Youngsters poised for baseball trip of a lifetime
Kingsley Collins
15 July 2019
Australian Baseball Alumni members and supporters extend our congratulations and best wishes to the young players selected to represent Australia at the 2019 WBSC Under 12 World Cup.
The tournament will be played in Tainan, Taipei, from 26 July to 4 August.
Qualifying for its third appearance at the tournament, Australia has drawn in Group B and will play United States, Korea, Mexico, Venezuela and Italy in the Opening Round, with three wins likely to be the minimum to earn a berth in the Super Round.
Competing against powerhouse baseball nations, Australia will enter the tournament with confidence and great anticipation as our emerging stars embark upon a sporting and cultural experience that will stay with them forever.
Of its five first-round games, Australia – which will again be guided by astute Head Coach Brian Murphy – is drawn to play triple reigning champion United States and 2017 bronze medallist Mexico with the top three teams from each group of six qualifying for the Super Round.
Group B comprises teams from Japan, Chinese Taipei, Cuba, Czech Republic, South Africa and Wildcard Entry Fiji.
The 2019 Under 12 Baseball World Cup will be held in Tainan City, Taipei, and will be hosted by the Chinese Taipei Baseball Association at the magnificent new Tainan Asia Pacific Stadiums – which is expected to retain the Under 12 event at least until 2027.
“The new home of the U-12 Baseball World Cup in Tainan — which will be the stage of the best 11- and 12-year-old baseball players in the world — will be among the very best and most iconic facilities ever offered to talented young athletes of this age, boosting the U-12 Baseball World Cup into a category of one of the most prestigious youth events in sports,” said WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari in a media release earlier this year.
Among those involved in preparing the squad for this prestigious world event, Team Australia General Manager Glenn Williams is realistic about our prospects while pointing to the massive learning experience that our young players invariably derive from representing their country at any level.
“This event is just a great experience for young baseball players,” Glenn Williams told Australian Baseball Alumni recently. “It is unique to our sport to have kids represent their country at a World Cup at eleven and twelve years of age. We try and focus on the experience of the athletes, keeping in mind that performance at world events is more highly prioritised at the older age groups – 18 and Under upwards.”
“Although getting to the Super Round would be an amazing experience for us, at the Under 12 age group it is fundamentally about kids enjoying the experience,” he said.
The winner of the Under 12 World Cup will receive a substantial number of points towards its WBSC ranking and there will be a sliding points allocation for other nations depending on the final placings. Currently listed seventh in the world – our highest ever ranking – Australia is marginally ahead of eighth-placed Netherlands and several hundred points behind Mexico, one of our opponents in Tainan.
The WBSC Under 12 World Cup will be comprehensively covered by World Baseball Softball Confederation and Baseball Australia, which has named the following squad to travel to Taipei. Australian Baseball Alumni will provide updates and reporting within our resources.
PLAYERS
Alasdair Ballantyne, NSW | P/OF
Riley Cooper, NSW | P/IF
Max Durrington, QLD | UT
Kristian Haeusler, WA | P
Lachlan Heap, NSW | P/IF
Will Kent, VIC | IF/OF
Liam Kiddle, QLD | UT
Kason King, SA | C/IF
Isobel Lambert, NSW | P/IF
Sam Levick, NSW | P/C
Riku Mochizuki, QLD | P/IF
Austin Moyle, WA | P/IF
Joshua Nati, NSW | P/IF
Riley Oliphant, WA | P/IF
Rubens Romero, QLD | P/IF
Simon Slapeta, NSW | P/IF/OF
Daniel Thwaites, NSW | P/IF
Lachlan Vella, NSW | P/IF/OF
STAFF
Brian Murphy (Head Coach)
Nick Hutchings (Pitching Coach)
Scott Meager (Assistant Coach)
Beth McVicker (Executive Officer)
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