For over a decade, I watched my son navigate childhood with a curious absence: a complete lack of interest in the sound of leather on willow. For eleven whole years, cricket simply wasn't on his radar, a fact I secretly – and perhaps unfairly – considered almost un-Australian.
A Childhood Bathed in Cricket, Yet Resisted
My own upbringing was steeped in the game. With three brothers, our house was a landscape of Gray-Nicolls bats, grass-stained whites, and the occasional protective box left in oddly public places. Growing up in the 70s and 80s, cricket was ambient noise; the TV or radio constantly broadcast the exploits of legends like Dennis Lillee, Joel Garner, and Viv Richards – the latter of whom I was once thrilled to meet on a remote Malaysian island.
While my knowledge of modern players is shaky, the communal joy of the game remains. I still love the newsroom cheer when Australia takes a wicket. Yet, I never pushed cricket on my son. His winter AFL and summer Oztag seemed sufficient, with only the occasional festive game of beach cricket.
The Unexpected Turn: A Friday Night Revelation
This year, everything changed. Prompted by a friend, my son joined a local team and was instantly, utterly captivated. The obsession is now constant: shadow bowling in the Coles aisle, sending tennis balls down the patio at makeshift wickets made of bike pumps or baseball bats.
His games are on Friday evenings, a scheduling masterstroke that has become my weekly therapy. Is there anything more serene than sitting on the boundary as the working week melts away? The neighbourhood ovals are hubs of gentle activity – dog walkers, footy kickers, and even a parade of Halloween witches and goblins one night at Curtin. It feels like a Norman Rockwell painting, but with gum trees and zinc.
Community, Camaraderie, and a New Summer Tradition
The team itself is a blessing. Coached by two dedicated dads, it's a mix of ages where the younger kids genuinely admire the older ones. The parents are lovely, creating that perfect community atmosphere that makes junior sport so special.
This new passion is reshaping our family summer. We have tickets to the Big Bash League game at Manuka Oval on December 22 as an early Christmas gift. And for the first time in years, I suspect our television will be deliberately tuned to the Boxing Day Test match.
After 11 years of wondering, I've finally, joyfully, become a cricket mum. And I'm loving every single minute of it.
