MILDURA West coach Chris Williams will likely miss the first half of the new Sunraysia Cricket Association season following recent neck surgery.
But the star all-rounder remains optimistic about how his side will perform in his absence and is hopeful of a return to the field before the Christmas break.
Led by first-year captain Greg Lewis, the side from John Hall Oval were semi-finalists last season and Williams is upbeat about their prospects again.
The three-time Innes Medal winner is recovering from a herniated disc from a fall earlier this year.
“In the following months there was a lot of referred pain and a fair bit of nerve pain going through the left arm,” he said.
“We tried physio and that didn’t work but they recommended I get an MRI and within a couple of weeks of finding out the damage we got the surgery done.
“I’m able to move around and I’ll be back coaching cricket again, and I’d like to be back playing in some capacity prior to Christmas but I’m honestly not sure at this stage.
“The prognosis was six to 12 months of non-contact sport and cricket is non-contact, but then you might be diving around in the field and you also put pressure on when you’re batting and bowling.”
Williams said the nucleus of last year’s finals side will remain with opportunities available for young players to perform.
“I’m excited to see how they graft and how they can take the opportunities ahead of them,” he said.
While English all-round Charlie Walker is injured and won’t return to Sunraysia, two new imports are set to join.
Young all-rounder Ismail Bahrami is unlikely to be in town for round 1 but should arrive in the coming weeks, while batting off-spinner Greg Solkin was an impromptu signing.
“Greg, we didn’t actively set out to recruit, we were lucky he kind of fell in our lap a bit,” Williams said.
“He’s a mate of Kian Burns who joined us last year and he’ll provide an extra batter and some off-spin. His addition will be a real bonus for us.
“Ismail is a 21-year-old all-rounder from London who has been part of Essex development team cricket.”
Williams also identified Josh Driscoll, Nathan Chamberlain and Locke Thornton as players who could take a step forward in 2023/24.
“Josh is only 15 but he bats really well and has been bowling nicely too,” he said.
“He got the opportunity to debut last year and he has ambitions of playing at a higher level so we’ll give him every opportunity.
“Nathan hasn’t quite taken his opportunities in first division yet but he’s shown good form in second division so we’ll look to utilise his bowling ability.
“Locke has been with us for a few years now and is a great player to have on the team, he’s full of energy and is a brilliant fielder and I think there’s a really big opportunity for him this year to grab the new ball or solidify himself at first change.”
Mildura West begin their campaign against reigning premiers Gol Gol at Alcheringa Oval.
