Newcastle is hoping the “hometown” advantage serves it well when the prestigious Bradman Cup wraps up in Lake Macquarie this week.

Squads from seven NSW country cricket zones – North Coastal, Central Northern, Central Coast, Greater Illawarra, Riverina, Western and the hosts, as well the ACT – will converge upon the region to play out the remainder of the under-16 tournament, from Tuesday 3 January to Friday 6 January.

All matches follow a 50-over a side format.

ACT remains unbeaten after toppling their “southern pool” compatriots, while Newcastle and North Coastal registered two wins from three fixtures in the “northern division”.

But, the home team can rectify that situation with victories over ACT at the Pasterfield Sports Complex (Tuesday 3 January), Greater Illawarra at Kahibah Oval (Wednesday 4 January), Western at Cardiff No 2 (Thursday 5 January) and Riverina at Feighan Oval – Oval 1 (Friday 6 January).

And, with the pools set to clash in the epic four-day carnival, the title of 2022-23 Bradman Cup champions is still very much up for grabs.

Country Cricket NSW chair Paul Marjoribanks highlighted the array of senior cricketing talent to come from previous editions of the format.

“The Bradman Cup is the most prestigious under-16 competition in regional NSW,” he said.

“The quality of the cricket is second to none.

“And, this is evidenced by players such as Nathan Lyon, Matthew Gilkes and Daniel Hughes as well as many NSW Premier Cricket first graders who have come through this tournament.”

Marjoribanks, the Newcastle District Cricket Association chairman, also acknowledged the support of local council and volunteers.

“Without the support of the Lake Macquarie City Council as well as the many helpers at the host cricket clubs in the area such as Cardiff Boolaroo, Charlestown, Warners Bay and Toronto Workers, we wouldn’t be able to provide the platform for these young players to excel,” he said.

• Bradman Cup (points table): ACT 12, Newcastle 9, North Coastal Zone 9, Riverina 6, Central Coast 6, Greater Illawarra 6, Central North 0, Western 0

Bradman Cup draw

Round 4 (Tuesday 3 January)

• 10am: Newcastle v ACT (Pasterfield Sports Complex)
• 10am: Central North v Riverina (Cardiff No1)
• 10am: North Coastal Zone v Greater Illawarra (Cardiff No2)
• 10am: Central Coast v Western (Kahibah Oval)

Round 5 (Wednesday 4 January)

• 10am: Riverina v Central Coast (Feighan Oval – Oval 2 – turf)
• 10am: Newcastle v Greater Illawarra (Kahibah Oval)
• 10am: Western v North Coastal Zone (Feighan Oval – Oval 1 – turf)
• 10am: Central North v ACT (Charlestown Oval)

Round 6 (Thursday 5 January)

• 10am: North Coastal Zone v Riverina (Pasterfield Sports Complex)
• 10am: Newcastle v Western (Cardiff No2)
• 10am: Greater Illawarra v Central North (Cardiff No1)
• 10am: Central Coast v ACT (Ron Hill Oval)

Round 7 (Friday 6 January)

• 9.30am: Western v Central North (Feighan Oval – Oval 2 – turf)
• 9.30am: Newcastle v Riverina (Feighan Oval – Oval 1 – turf)
• 9.30am: Central Coast v Greater Illawarra (Charlestown Oval)
• 9.30am: ACT v North Coastal Zone (Ron Hill Oval)

For more sports stories:

• Waratah-Mayfield breaks WT20 Cup drought
• Former Test stars head cricket clinics throughout Hunter
• ‘Fantastic five’ knocks down tenpin rivals

Get all the latest Newcastle news, sport, real estate, entertainment, lifestyle and more delivered straight to your inbox with the Newcastle Weekly Daily Newsletter. Sign up here.