The Terang Mortlake defender joins Port Fairy ruckman Sandy Robinson from Hampden’s triumphant country championships side in the squad.

Vic Country coach Peter Knights and his selectors yesterday unveiled the 35-man squad which be trimmed to 22 for next month’s match against a Victorian Amateur Football Association representative side in Melbourne.

Baxter, a dashing defender, was stunned with his inclusion in the squad.

“It’s huge. It was really unexpected,” he said.

“Just getting an interleague game was pretty big for me.

“I just thought I’ve played interleague and now I go back to training Tuesday and Thursday nights and playing with Terang Mortlake.”

The 21-year-old was one of the last cut from Hampden’s squad which won at Shepparton in 2011. While many would have politely declined to make the trip as an emergency, Baxter went and worked as a statistician. 

He won a spot in Hampden’s 2012 team that was beaten by Ovens and Murray and then produced an impressive performance against Sunraysia.

“It’s good to do something different, good to have a go at a higher level,” he said.

Baxter, who works on his family’s dairy farm at Ellerslie, is excited about joining the squad for training on Sunday, along with Robinson, who received the AFL Vic Country medal for his match-winning role in the ruck.

Knights, who watched Hampden’s 94-point win over Sunraysia at Reid Oval 10 days ago, said he was impressed with Robinson and Baxter.

He said Baxter’s rise from statistician demonstrated his interest in representative footy.

“That’s the commitment and passion you want,” he said.

Knights said several Hampden players had caught his eye.

“They (Robinson and Baxter) were among five or six players who I thought played really well,” he said.

“You have to drill down to what positions and specialists you need. Stephen Staunton was fantastic at full-forward. ‘There were several midfielders who could consider themselves unlucky not to make it.”

Knights said former Vic Country captain Joe McLaren, of Koroit, was one of his five assistant coaches.

Two former Hampden players — South Warrnambool’s 2011 premiership co-captain Jarrod Thompson, who played for Ovens and Murray, and former Terang Mortlake star Xavier Moloney, now Swan Hill coach — were also named in the squad.

Four Hampden players were named in the Vic Country under 19 training squad — Baxter’s Terang Mortlake teammate Wil Pomorin, Warrnambool midfielder Darcy Graham, Camperdown defender Fraser Lucas and Cobden gun Brody Mahoney.

Panmure full-forward Chris Bant, who played interleague for Warrnambool and District, was named in the Vic Country 2 squad. Bant is in the midst of one of the best seasons of his career, having kicked 44 goals from eight matches, including 29 in the past three rounds.

He said a phone call from coach John Cossar inviting him to trial after Warrnambool and District lost its interleague clash to Colac and District was “out of the blue”.

“I’m not in the team at all yet but hopefully I can put my best foot forward,” he said.‘‘It was one of those days. I’m still getting my head around (being selected). 

‘‘I didn’t expect anything, obviously. It should be a good opportunity. 

“If you’re playing against better players, it’s only going to make you better.”  The country-versus-city clashes will be at two Melbourne grounds on July 7. Vic Country 1 takes on a VAFA side made up of Premier A section players at Junction Oval at 2pm.

The under 19 match is a curtain-raiser at 11.15am.

Vic Country 2 plays its match at Harry Trott Oval at 12.30pm, against a VAFA outfit with players from the Premier B to division four sections.