Victoria finalise men’s contract list

Peter Siddle has signed a two-year deal to call Victoria home again, after spending the past three seasons in Tasmania.

The experienced quick, who made his debut for Victoria in 2005 and has more than 730 first-class wickets to his name, is one of eight new or returning faces in Victoria’s 27-player squad for next summer.

Coming home ????

Sidds will play a key role in supporting and developing our young quicks. #vicsdoitbetter pic.twitter.com/ctUxv1bGAG

— Victorian Cricket Team (@VicStateCricket) May 10, 2023

Ringwood duo Matt Fotia and Tom Rogers, plus Essendon fast bowler Tom O’Donnell, have all received full contracts on the back of standout Victorian Premier Cricket performances.

O’Donnell made his debut for Victoria in the Marsh Cup last summer and returns to the Victorian squad at the age of 26, having previously spent two years as a rookie from 2016-18.

Rogers also made his state debut last summer and represented the Melbourne Stars in the BBL, the 24-year-old left-hander has scored over 1,500 runs in the past two Premier Cricket seasons.

Fotia earns his maiden contract at the age of 28, with the right-arm quick leading all bowlers last summer with 49 wickets from 17 matches.

Dylan Brasher, (Footscray), Douglas Warren (Melbourne University) and Liam Blackford (Geelong) have joined the squad on rookie contracts.

Four rookie-contracted players from last season have been elevated to the primary list.

Ashley Chandrasinghe, Sam Elliott, Campbell Kellaway and Fergus O’Neill all made an impact in games for Victoria last season, earning contract upgrades.

Chandrasinghe was one of six Victorian batters to reach triple figures in 2022-23, scoring a maiden Sheffield Shield century on debut, while O’Neill finished with 32 wickets across the Sheffield Shield and Marsh Cup competitions.

Veteran spinner Jon Holland has not been offered a contract and Aaron Finch has retired from state and international cricket.

Jake Fraser-McGurk has accepted a move to South Australia, while Brody Couch, Zak Evans, Mackenzie Harvey and Tom O’Connell were also not offered contracts.

The Victorian squad includes four Cricket Australia contracted players – Scott Boland, Marcus Harris, Glenn Maxwell and Todd Murphy.

“To have a player of Peter Siddle’s calibre and experience returning to support a young fast bowling group is exciting. He’ll be a great mentor for all of them,” Cricket Victoria’s Head of Male Cricket, David Hussey said.

“Peter is a very passionate Victorian and it’s fantastic that he’s able to finish his career at home.

“It’s really pleasing to recognise some of Premier Cricket’s best performers over the past couple of seasons with contracts and upgrade four of our rookies from last year. We’re focussed on continuous improvement and it’s great to see those younger players starting to impact our match results positively.

“In any contracting process there are always difficult decisions and I’d like to thank all the players who are departing our program for their commitment to Victorian cricket.

“It would be remiss of me to not make a special mention of Jon Holland and Aaron Finch who have both made enormous contributions to our program, to our squads and to the success Victoria has enjoyed throughout their very successful careers. They both hold a special place in this era of Victorian cricket.”

Victorian Men’s contract list 2023-24

Scott Boland* (Frankston Peninsula)
Ashley Chandrasinghe (Casey-South Melbourne)
Xavier Crone (Carlton)
Travis Dean (Footscray)
Sam Elliott (Fitzroy Doncaster)
Matt Fotia (Ringwood)
Peter Handscomb (St Kilda)
Sam Harper (Melbourne)
Marcus Harris* (St Kilda)
Campbell Kellaway (Melbourne)
Nic Maddinson (St Kilda)
Glenn Maxwell* (Fitzroy Doncaster)
Cameron McClure (Essendon)
Jono Merlo (St Kilda)
Todd Murphy* (St Kilda)
Tom O’Donnell (Essendon)
Fergus O’Neill (Melbourne)
Wil Parker (Richmond)
Mitch Perry (Richmond)
Will Pucovski (Melbourne)
Tom Rogers (Ringwood)
Matt Short (Northcote)
Peter Siddle (Dandenong)
Will Sutherland (Prahran)

Rookies: Liam Blackford (Geelong), Dylan Brasher (Footscray), Douglas Warren (Melbourne University)

*Denotes Cricket Australia contracted player

In: Peter Siddle (Tasmania), Matt Fotia, Tom O’Donnell, Tom Rogers, Liam Blackford, Dylan Brasher, Douglas Warren

Upgraded Rookies: Ashley Chandrasinghe, Campbell Kellaway, Sam Elliott, Fergus O’Neill

Out: Aaron Finch (retired from state and international cricket), Jake Fraser-McGurk (South Australia), Brody Couch, Zak Evans, Mackenzie Harvey, Jon Holland, Tom O’Connell