CRICKET - Marshall hopes to make big impression

If being the captain of the next best thing is how the New Zealand selectors see Northland cricketer James Marshall, then so be it.
But when Marshall returns from his second short tour of Australia in the last three months, this one as skipper of "a New Zealand squad" taking part in a 50-over tournament in Queensland, he hopes his deeds will see him pushed further up the pecking order.
Preferably into the Black Caps squad for the impending series against Bangladesh starting in December and certainly for when England arrive here on tour in February next year.
His main goal, though, is to bag a ticket for the Black Caps' tour of South Africa in November.
"My role at the moment seems to be captain of the others, but it would be nice to lose that tag eventually and move on to bigger things.
"I am aiming for that South African tour, but at the end of the day you can't get picked sitting on the sidelines which makes getting this tour quite important," Marshall said.
As skipper of the NZ A team that went to Australia two months back, Marshall managed several big totals but was annoyed he did not bank a three-figure total as the team went on to win 10 of 12 games on tour.
But he knows some big totals on this tour will help sway the selectors when they consider players for the tour of South Africa.
"We play (Australian) state sides that are very good. There are going to be some ex-internationals, young up-and-coming players and several very handy first class players involved," he said.
Marshall will captain the team in Australia that will take on state representative sides from South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania during a four-day, pre-season competition on the Sunshine Coast.
The New Zealand squad are there by invitation of Australian Cricket.
The tour is principally designed to give the Black Caps, who were not involved in the ICC Twenty20, with vital match practice while also allowing those players on the fringes of the team another chance to stake their claim and experience an overseas tour environment against quality opposition.
Bowlers Michael Mason, Kyle Mills, James McMillan and Hamish Bennett all attended pre-tour specialist camp and Bradley Scott will join the camp from the ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa.
James Franklin was considered for the camp and the series, but withdrew to rest and rehabilitate after a recent knee injury.
The tour will also be John Wright's first coaching role for New Zealand Cricket since joining the organisation last month. The team was to fly out today.