All-rounder Moises Henriques will lead the NSW Blues in their opening match of the season against the Redbacks in the Matador One Day Cup in Brisbane on Saturday (October 4).

With a new sponsor in Matador BBQ’s, the tournament also has another change this season with the first week being played in Brisbane, before shifting back to Sydney for the final two weeks.

The NSW Blues will open their campaign at Allan Border Oval, with a side that has been stripped of the availability of many players. Brad Haddin, Steven Smith, Stephen O’Keefe, Nathan Lyon, Sean Abbott, Mitchell Starc and David Warner are all in the UAE for the VB Tour of Pakistan, while Michael Clarke (hamstring) and Shane Watson (ankle) are still recovering from injury.

Doug Bollinger and Pat Cummins are also unavailable due to their involvement in the Champions League in India.

The squad has the nucleus of players that helped the Blues make the final of the competition last season, with Nic Maddinson being the stand out performer in pre-season with centuries in a trial match in Brisbane and also the City v Country clash at Penrith last Sunday.

The only newcomer to the squad is Northern District off-spinner Chris Green who offers a spinning option should conditions dictate. Green, took 21 wickets at 26.19 for his club in the McDonald’s Sydney First Grade competition last season.

The squad is:
Moises Henriques  ( Captain )
Ryan Carters
Trent Copeland
Chris Green
Josh Hazlewood
Scott Henry
Josh Lalor
Nic Maddinson
Peter Nevill
Kurtis Patterson
Ben Rohrer
Gurinder Sandhu