After sitting out in Round 1 with a bye, the ACT Meteors are ready to launch their 2025\/26 WNCL campaign with two exciting games against the always-strong Queensland Fire at Allan Border Field on October 12 and 14.<\/p>\n
Led by newly appointed skipper, Carly Leeson, the squad heads into Brisbane full of anticipation, energy, and clarity after a strong pre-season and some strategic adjustments.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m super proud to be in that role and leading this team\u2014not just a group of wonderful cricketers, but wonderful people,\u201d said Leeson.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really looking forward to getting out there and taking it on this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0Coach Erin Osborne believes the Meteors have found their identity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think this group has found their brand, the way they want to play the game. They communicate really well; they know each other\u2019s game inside out\u201d Osborne claimed. \u00a0<\/p>\n
Following an up-and-down 2024\/25 season marked by constant shifts in the batting line up, Osborne says the team has emerged stronger, more settled, and more accountable. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year was a bit chaotic, I\u2019m not going to lie,\u201d she reflected.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a lot of chopping and changing, especially in the top order. It\u2019s not something we always want to do, but it was necessary at the time. The positive is the players have learned from that. They now understand their roles and have taken on extra responsibility and accountability for their performances.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a few tweaks, particularly in that top four,\u201d Osborne added, hinting at a fresh approach at the crease.<\/p>\n
Leeson echoed that shift, saying the team is embracing a more proactive mindset.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is opportunity central all through the order, batting and bowling. Something we\u2019ve worked hard on in pre-season is to take the game on a little bit more\u2014to change the way we play,\u201d Leeson told Cricket ACT.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of the exciting changes comes at the top of the order, where Olivia Porter is set to open the batting; a move Leeson is especially excited about.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m looking forward to seeing Olivia Porter at the top of the order,\u201d Leeson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe just provides that spark for our team and sets the tone early. I\u2019m looking forward to getting out there and batting with her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Osborne also highlighted the importance of developing and recognising homegrown Canberra talent.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really important to see local Canberra players playing in this competition,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s no good having a Meteors team that relies solely on interstate recruits. We want to reward performances\u2014and Rachel Carroll receiving her first contract is super exciting. She\u2019s already got a couple of hundreds under her belt in the pathway comp this year. She\u2019s done exceptionally well and is one of our most exciting prospects\u201d Osborne stated.<\/p>\n
Facing Queensland Fire, one of the competition\u2019s strongest and most consistent teams in their own backyard is no small challenge. But the Meteors see it as the perfect way to set the tone for the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cQueensland are obviously a leading team in the competition and they have been for a while. Taking them on in the first round, and away from home as well, is a really exciting challenge for us. It\u2019s something I want us to embrace as a team,\u201d said Leeson.<\/p>\n
The Meteors have had to watch the rest of the competition get underway last week; but the wait has only added fuel to their fire.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re ready to play some cricket,\u201d said Osborne.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a long pre-season, and to watch other teams already out there\u2014we\u2019re a little bit jealous, to be honest! But we\u2019ve prepared really well and had a strong lead-in to match preparation specifically for Queensland. We\u2019re really looking forward to getting to Brisbane in some nice sunny weather.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t miss the first ball of the Meteors season!<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udccd Allan Border Field, Brisbane
\ud83d\uddd3\ufe0f Game 1: Saturday, 12 October 2025
\ud83d\uddd3\ufe0f Game 2: Monday, 14 October 2025<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After sitting out in Round 1 with a bye, the ACT Meteors are ready to launch their 2025\/26…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":204025,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,740,85,83],"class_list":["post-204024","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cricket","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cricket","tag-sports","tag-text"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204024","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204024"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204024\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/204025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204024"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}