By Russell Bennett
The Cardinia Bulls are charging into a new era that they hope will deliver their first West Gippsland Cricket Association (WGCA) Premier flag since the 2008/09 season.
Leading that charge under captain-coach Alex Nooy will be former New Zealand Under-19 representative and former Buckley Ridges and Cranbourne speedster, Te Ahu Davis.
An opening bowler and big-hitting batsman, Davis will give the Bulls a genuine x-factor and some real potency following the departure of Neil Barfuss to Flinders in the MPCA.
Nooy said he was thrilled with Davis’ arrival to the Bullpen.
“We can’t wait to see what Te can do,” he said.
“I think the supporters will love watching him, and it’s not every day you can bring someone in with their own Wikipedia page!
“Our bowling attack looks a lot more balanced now.”
Davis joins a revamped attack featuring new signings Kallan Braid-Ball (Casey-South Melbourne) and Matt Welsh (Tooradin), and the Bulls’ off-spinning duo of young gun Travis Wheller and the WGCA’s leading wicket-taker from 2016/17, Dwayne Doig.
Cardinia’s first XI has won three premierships since 2002/03 and reached the finals each year during that period, but the Bulls haven’t experienced the ultimate success since 2008/09 and they’re hell-bent on ending that drought.
Cardinia is proud to have attracted players of the calibre of Steve Paterson, Mark Cooper, Simon Parrott, and Barfuss over the past 15 years, and Davis adds to that list.
“We’re a small club compared to some of the bigger towns, so to consistently get players of this quality is a great reflection of what we are all about,” said Bulls club president Luke Turner.
“We’re a family club and it’s a credit to everyone involved that a lot of these recruits stay at the club long term. We look forward to welcoming Te and his family into the Bulls family“.
Barfuss has joined Flinders after seven seasons at E. Gunton Oval.
