Selectors were forced to make two changes from the team which defeated Bathurst two weeks ago but otherwise the squad remains the same.

Kinross batsman Toby Polkinghorne is unavailable, as is Liam Gough who has moved to the city to ply his trade with Sydney Cricket Club.

Orange City left armer Braden Riles is a ready-made replacement for Gough, and Orange coach Phil Dodds said the return of Hamish Finlayson is also a massive inclusion.

“It’s great to have Ham back in the squad and to have Braden keen to play,” Dodds said.

“Hamish brings a lot of colts experience into an already experienced squad. We have a lot of young players, but there is still guys in this team who have been playing for Orange for three, four, even five years.”

After a tight affair with Bathurst, Dodds is expecting another tough game against Mudgee.

“We’re fully aware Mudgee will have a very strong squad for this game,” he said.

“The majority of their colts team also plays in the opens side, and that can only help them. Our opens experience will help us as well though.”

Of Orange’s squad of 12, nine have opens representative experience and seven were a part of last Sunday’s capitulation against the Blue Mountains.

“Playing with the older guys in opens is helping our guys a lot, they learn from them,” Dodds said.

Dodds said Orange has little to improve on after the Bathurst win and would need no extra motivation for the game.

“We did have a mini-collapse, but Max Dodds and Matt Corben steadied us,” he explained.

“We need to avoid that, and a couple of the top order should look to go on with it after getting to 30, but everything else was great. It’s great to see those younger guys standing up, these boys are very keen to get a win this season. 

“The attitude of these players is fantastic.”

ORANGE: Hamish Finlayson (c), John Warrington (vc), Charles Litchfield, James Ryan, Jake Pauletto, Matt Corben, Max Dodds, Jono Warren, Andrew Johnson, Braden Riles, Sam Nicholls, Tom Rogers.