Premier Cricket: Northcote makes wicketkeeper Blayde Baker captain
HE’S held on to some tough catches during a century of First XI matches and now Blayde Baker has a hold on Northcote’s captaincy.
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HE’S held on to some tough catches during a century of First XI Premier Cricket matches and now Blayde Baker has a hold on Northcote’s captaincy.
The wicketkeeper has been elevated to skipper after work commitments caused Ben Abbatangelo to move to New South Wales.
Abbatangelo had been slated to replace outgoing captain Steve Taylor, who will be a playing coach this summer.
Taylor had no hesitation handing Baker the reins when Abbatangelo’s move took place.
“He took over the gloves quite early, being one of the few niches in cricket where you can only pick one gloveman,” Taylor said.
“He’s hung onto that role and done it really well. His glovework has always been good but his batting, at the back end of last season, he top scored for us I think in the last two or three two-day games.
“That’s the development we all knew was in him and it is going to be nice to be on field and support him.”
Middle-order batsman Josh Sundberg will serve as Baker’s vice-captain.
The gloveman enjoyed his best season for the Dragons in 2017-18, compiling 358 runs at 32.6 and 22 dismissals.
.@vicpremcricket captaincy news from @nccdragons - Blayde Baker will lead the Dragons this summer with Ben Abbatangelo to spend time in NSW. Nice reward for the loyal gloveman.
— Tim Michell (@tim_michell) August 13, 2018
Baker also featured in his 100th First XI game last summer.
“We see him as a long-term prospect,” Taylor said.
“He’s already played 100 games and who is to say he can’t play many, many more.”
Abbatangelo spent several seasons on the fringes of the Victorian squad and Taylor acknowledged he would be tough to replace.
The top-order batsman has made more than 2000 runs in the past five seasons for the Dragons, producing a career-best 628-run campaign in 2014-15.
“It’s up to everyone to stand up and show a bit more responsibility,” Taylor said.
“We haven’t brought any one player in to replace him. But we feel we can cover that role.”
Players such as Mark Phelan, Lindsay Hassett, Jack Lalor and Sundberg will be expected to shoulder more responsibility as a result of Abbatangelo’s departure.
Left-arm paceman Nick Biscontin is the only player who has been cleared to Northcote, crossing from Essendon.
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