Port Fairy's links to Victorian Premier Cricket outfit Northcote continue to grow with Alex Jennings set to return to grade cricket full-time this season.
The 21-year-old Geelong-based all-rounder - one of the Warrnambool District's top talents - is desperate to give Premier cricket another shake and will join fellow Pirates export Joe Medew-Ewen in returning to the Melbourne club.
The right-hand bat and off-spinner has played a handful of lower grade matches for the Dragons previously, including a best of 5-22 in a game in 2019-20.
He has spent the past few seasons as division one captain of the Pirates.
"I've gotten older and I've learnt more in the last couple of years about my own game," he told The Standard of joining Northcote.
"I was always curious (about coming back) but I was driving from Warrnambool, I was buggered from having an early start and would walk out and be a bit glassy-eyed batting so it made it hard to fully commit.
"This way I can commit and I can get a better taste of it. This time I'll get a bit more out of it I think."
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He said the past few seasons captaining the Pirates had been an eye-opening and enjoyable learning experience.
"As I leader I've learnt about working with people and as a player it's been about analysing other cricketers and finding ways to get them or stop them scoring in certain areas," he said.
"The constant thinking made me think about my own game as well because I might switch off prior to being a captain and I could use that sort of stuff with my own batting and bowling."
The focus this season, according to the emerging talent was to do what it took for his team and develop his game.
"I would obviously love to play some ones cricket but for me it's about finding out about my role in the team and try and execute that and work my way up,' he said.
Northcote coach Warren Perera said the Pirates' jet had settled back into the club nicely and could push for selection in the top-grade throughout the season.
"We've known Alex for probably the last five, six years - we used to have a Marcus Stoinis Academy and Alex was in that group, originally from the Warrnambool area," he said.
"He played a few games and went through VCE and it got a bit hard for him, played locally, went to uni. He's 21 now, best mates with Brody Couch and lives in Geelong and has been really keen to come back.
"He was a great junior coming through the pathway and on his day is a really, really competitive player so it depends on how he starts, but like all of them you want them to knock down the door and create a competitive environment.
"I know what he can do from past experience and he's coming back an even better player."
The Dragons mentor added Medew-Ewen - who returned from South Australia where he made his Sheffield Shield debut - had slotted back into the club seamlessly.
"He's fitted back in beautifully, I think he's just really happy to be home and back his mates," he said.
"He's so driven to see Northcote do really well and wants success. We had a working bee because the social rooms were being demolished, and Joe spent a lot of time looking at old premiership photos and it was interesting to see. These things drive blokes."
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Nick Creely
Sports reporter with The Standard
Sports reporter with The Standard
