Merv Hughes in his glory days with the Comets in 1997. Photo: Pat Scala

Cricket ACT is poised to form a powerful alliance with Country Cricket NSW and Cricket NSW, strengthening its bid for the Comets to be re-admitted into the national one-day competition in the summer of 2015-16.

The ACT Comets were axed from the domestic one-day competition in 2000, but are set to be reincarnated as the ACT-NSW Country Comets in a united push to return to the highest level of domestic cricket by next year.

Cricket ACT, Country Cricket NSW and NSW Cricket met in Sydney this week to finalise details of a memorandum of understanding that will officially divide playing talent across NSW and the ACT.

Canberra's Jono Dean plays for Adelaide in the Big Bash League but may get more representative chances closer to home with the ACT-NSW Country Comets. Photo: Katherine Griffiths

While the NSW Blues would still be the major representative team based in Sydney, Canberra would be the central base for all NSW players outside the Sydney metropolitan area.

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It would more than double the population of the ACT's current catchment area to approximately 3 million, also aiding Cricket ACT's long-term ambition for expansion into the Big Bash League and Sheffield Shield.

Cricket ACT chairman Ian McNamee confirmed the proposal for a Comets team to join the 2015-16 national one-day competition would be an agenda item at Cricket Australia's board meeting in Melbourne on September 17-18.

Cricket ACT chairman Ian McNamee. Photo: Andrew Johnston

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Cricket ACT and Country Cricket NSW form alliance for Comets promotion