No longer wanted by Cricket Australia, Stuart Clark and Nathan Bracken were gratefully snapped up by NSW as the Blues announced their list of contracts for 2010-11.

Loyal servants Dominic Thornely and Grant Lambert are among the players jettisoned by the Blues, while Sri Lankan Tillakaratne Dilshan is a curious choice as an overseas Twenty20 player.

NSW cricket chief executive David Gilbert outlined a mentoring role for Clark, 34 and Bracken, 32, alongside the likes of young quicks Mitchell Starc, Burt Cockley and Josh Hazlewood.

"The return of Clark and Bracken will greatly assist the development of our younger players," Gilbert said on Friday.

"Even with nine NSW players being contracted to Cricket Australia, Cricket NSW has still been able to name a very talented Contract list for 2010-11.

"NSW has the all-round depth to challenge in all three domestic competitions next year."

The seemingly forgotten left-arm wrist spinner Beau Casson has been encouragingly retained at a time when some of his contemporaries - including the finger spinners Dan Cullen and Jason Krejza - are out of favour.

Dilshan's selection arrives at a time when he is desperately out of form at the World Twenty20 tournament in the Caribbean, but his combination of aggressive batting and agile fielding could make him a worthwhile pick-up.

Thornely and Lambert, meanwhile, have drifted slowly to the edges of the NSW squad.

In the case of Thornely it is a significant drop, for at one point he was considered close to the national side as a free-spirited batsman and miserly slow medium bowler.

His tally of 5,166 first-class runs at 42.69 with 10 centuries suggests that, at 31, he may well be a chance to earn a contract in another state if he so chooses.

NSW contracted players: Nathan Bracken, Mark Cameron, Beau Casson, Stuart Clark, Burt Cockley, Trent Copeland, Peter Forrest, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Phil Jaques, Usman Khawaja, Peter Nevill, Stephen O'Keefe, Ben Rohrer, Daniel Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Tillakaratne Dilshan (Twenty20 contract). Rookie contracts: Tim Armstrong, Luke Doran, Nic Maddinson, Joe Mennie, Timm Van Der Gugten, Adam Zampa.

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