Coach Michael Collins said after the red team finished last on the ladder with four wins and 10 losses in the first women's Big Bash League season, they decided to change tack and focus on recruiting young Victorian talent for a longer-term build.

The Renegades will rely on creating an enjoyable environment for the players to build loyalty, because unlike male players, women in the Big Bash League can only be offered one-year contracts.

The average age of players in the 15-strong Renegades squad is about 22 and at just 15, all-rounder Annabel Sutherland is the youngest player in the league.

Collins said he wanted the team to play aggressive, high-octane cricket.

"We sat down at the end of last season and made a very strong ideological decision to make the Renegades a young and fast team across the field," he said.

Collins conceded the focus on youth was a long-term plan and not without risks.

"It's not necessarily about wins and losses, it's how it's played," he said.

"We're sure they're going to play in the right way, running all the time, trying to be aggressive and attacking all the time."

The Renegades decided not to offer last year's captain Sarah Elliot another contract, a decision the Victorian batter has admitted caught her by surprise.

Elliot will play for the Adelaide Strikers this season, while New Zealand wicketkeeper and batter Rachel Priest will skipper the Renegades.

At 31, Priest will add some experience to the Melbourne team's line-up, supported by 33-year-old vice-captain Kris Britt.

"We wanted a captain who would make autonomous decisions, Rachel is a great leader," Collins said.

Also on the Renegades list are leg-spinner Georgia Wareham, 17, 18-year-olds Tayla Vlaeminck, Sophie Molineux and Amy Yates and ACT medium-pace bowler Maitlan Brown, who is 19.

Fast-bowler Vlaeminck was at school at Catholic College in Bendigo when earlier this year she found out she would be part of the Renegades squad.

A talented soccer player, she had her second knee reconstruction in March and was pleased the club had been willing to sign her, despite her being unlikely to be able to play until the second half of the season.

Ahead of the WBBL launch this weekend in Sydney she has dubbed herself "hydration manager" – she will be running water for the team until her knee rehabilitation is complete.

Vlaeminck said she had played previously with Wareham and trained with Sutherland and was excited to part of the new-look line-up.

"We'll have a lot of fun together," she said.

The WBBL players are not yet covered by a collective bargaining agreement, but the Australian Cricketers' Association hope to have one finalised before the start of next season.

A spokesman said it hoped to include provision for multi-season contracts, which many of the men played under, so the women and teams would have more certainty from year-to-year.

Cricket Australia has no immediate plans to introduce multi-season season contracts for WBBL players, but the matter will be reviewed at the end of the season.