The Northern Knights are building towards a strong assault on this season's HRV Cup Twenty 20 with the signatures of two dynamic Australian T20 experts.

The Knights announced the signing of Tasmanian paceman Ben Laughlin and Melbourne batsman Daniel Harris as two of their overseas signings for the first four HRV Cup matches.

Ben Laughlin and Daniel Harris have signed with the Northern Knights for this year's HRV Cup.

Ben is presently playing for Tasmania and the Hobart Hurricanes in the Australian domestic competitions. A right arm medium-pacer, he has forged a career being able to close out limited over matches with the ball.

From 33 T20s he has taken 37 wickets at a rate of 7.93 runs per over. The 31-year-old has also played eight international matches for Australia and is contracted to the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League.

Fellow Australian Daniel Harris is presently playing for the Melbourne Renegades in the Australian Big Bash League.

He is a prolific run-scorer at the top of the order in the Big Bash League, playing 65 matches, amassing 1595 runs at an average of 29, and strike-rate of 126.

Also a qualified doctor, the right-hand batsman is also an occasionally effective right-arm medium pacer and, like Ben, is an exceptional fielder.

The Knights open their HRV Cup season against the Otago Volts on Saturday, November 9 in Dunedin, followed by a double header at Hamilton's Seddon Park on November 15 against the volts and November 16 against the Central Stags.

They then close out their first bank of matches with a trip to Wellington on November 19.

Northern Knights coach James Pamment is delighted to add the two Australians for the first four matches to a team that is also likely to include current Blackcaps Trent Boult, Ish Sodhi and BJ Watling, as well as the fit-again Daniel Vettori.

'To be able to include players of genuine T20 experience and quality is very important and both Ben and Daniel have played a large number of highly competitive T20 fixtures, their match winning ability, their knowledge and their undoubted passion for the game, will be a huge boost to our squad,” says James.

Scott Styris also returns to the Knights this season, but this year not as captain. That role, in all three formats, has gone to Daniel Flynn.

James is excited by the fresh look of his team for the tournament in what he proclaims is the 'most difficult assignment in NZ domestic cricket”.

'We are very happy with the squad we have assembled to give this competition a good shake. We have very good balance across our squad and possess several genuine match winners.”