Northern Brothers Diggers captain named in Queensland Country team

A Toowoomba cricketer is set to represent the Garden City on the national stage when he lines up for Queensland Country in the Australian Country Championships in January.

Northern Brothers Diggers' Aidan Watterson. Photo: Kevin Farmer.

A crunch decision to return to his home town to play cricket for his boyhood club this season has helped a Toowoomba cricketer take his game to unprecedented levels.

Northern Brothers Diggers superstar Aidan Watterson has fulfilled a career-long ambition as he was named in the Queensland Country side to compete in the Australian Country Championships in Newcastle next month.

The all-rounder was delighted to make the side in his first year back in Toowoomba, after previously playing in Brisbane.

“I was pretty stoked, it was a pretty big goal of mine after playing in Brisbane for seven years,” he said

“Part of the reason to come back was to be home in Toowoomba and play for Queensland Country because I never did it for men’s side.

“It will be tough, but I am excited and it should be similar to the level I was playing at in Brisbane.”

The selection marks the return for Watterson at state level after he previously captained Queensland Country at both under-17 and under-19 levels.

With a strong line-up this year, the Queensland side has its sights set on taking home the trophy and Watterson is eager to play his part.

“I want to play good cricket for Queensland and enjoy the experience,” Watterson.

“The guys have already been talking about how they have high standards and want to make the final and win.”

Watterson’s call-up comes off the back of a strong season at club and representative level.

He was also a part of the South Queensland side which missed out on a rare opportunity to defeat North Queensland in the XXXX Cup.

“It was a bit of an up and down weekend,” he said.

“We probably underperformed, I had a good week personally but South Queensland hasn’t won against North Queensland in a while and we probably missed out on a chance there.”

Watterson’s return to Toowoomba as a captain has immediately paid dividends as he has helped lead a young Northern Brothers A-grade side to the one-day finals this weekend.

Taking the reigns at a club he has such a strong history with was been a proud moment for Watterson as he is now captaining players he previously coached at junior level.

“I was a captain always growing up and it was a priority for me to captain a club my family always played for,” he said.

“It is good to see Diggers back in finals and a lot of them will experience finals for the first time.”