulous form with selection in this team.
This year Gordon had the distinction of making the Australian under-19 team despite still being at school at St Andrew’s Anglican College.
Gordon sprung to the surface in the summer of 2023 when as a 16-year-old, he was one of the best pace bowlers in the Taverners competition.
He is an exciting prospect who is so fast he will bring some fear factor to Queensland’s armoury.
Charlie Henderson (University of Qld)
You wouldn’t believe the season Charlie Henderson is having at UQ.
In nine innings, Henderson has been not out three times, scored three tons and also three fifties. His highest score is 154 and has amassed 637 runs at an average of 106.17, while striking the ball efficiently at 70.78.
The Nudgee College Year 11 student is one of the babies of the squad and has earned his stripes this year in GPS First XI and Taverners under-17s cricket.
Brisbane junior Henderson has been the find of the season in Taverners cricket.
Charlie Lachmund (Cricket Ipswich)
Lachmund announced himself as a player of the future during 2023 when as a wide-eyed Year 10 student he played strongly for Toowoomba Grammar’s First XI. Later that year, he was arguably the best quick in Taverners cricket.
He was fast then but has more pace now.
The right-arm seamer took a fifer against Valley last Saturday and is a repeat entry into this Queensland team after last year flexing his muscles as Queensland’s leading paceman.
Eddie Leslie (South Brisbane)
A highly-touted teen from Souths, Leslie was so good that instead of playing Taverners cricket he played first grade back in 2023.
It’s something you rarely see but the results of that decision, his own, have been resounding.
A fast swing bowler, Leslie has been exposed to Queensland's’s best cricketers for two seasons and a big bowling performance is just around the corner given a big haul of wickets has eluded him so far this year.
Harley Malpass (Wynnum Manly)
Malpass was at the peak of his powers on Saturday at Toombul.
The bayside product, who is easily one of the top five AIC First XI cricketers of the decade, scored 117 from 180 balls.
This was after the No. 3 bat entered the fray quickly following a duck to his opener Jed Wilson.
Malpass is a glorious batsmen at his best, someone who can take matches away from his opponent with at times aggressive and also very patient batting.
A loyal servant to the Sea Eagles club, Malpass is slowly but surely finding his feet in first grade and, if needed, gives Queensland a strong bowling option with his wicket-taking right arm medium fasts.
Jayden Draper (Valley)
Draper’s class has never been more apparent than at Ian Healy Oval in September when he blasted a 65-ball ton against India for Australia’s under-19s.
An exciting prospect who has been a leading player coming through the ranks at Valley, Draper also excels behind the stumps where he was a Taverners top gun before progressing quickly into first grade, while at Churchie.
Draper, 18, dominated South Australia with the bat at the previous instalment of this tournament and will be age-eligible next year to represent the under-19s for a third time.
Lachlan McClure (Redlands)
Every team needs a McClure in it.
The Redlands rookie quick can swing it both ways, well, and scores runs quickly in the middle order.
He is a valued member of the Tigers first grade side, as reflected in his recent 5-24 performance against the Scorchers where he went for just 1.46 runs an over across 16 overs.
A standout during the under-19s competition earlier this year, McClure has gone from strength to strength in grade cricket since graduating from AIC cricket heavyweights Iona College this time last year.
Lakshdeep Singh (Sandgate Redcliffe)
The spin king, or prince, of Queensland cricket.
Singh, a Year 12 student at The Lakes College in Norths Lakes, made his first grade debut for Sandgate-Redcliffe as a Year 10 student.
He was only 16 and took wickets at that level, regularly.
A leg spinner, Singh can form a mighty partnership with off spinner Morris at this tournament where the mighty Lakes Knights club product will put batsmen in their place with tricky spin bowling.
Louis Morris (Northern Suburbs)
Morris is the other half of Queensland’s tantalising spin bowling attack.
An off spinner with the ability to build an innings and score at the top or middle order, Morris was a masterful schoolboy performer during his time at Marist Ashgrove.
A class act for Norths in under-17s, under-19s and now first grade cricket, Morris has been steadily ticking boxes coming up and is just the bloke his teammates will appreciate in Perth.
Not just because he is a tremendous all rounder but also because he can fill a room with laughter.
Michael Neumann (Western Suburbs)
Neumann has been a batting nuisance for bowlers for some time. From the Wests club, Neumann earned a top reputation during the 2023 Taverners season where he scored with ease.
A humble top order bat from Ambrose Treacey College where he was the school’s 2024 vice-captain, Neumann has showed no signs of tapering off after first making the Queensland under-17s two years ago.
That was the year Neumann and Jack Sonter helped spearhead Wests to its first Taverners title in 10 years.
Steven Hogan (Sandgate-Redcliffe)
The best way to articulate the quality of this young batsmen is the simple fact that St Patrick’s College, who finished fifth, could’ve won the 2025 AIC First XI season had they had Hogan.
Hogan was playing first grade for Sandgate instead and his injection would’ve made a world of difference.
A two-time Australian Under-19s selection with the chance to return again next year, Hogan is the leading batter in this age group and a more than capable spin bowler.
Currently three runs away from a first grade ton entering Saturday’s Bulls Masters two day match, Hogan has glorious shots in his arsenal and gives Queensland stability and quick scoring at No. 4.
He has an uncanny ability to turn games in favour of his team.
Theodore Bacalakis (University of Qld)
Bacalakis will cap off a dream year in cricket when contesting the national championships in Perth.
Earlier this year he was superb for Queensland’s under-17s and his club form has demanded a call up in this stacked under-19s outfit.
The top gun Gregory Terrace all-rounder has scored 543 runs at 67.88 this Taverners season and has done so quickly.
He is going to do a bit of both with bat and ball for the maroons.
Tom Town (Sunshine Coast)
From the South Burnett region, Town has come from the clouds to be a leading Sunshine Coast Scorchers club cricketer.
An under-17s state select earlier this year, Town brings variety with his left arm fast bowling which can add to the unease opposition batsmen are no doubt going to be feeling when facing this deep Queensland attack.
The tall Nanango Scorpions product can put it on a penny and if he does so consistently, Queensland’s bowling attack might just be the best out west.
Tighe Morris (Valley)
Last but certainly not least in this bumper side is Churchie prodigy Morris, a first grader at Valley who bats and bowls at a very high standard.
Originally a Sunshine Coast kid, Morris is another repeat entry in this team after making the side last year.
Morris, 18, played three seasons of Firsts at Churchie and is yet another outstanding allrounder who Queensland can rely on to get the job done against the nation’s best teenage cricketers.
Originally published as Queensland have included four recent Australian representatives in the under-19 team for the national championships in Perth next month
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