IT WILL be nothing new for Tommy Jackson, but for Brody Couch, the opportunity to represent Vic Country will be the biggest step of his promising career.
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The two Warrnambool and District Cricket Association products survived the cut as the initial squad of 18 was slashed to a final shape of just 13 cricketers from regional Victoria.
Jackson and Couch will make up part of the squad which is set to Brisbane to participate in the National Championships against representatives sides from across the nation.
Jackson proved his credentials for Vic Country’s Under 15 side in February, establishing himself as a reliable opening batsman.
“Tommy was playing in the Under 15’s carnival because he’s bottom age, so he didn’t have to do the first round of trials,” Couch said.
“I played a trial match at the end of last season with the top age guys. We then went on to have the winter program, which meant we had four training sessions.
“We worked on our fitness, game scenarios and then there was a trial match last Sunday. We were called earlier and told we’d made it, so we didn’t have to play in that one.”
Woodford opener Jackson, who juggles batting duties with wicket-keeping, averaged 60 runs per innings across all divisions last season.
Meanwhile, Couch boasted an average score of 34.09 for the Nirranda Knights division one side, backing up his bowling average of 34.44 from 14 games.
Jackson and Couch said the Vic Country selection came as a welcome shock.
“I was definitely surprised. I went there and tried to learn as much as I could really,” Jackson told The Standard.
“I went up to Queensland for the 15s in February, and we’ll probably play on the same grounds. But other than that, I’m not sure what we’ll get up to.
“You learn so much. When I went and came back, I was motivated to train harder and harder. You’re never satisfied and you keep looking to improve.”
Couch said he was in the middle of overcoming a slight injury but was thrilled to put on the coveted Vic Country uniform.
“It’s there but I can play through it. It’s good because we’ve sort of put in a lot of hard work. It’s great that it has paid off,” he said.
“We’ll play eight games across the carnival, which is about 10 days. I’m not sure if it includes finals but it will be good.”
The National Championships will run from September 26 to October 6 in Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, and will be only the second time both a Victorian Metro and Victorian Country side have competed.
Couch and Jackson hailed the support of Western Waves coordinator Stephen Field in their development.
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