Bulls to nab Tiger Watson

pies4ever · Joined: 11 Feb 2002 Location: rosebud,vic,australia

Bulls to nab Tiger Watson

By Ben Dorries and Brett Stubbs - Fox

April 28, 2004

STAR Tigers all-rounder Shane Watson is poised to switch states and return to Queensland in one of the biggest off-season recruiting coups in interstate cricket in recent years.

The retirement of Bulls veteran Stuart Law smoothed the path for Watson to return to Queensland, with homesickness and family reasons also believed to have played a major role in the 22-year-old's decision.

His parents still live in the Ipswich area, west of Brisbane, and he is close to many of the young Bulls players through his time playing club cricket in Brisbane. It is believed Watson will announce his decision today.

And, in what could be a double blow for Tasmania, it is also believed well-performed paceman Gerard Denton will announce he is leaving the Tigers this week.

Denton, who took 30 wickets at an average of 33.13 in the Pura Cup last season, has been linked to Victoria.

He would not comment on the issue last night.

Watson left Queensland in 2000 before he had played a game for the Bulls.

He made his decision to leave Tasmania during a US holiday with his girlfriend and is believed to have told Queensland Cricket officials after he flew back into Hobart on Monday.

But TCA chief executive David Johnston said he had not been told Watson had made a decision."I have spoken to him and we will be in further contact later in the week," Johnston said yesterday.

"I am pretty definite he will be talking to us before he makes public his decision.

"I had a chat to him today about his overseas trip but it was just a general discussion and not about his playing future."

His departure to Tasmania, where he was given the vice-captaincy last season, caused some heated on-field clashes with the wily Law.

"I was captain at the time and he never called me . . . he made his decision purely for the fact of money," Law told The Courier-Mail earlier this year.

Watson missed last year's World Cup after sustaining a serious back injury and he played as a batsman in the domestic season before returning to the bowling crease in January.

The blond-haired youngster will make his international comeback next month after being named in Australia's 14-man one-day squad to tour Zimbabwe.

He has already knocked back an offer from Pura Cup champions Victoria.

Watson had his best season for Tasmania, scoring 983 Pura Cup runs at 52.23 with four centuries and three half-centuries and 375 ING Cup runs at 37.5 with four 50s.

His move is a bonanza for Queensland Cricket which will not have to pay anything for his services as he has a lucrative Cricket Australia contract. Watson was unavailable yesterday.

JLC · Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2004 3:58 pm

Watson aint as stupid as he looks he knows who will butter his bread.

jlc

Donny · Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2004 4:20 pm

He's just returning home, mate.

He couldn't get a game for the Bulls so he went where he could. He's already in the Australian ODI squad and has an Australian Cricket contract.

JLC · Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2004 9:26 pm

I will ask people this

What state would give you more chance of playing for Australia

Queensland or Tasmania ??

jlc

The Prototype · Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 6:33 pm

Donny · Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 7:18 pm

Good point, Dave.

And remember, JLC, Watto was selected for Australia whilst playing for Tassie.

Donny · Posted: Fri Apr 30, 2004 1:13 pm

From pies4ever
------------------------

Shane Watson returns to Queensland
AAP
CricInfo
April 28, 2004

Homesick prodigal son Shane Watson believes that his return to Queensland will help him break into Test cricket. A month after being named Tasmania's 2003-04 player of the year, Watson has revealed he is leaving his adopted state largely due to family and lifestyle reasons.

Watson, who is in the Australian one-day squad to tour Zimbabwe next month, also admitted that the chance to slot into Queensland's line-up and continue to work with Bennett King, the Cricket Academy coach, weighed heavily in his decision. "My heart is in Brisbane and there's certain things that fitted in perfectly for me to come home," he said. "Playing in Queensland is a big part of my decision. I know I can continue to develop my cricket and take it to the next level as well."

A medium pacer and top-order batsman, Watson said that the chance to bowl regularly on a Gabba pitch, which favoured good seam bowling, and the fact the No. 4 batting position had been vacated by Stuart Law, assisted his choice. Last season, he made 983 runs at 52.23, including four centuries, batting at No.4 for Tasmania.

One of Australia's most promising players, Watson missed the 2003 World Cup due to a back injury, but his adjusted action has given him hope to become a frontline bowler. He said he sorely missed his family while in Hobart, as well as Brisbane's warm climate. "I never really got used to the weather," he said, "I'm just very excited about moving back home now."

Jimmy Maher, Queensland's captain and a critic of Watson's decision to leave the state in late 2001, also backed him to reach greater heights in his home environment. "He's decided to come home to where he knows and loves the best and that can only be a good thing for us and for him," Maher said. "The opportunities when he left were probably not here and he decided to leave. At the time I was disappointed, probably more how it happened than what happened."

The Tasmanian Cricket Association's board will meet in a month to discuss Watson's transfer but, as he is a Cricket Australia contracted player, the TCA cannot stand in his way. Each CA contracted player merely nominates which state he will play for in the domestic competition on his contract, which runs from June 30.

Watson did not want to leave a sour taste in the mouth of a second state in three years and hoped he would gain the TCA's blessing at next month's board meeting. "Tasmania Cricket have been great to me. They obviously gave me an opportunity when I was young and I'm very very grateful and thankful for that."

Tasmania received another blow, with Gerard Denton, a fast bowler, turning his back on a new contract and aligning with Pura Cup champion Victoria. Queensland Cricket held talks with Watson to return to Brisbane last year but had no success. Today's switch took QC officials by some surprise.

Raised in Ipswich and a graduate of Queensland youth teams, he immediately made his first class debut for the Tigers after being lured south at the start of the 2001-02 season. "Shane has been given a wonderful opportunity to build his career in Tasmania," said said TCA's chief executive, David Johnston, "but family ties for a young man are always a difficult hurdle to overcome."

Johnson#26 · Joined: 18 Dec 2003

Can some- one please refresh my memory? Is Watson a fast bowler or a medium pacer?

Donny · Posted: Sat May 01, 2004 12:32 pm

The different quicks are something like: Express, fast, fast/medium, medium/fast and medium in descending order.

Watto is fast/medium.