by Pam Payne, ACS member and former Committee member
On the morning of Day 2 of the Women’s Ashes Test at the MCG, sixty guests were treated to a delicious brunch while listening to three inspirational women sharing their cricketing experiences: two of the fastest bowlers to play for Australia, Tayla Vlaeminck and Cathryn Fitzpatrick, as well as Clare Johnston, one of only two female cricket bat makers (another in NSW) in the world.
First up was Tayla who grew up in Bendigo, not only playing soccer, but also cricket with her brother for whom she was a ‘ball machine’. They played together for the Northern Rivers team before Tayla progressed on to Victorian U14s, U18s and the Victorian Spirit team
She has played one test for Australia against England in 2019 (received her cap from Elyse Perry), eight international ODI’s and twenty T20s. She joined the Melbourne Renegades Big Bash squad in 2018.
Tayla’s cricketing career has been interrupted by injuries including a ruptured ACL, knee replacements, foot injuries and, more recently, a dislocated shoulder. She’ll now be out of action for ten weeks as a result of a fielding dive. Perhaps it’s not at all surprising that she is studying to be a physiotherapist given such challenging experiences. Extra time on her hands has also allowed her to meet up with friends and develop her expertise as a ‘Melbourne coffee snob’! She highly values her connection with teammates – another common trait amongst players.
Amongst the insights she shared, Tayla mentioned that 200 days a year can be spent in a hotel throughout playing commitments and that specific training was needed to convert from the shorter forms of the game to playing in a Test. TV exposure of women’s games in more recent times has attracted greater sponsorship, particularly for the BBL and IPL. This has provided greater opportunities for players who would otherwise have to find extra work, very much a necessity in the past. We do hope Tayla can return to playing before too long.
Cathryn (Fitzy) Fitzpatrick is yet another Australian cricketer who started playing at a very young age. Her pathway to cricket was via Little Athletics, netball then cricket when she joined an 11/12yo boys team and a girls team later on. That brought about less pressure from her dad, great support from her granddad and a chance to bowl very fast balls at her ‘bad sport’ brother. Post secondary school, fitness came from working as a garbo and then as a postie on a bicycle. Those jobs finished early so she was always on time for training.
At 15, Fitzy realised her point of difference when others didn’t like facing her in the nets. She was coached by John Harmer who encouraged her to bowl fast – a winning ‘weapon’. While strategically working players out, she would deliver balls at 125kph and never liked the ball being taken away from her. She was inspired by her mentor, Christine Matthews (recent Hall of Fame inductee), medium-paced bowler, Raelee Thompson, and all rounder Betty Wilson, who often observed matches and offered (constructive?) criticism.
Her national cricketing career spanned sixteen years from 1991. Amongst her many notable achievements, Fitzy was the first woman to take five wickets at Lords, the oldest to do so just one week short of her 38th birthday and the first to take 100 ODI wickets. She was the Belinda Clark Medallist in 2004 and was inducted into the Australian Cricket and ICC Halls of Fame in 2019 along with Sachin Tendulkar and Allan Donald. She is one of Wisden’s five greats of the women’s game.
After being head coach of Australian Women’s cricket team from 2012-15, she is now involved in community coaching. Her current shift work for Victoria Police as a PSO allows time for pursuing this passion. Fitzy wasn’t plagued by injury during her career but now needs to deal with the lasting physical effects of her playing days. Still, she remains upbeat and generous with her time for sharing her love of the game. A true inspiration!
Cricket bat maker, Clare Johnston, lives in Gippsland, works for Parks Victoria full time and makes cricket bats for relaxation on the weekends. Her love for cricket started when she was taken by her dad to watch matches at the MCG. She played herself from the age of 15-22 as a batter and wicket keeper and is playing again today.
Clare considers bat making to be more of an art than a science. All she needs to create her well-renowned products is a good piece of willow, music and birds in the background, knowing who the bat is for and time to not rush the process. Former Australian cricketer, Ian Callen, a well-respected ‘pod shaver’, trained her in bat making skills. She has been inspired by Inga Simpson’s novel about bat making, “Willowman”, and by her 1940s Sports Journalist uncle, Hec de Lacy, who instilled a love for the game in her father, a love that was passed on to her. Hence the de Lacy name on all of her bats.
As Clare has an interest in cricketing uniforms and equipment being made to match/fit female players, e.g. culottes/pants, chest pads, etc., she started out by making bats for women. Mainly through word of mouth, she now has roughly an equal number of male/female clients. Cricketers know the bat they love to use and she produces the weight, lift and balance to fit each individual client. She considers the current trend is to use lighter bats with scores made through the turn of the bat rather than the weight. We also learned that two light coats of linseed oil are all that’s needed to maintain her excellent products.
Clare was very entertaining, knowledgeable and well worth contacting if you require a bespoke cricket bat.
