New City youngster Callum Langlands said last weekend’s opening wins brought emotional captain Steve McLennan to tears.
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The club has battled at provincial level, but it had the perfect start with wins over Albury and St Patrick’s.
“It was pretty tough, especially on us younger players, losing all the time,” Langlands said.
“To have two wins brought a tear to ‘Macca’s’ eye.
“He absolutely loved it, we all loved it.
“It means a lot to him, he’s a really passionate man, we all love him, he’s just a really good bloke and a really good captain.”
New City will look to continue its strong start at home against Belvoir on Saturday.
And it will need the young all-rounder, dubbed ‘Changa’ after Rugby League immortal Graeme Langlands, to shine.
“At the start of the year we wrote down where we want to be at the end of the season, what we needed to do to really get there and I said I want to be in the top 15 players (in the competition) this season,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tallangatta will get an early indication of where it stands when it hosts Wodonga in the second round.
“They’ve got a good culture with what Robbie Jackson does with them down there as the coach,” Bushies’ coach Matt Armstrong said.
“They’ve got a big club and lots of people to pick from, so they have a bit of depth that other clubs, like us possibly, don’t have.
“Most other clubs only have 12 or 13 A grade cricketers to pick from, so if you have a few unavailable it makes a big difference.”
Wodonga’s depth was highlighted in the season-opener when it had two premiership players in second grade.
The club has also named former representative captain James Tonkin.
Wodonga showed its class by claiming both T20 games.
Captain Jack Craig struck 48 in the thrilling win over Belvoir, before he and English import Andrew Weighell annihilated North Albury’s attack with half-centuries.
The Bushies toppled Wodonga Raiders, before falling to East Albury in a last-over thriller.
Meanwhile, Lavington will look to continue its flying start when it travels to St Patrick’s for the first of the season’s 50-over games.
The Panthers restricted North Albury to 9-91 in their first win, then dismantled Belvoir’s batting.
Lavington also boasts tremendous depth and will be disappointed if it doesn’t make a second successive grand final.
East will look to build on the momentum from the exciting win over the Bushies when it hosts Albury, while North and Raiders are both chasing their first wins at Bunton Park.
There’s now 10 one-dayers, with the two-day games starting in mid-January.