Damian Shanahan excited by potential at Greenvale Kangaroos
Premier Cricket great Damian Shanahan is excited by the challenge at Greenvale Kangaroos, confident his can lead the club up the ladder with some exciting young talent at his disposal.
Local Sport
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New Greenvale Kangaroos’ Premier Cricket coach Damian Shanahan hopes to unlock his players attacking mindset.
The Premier Cricket great signed on as head coach this month and sees plenty of potential in a Kangaroos outfit that improved significantly this season despite registering just three wins.
“I’m really excited by the whole list,” Shanahan said.
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“There’s definitely potential, the results last season speak for themselves, the opportunity is now to take that to another level.
“There’s a lot of players that have played between 20 and 50 first grade games, which is great.
“It’s a really good challenge personally, the club has a tremendous off-field set-up and facilities, and now it’s time to transfer those young men into serious cricketers.”
After playing just three First XI games last season, Sean McNicholl took his game to another level in 2019-20.
The young paceman finished the home-and-away season with 36 wickets, second most in the competition behind Dandenong’s James Nanopoulos, and was named in the Premier Cricket Team of the Year.
Sri Lanka Test aspirant Kaushal Silva served as coach tin 2019-20 and led the club with the bat, knocking up 600 runs at 46.15 in his debut season.
While the coronavirus pandemic has put everything on hold, Shanahan hoped Silva would return for another campaign.
“We’re unsure at the moment because it’s very hard with the environment we’re in,” he said.
“Obviously, he’s a tremendous player and it would be fantastic to have him back on board, but who knows what’s happening with our borders and travel.
“I think he’s keen to come back, so that’s a positive for the club.”
Shanahan played 252 Premier Cricket First XI games in a decorated career with Camberwell Magpies and Geelong, twice finishing second in the Ryder Medal.
He then led the Cats for eight years, winning a T20 championship and two club championships.
Known for his attacking intent during his playing days, Shanahan was looking to inject that same intent into the Kangaroos.
“We’ll be a positive intent team, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.
“Right through my playing career and coaching career, I’ve liked to play positive cricket.
“Everyone who puts on a Greenvale top next season will be proud of the work they’ve done and can play with some real pride.”