Wicketkeeper Sam Canny is back for the weekend's clash with Devonport - the Eagles' first October home game since 2010 - and there's a new cult hero in town.

Recruit Nick Smith was the tightest Eagles quick last round and he's having an even bigger impact off-field.

"He's a specimen - he's 26, from Victoria and he's got a mullet," Mowbray coach James Storay said.

"He bowls a very good length and is a bit of a cult figure around our club at the current point in time. He gets the boys up and about so we're stoked to have him."

Canny's return will see opener Jason Snare relinquish the gloves.

"[Sam's] been working really hard - he's worked his backside off over pre-season and it'll be good to see how he goes," Storay said.

LAUNCESTON is top of the table heading into a clash with Latrobe.

The Lions will lose spearhead Tom Gray but have plenty of back-up in store after recruiting as well as any club over the off-season.

"We've got some really good depth at the club," captain Alistair Taylor said.

"We've got about 16 or 17 blokes who are pushing for A-grade cricket so we're pretty lucky - a couple of boys in the Raiders, a couple of boys in the twos so there's a real competition for spots."

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SOUTH LAUNCESTON will blood a debutant and welcome Josh Freestone back from knee surgery in Saturday's trip to Sheffield.

Freestone and teenager Angus Foster will be a straight swap for the unavailable Ben and Jeremy Jackson.

"[Angus] played under-18s last year ... he's a keeper-batsman and he's a pretty powerful hitter," Knights skipper Sean Harris said.

"He usually bats in the top order - he'll probably come in a little bit lower down for us but he's a pretty complete player, plays all 360 degrees around the wicket.

"He's got such a huge upside so we've been really looking forward to giving him a first-grade cap and this week's his opportunity."

Keeper Peter New will captain RIVERSIDE as the Blues travel to Ulverstone.

Skipper Tom Garwood and all-rounder Matthew Kerrison are both unavailable, with Bailey Hunt to return and James Simpson to open should he pass a fitness test.

Ben Kidd is another option should Simpson fail to come up.

"It creates a really good opportunity for someone," Garwood said.

"Pete [captained] one game last year and he stepped up and played really well, so we're looking at him stepping up with the bat and making a big score and backing it up in the field.

"It was really good to get a win on Saturday but now we need to back up our performance."

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WESTBURY is finally back for a second game following a washout and a bye.

"Hopefully soon we can get a few games in a row and start to find out what our better 11 looks like," skipper Dan Murfet said.

Murfet's Shamrocks have named Nathan Parkin and Jordan French for their first games of the year.

"[Jordan's] always been a pretty reliable leg spinner and the last couple of years he's really tried to develop that skill even more.

"Alex Kerrison's unavailable this week so he's going to come in as our second spinner and Nathan's been looking really good in the nets so I'm sure he'll play a good role for us there," Murfet said.