Hunters to name squad next week

By PARKER TAMBUA
THE SP Hunters are set to travel to Queensland, Australia, next Friday for the upcoming Hostplus Cup season.
Coach Matthew Church said yesterday that a final 26-man squad would be named next Wednesday.
The Australian said he would still keep tabs on the four players who did not make the cut.
“The borders are going to open this weekend and we are set to travel to Queensland next Friday,” Church said.
“We are going to select 26 players.
“Unfortunately, four players will miss out, but that doesn’t mean they are not going to be available for the Hunters in the future.
“We will keep an eye of them and how they perform in the Digicel Cup.
“If we have to send a player back home through injury, poor performances or ill-discipline then we will replace them with players who have been in camp.”
Church said he was satisfied with the progress of the squad in the pre-season.
The coach said he was really happy with how they were progressing.
“Many of the returning players have done a lot of coaching in the group,” he said.
“They are helping each other and keeping each other accountable, so I am happy with that.”
Meanwhile, Church said there were a number of potential candidates for the role of captain this year.
“We’ve got to narrow it down to a couple of candidates, so we will name the captain and final squad next week,” he said.
“We’ve lost a lot of experience for the upcoming season, but a lot of returning youngsters have stepped up and put their names forward for the roles of captain and vice-captain.”