Allrounder Lambert tips Blues to rise

New South Wales number plates say it is Australia's premier state and Shaun Tait has called its cricketers arrogant, but finishing last in the one-day and Twenty20 competitions was a humbling experience for the Blues. The poor 2006-07 limited-overs performances, which were complemented by a fall at the final Pura Cup hurdle against Tasmania, have provided ample motivation for a form reversal this summer.

While there have been no major player changes in the off-season, the Blues have a new coach in Matthew Mott, who has graduated from his three years as the assistant to take the head role following Trevor Bayliss' departure to Sri Lanka. The allrounder Grant Lambert said the transition to Mott as mentor has been seamless. "Matty is fitting in well," Lambert says. "He's been around us for a few years now, so he's settled in."

Lambert has been in and out of the New South Wales side since his debut in 2001-02 but has been a more regular feature in the past two years. A flood of runs in the Sydney grade competition led to a state recall in 2006-07 and the breaking of the 63-year-old record set by Bill Alley. Lambert finished with 1527 at 95.94, 114 more than Alley. "It was a bit of an honour," Lambert says. "It was good to actually do it in the end because there was a lot of talk about it leading up to it."

At club level Lambert, 30, opens the batting and bowling, and his belief that he's an "equal allrounder" was shown in his 2006-07 New South Wales averages of 39 in each discipline. "I played the last six games and then the final of the Pura Cup and it was great to get back in the team," he says. "I didn't go too badly, but there's always room for improvement."

Despite his 353 runs last season and a stint as opener, Lambert is expected to bat No. 7 and his medium pace will be used at first or second change. However, with Phil Jaques in contention for a Test spot, there is the possibility of Lambert slotting in at the top of the order during the campaign. "I'd love to open the batting," he says. "Hopefully Phil does get the call up to the Australian side and if I get the chance I'd love to give it a crack."

The 14-man squad for the Blues' season-opening trip to Perth was touted as a "good blend of youth and experience" and Lambert has nominated Peter Forrest and Stephen O'Keefe as ones to watch. "Pete's doing really well so far this year, he's scored a few runs already," he says. "Stephen is playing very well too, so we've got a few good young players coming through." Forrest, a 21-year-old batsman, received a senior contract for the first time after three seasons on the rookie list while O'Keefe retained his junior deal.

With Brad Haddin on the fringes of national selection, the reserve keeper Daniel Smith should play more of a role. Smith, 25, got four Pura Cup starts in 2006-07 - one was as a specialist batsman alongside Haddin - and was behind the stumps during the final loss at Bellerive Oval.

Australia's selectors will again have an impact on the success of the Blues. Seven squad members hold national contracts and they might translate into regular international appearances for Stuart MacGill and Jaques. Simon Katich, the captain, seems to have disappeared from the national radar and he was re-signed on a five-year deal during the winter.

Previously the percentage of troops drafted into the Australian side hasn't stopped New South Wales from achieving success. Having won the Pura Cup in 2004-05, finished runner-up in March and taken the one-day title in 2005-06, the Blues now want to prosper in all forms of the game. They've got the players and, according to Lambert, "it's just a matter of doing it". If successful the state's confidence would be justified.

Captain Simon Katich
Coach Matthew Mott

Squad Aaron Bird, Doug Bollinger, Nathan Bracken, Mark Cameron, Beau Casson, Stuart Clark, Michael Clarke, Ed Cowan, Scott Coyte, Peter Forrest, Brad Haddin, Nathan Hauritz, Moises Henriques, Phil Jaques, Simon Katich, Grant Lambert, Brett Lee, Stuart MacGill, Greg Mail, Matthew Nicholson, Aaron O'Brien, Ben Rohrer, Craig Simmons, Daniel Smith, Dominic Thornely. Rookies Tom Cooper, Phillip Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Stephen O'Keefe, Martin Paskal, Steven Smith, David Warner.

2006-07 results Pura Cup 2nd, FR Cup 6th, Twenty20 6th.