Mott has the Blues ready for Western Australia

New South Wales' new-look coaching team of Matthew Mott and Graham Thorpe has been handed its first squad for the domestic season with the selectors naming a 14-man outfit for next week's trip to Perth. While the winter was relatively quiet for the players, the backroom unit underwent significant changes with the departure of Trevor Bayliss to Sri Lanka.

Mott, the 34-year-old former Queensland and Victoria batsman, was picked to replace Bayliss as head coach and Thorpe, who played 100 Tests for England, was appointed as his assistant. The state squad attended a pre-season camp in the Blue Mountains last week and the players were determined to complete a consistent domestic campaign after not collecting a trophy last summer.

One constant for the Blues should be Simon Katich after he signed a record five-year deal with the state in June. Katich, the captain, has completed a fine off-season with Derbyshire - he finished sixth on England's first-class run list with 1284 at 75.52 - and is looking to reconfirm his credentials to Australia's selectors after being dropped from the contract list in May.

Katich's squad contains a strong blend, with the young players Peter Forrest, Moises Henriques and Stephen O'Keefe lining up alongside the experienced Stuart MacGill, Phil Jaques, Matthew Nicholson and Dominic Thornely. New South Wales will open their season with the FR Cup game against Western Australia on October 12 before the corresponding Pura Cup fixture starting on October 14.

New South Wales squad Phil Jaques, Ed Cowan, Simon Katich (capt), Dominic Thornely, Peter Forrest, Daniel Smith (wk), Grant Lambert, Moises Henriques, Stephen O'Keefe, Nathan Hauritz, Doug Bollinger, Mark Cameron, Matthew Nicholson, Stuart MacGill.