When Ed Morrish was asked to list the strengths of his defending premier Orange City side in the lead-up to the 2020-21 Bathurst Orange Inter District Cricket Association competition, the veteran all-rounder said two words... Blake Weymouth.
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Morrish is often a hard man to get a compliment out of so for him to pick the 17-year-old out of his whole side - a core group that's extremely talented - well, that's saying something.
"I can't wait to see Blake Weymouth play this year," Morrish said.
"He's been hitting 100s in first grade since he was 15."
For Weymouth, his cricketing journey has been a long one and the youngster says he's had a bat in his hand since he was a 'little kid' as his father Frank Weymouth's been throwing him balls in the back yard for as long as he can remember.
So, it's no surprise to see the young gun amid a meteoric rise to the top of the cricket ranks in the Central West as he's gearing up for what promises to be his biggest season so far.
Not only will Weymouth open the batting for City alongside Shaun Grenfell, he's set to travel to Sydney to play in the Poidevin-Gray Shield throughout the season as well.
Reverting back to the father-son relationship between Blake and Frank, Weymouth gives his old man a huge amount of credit for the cricketer he is today.
"I got my ability off him," Weymouth said.
"He's basically my coach and my manager... he never takes it light on me. He's a really good role model and he's played high-level cricket before.
"He knows what to do and what to say to me and he's been in all of the same situation before. He always steps me aside and tells me what I'm doing wrong and how to fix it."
Weymouth hopes that tutelage plays a big role in City's surge back to the top this season and says the goal for him and his teammates is simple.
"We want to win," he said.
"We're all the same in our goal this season. It starts with Ed [Morrish]. He's the leader at the club and even though he might have a bit of an ego, he's our leader and he works as hard as anyone."
Not only does City want to impress in the BOIDC competition, Weymouth wants to see his teammates take out the Royal Hotel Cup after falling short of the finish line in the last two seasons.
- READ MORE: BOIDC SEASON PREVIEWS | Orange CYMS
"It's a good opportunity for me," he said.
"I've worked hard for the T20 format. I'll be batting number four which is a bit lower down the order.
"We were very disappointed to lose in the semi finals last season. We all back ourselves and if you don't back yourself, you're not going to go very far."
City's Royal Hotel Cup season opener against Bathurst City has been moved to later in the season after the Wade Park pitch was deemed unfit to host the match. However, the BOIDC clash against CYMS will still go ahead at Jack Brabham.
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