by Keiran Croker
Bollywood dancers from ABCD welcomed guests as they arrived at Kooyong. Then former International player and Australian coach, Darren Lehmann joined us for dinner fresh from his duties as an ABC Radio specialist commentator after day two of Melbourne’s Boxing Day Test.
After being introduced by our President and MC, Mark Dunstan, our guest provided a fulsome and open account of his time in the game. Darren recounted his early days in Adelaide including his time playing football for Central Districts Reserves in the SANFL. While being a skilled midfielder his lack of pace and defensive skills curtailed his progression with legendary coach Neil Kerley suggesting he follow his passion for cricket.
He debuted for South Australia, as a 17 year old left handed batsmen in 1987 and was honoured to be led by legendary Croweater David Hookes. He gained attention early and was considered to be on the fringe of national selection. His prolific output for both South Australia, and for a short time with Victoria, however did not result in an elevation to the International scene until 1996.
While some may consider his talents were somewhat underutilised at the International level, Darren thought on balance it was a satisfying career. For the record he played 27 Tests with nearly 1800 runs at an average of 45 with five centuries and 117 ODIs for 3,000 runs averaging 39 with four centuries over nearly 10 years.
What can not be disputed is the quality of Darren’s extraordinary First Class Career over 20 years. In addition to his Australian exploits he spent ten years with Yorkshire in the English County competition; he is in Yorkshires Team Of The Century. Overall he made nearly 26,000 runs at an average just below 58 with 82 centuries; rarefied numbers in cricket. He also took a handy 130 wickets at an average of 35 with his left arm orthodox spin.
Darren is understandably proud of his playing career however it’s been his time as a coach that he’s enjoyed the most. He initially had the opportunity to coach the Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League and took them to the title. That lead to multiple offers and Darren said he took the chance to take on Queensland and the Brisbane Heat to get out of his comfort zone.
Darren outlined that after some success he was approached by Cricket Australia to take over the Australian coaching role for the 2013 Ashes tour following the infamous “homework-gate” incident. He explained the impact of his decision on family. It was a role he was keen to take on though he acknowledged it’s a 24/7 role requiring absences of up to 300 days per year.
Darren spoke candidly about the highs and lows of his coaching career. He was most proud of how the team rallied after the tragic death of Phillip Hughes and he spoke in length about the aftermath. In contrast Darren offered an apology to all for the sandpaper incident in Cape Town taking overall responsibility. Ultimately it cost him his job.
Darren took a number of questions from the audience and gave his views on Australian team selection and other topical matters. All agreed that Darren was an outstanding guest; open, honest and engaging.