Simran Dhatt delighted by Western selection as junior carnival set to begin

Six teams from around Western Zone will compete at the annual Max Shepherd Shield from Tuesday through to Thursday.

Orange starts its campaign against Dubbo on Tuesday while Gilgandra-Wellington meets Bathurst and Lachlan Shire takes on the Western Zone girls' side.

CYMS junior Simran Dhatt is one of five Orange players selected in the WZ girls' side - along with Ellen Dolbel, Phoebe Johnston, Lucy Mellis and Holly Reed - and said the opportunity to play against the best in the west was exciting.

"I've been there before and I've enjoyed the experience," she said.

"I really like playing with all of the girls because I'm able to talk to them more so than the boys. All the older girls are really nice.

"I'm just looking to stay in there while batting, because they are 45-over matches."

Every team will play three matches across the three days and the team with the best record will be crowned the champion.

Dubbo coach Ian Marchant said the long-running carnival was an "excellent" opportunity for players to shine.

"It will get rid of a few cobwebs for some of the players who might have been a bit lax during the off-season," he added.

"Footy and soccer has finished so this is a great carnival to get them back into the cricket season, especially the representative side and moving towards the higher carnivals.

"It's good to play Orange and Bathurst and try and get bragging rights over them but they are young and it's about having fun and getting back into cricket."

While there's always some uncertainty around the Max Shepherd Shield in regards to how players have developed over the off-season or which ones spent plenty of time training, there's plenty of talent in the Dubbo lineup.

Marchant is delighted to welcome Austin Hunt back into the fold after he had a season away from cricket last summer and he's likely to become a key player for Dubbo immediately.

Ashton Deebank is coming off a bumper 2021/22 representative season while Harvey Marchant showcased his ability against adults in the RSL Pinnington Cup second grade competition last summer and Billie Caton "played fantastic cricket" last summer.

"I'm hoping to kick off this rep season with those boys firing," the coach added, before speaking about his side's chances.

"Fingers crossed. Some of them might be a bit rusty but there's definitely potential and talent to do really well."

Games begin at 10.30am on Tuesday.