The interim 28-32 year olds will be needed during this impending transition period. Spin looks ok with Murphy learning his trade behind Lyon and then there is Sangha too.
In the pace bowling department, there is plenty there with Richardson entering that 28 year old age group very soon, Steketee also, W Agar is there too and he is becoming pretty consistent at shield level. But in the next gen you have O'Neill, Salzmann, Sutherland, Hardie, Morris and a few more. Australian pacers will be fine once Hazlewood and Starc call it a day, though there isn't really a gun lefty coming through that I am aware of as Paris is already 32 I think.
The keeper slot has Inglis in that almost 28 year old group too and he will succeed Carey at test level too unless there is a young keeper-bat I am not aware of coming through. Phillipe is a similar age to Inglis and hasn't really kicked on at shield level. Pierson is another interim option but he isn't getting any younger either. Obviously Harper can hit a decent score but he is nowhere near consistent and has a concussion history as well.
So really, there needs to be some long term batting planning because that is where things look a little weak in the interim. You have Bancroft who is likely blacklisted, Harris who just sucks when the pressure is on and not much else in that 28+ group that deserve / have earned a shot. Hughes would have been a good shout but he is probably too old now.
In terms of openers, Ward and Hunt have fallen off a cliff, Street is probably forgotten. Jewell looks promising but is also so inconsistent. Whiteman could be a short term option AND can keep but he is also getting on.
For other batting positions, Drew looks promising but he has also fallen off a cliff a bit. So you need to get Green in the side and just back him because he is the best bat by a mile at state level and that is not even counting his elite bowling as well, he just needs to become more confident. Of course, from a purely subjective point of view, I like the look of McSweeney and he is putting together a Labushagne-like portfolio for potential selection out of the blue.
The gen next all look good in O Davies, Fraser-McGurk, Clayton, Wylie and Hardie but again, not many of them, aside from Davies and Hardie and to a lesser extent Clayton, have many runs on the board. So to me, your pecking order should be:
Openers:
1. Smith
2. Renshaw
3. Pucovski (yes, I am so biased with this guy)
4. Bancroft
5. Jewell
Middle-Order:
1. Green
2. Hardie
3. McSweeney
4. Davies
5. Drew
Bolter: Fraser-McGurk
Keeper:
1. Inglis
2. Pierson
3. Harper
4. Philippe
5. Doran
Pacers:
1. Morris (purely because he has been so close already in recent times)
2. Richardson (my personal preference)
3. Sutherland
4. W Agar
5. Steketee
6. O'Neill
Spinners:
1. Murphy
2. Sangha
3. Rocchicholi
4. Kuhnemann
5. Manenti
Spinner actually have a bit of depth right now.
