Twenty - Weston Creek Cricket Club

Twenty Seasons OnWhat makes a person want to play cricket? Why wouldanyone subject themselves to spending around five orsix hours in the heat of a summer's afternoon on a cricketfield instead of sitting in some cool, shady spot, watchingcricket on television and slurping a few "tinnies"?The answer to those questions is obvious. We love it. Thereis nothing better than batting, standing twenty yards awayfrom a deranged "gorilla" who hurls a missile at you, with thesole intention of separating you from your "crockery". It'sgreat to stand for hours in the hot sun, trying to field the ball,only to get a freakish bounce where you either miss itcompletely and look like a galah, or get a nice little smack inthe "yapper". You could be hit in another unmentionable areawhich could jeopardise another career as well as your cricket.To analyse the type of person who would enjoy such a gameis fairly simple. You have to be a nut. As a self-confessed"nut" I feel qualified to give an account of what is involvedin the weekly routine of the average cricketer. First of all,there are the practice sessions. These are usually held onTuesdays and Thursdays and involve polishing up methods ofgetting your match-day cuts, bruises and fractured battingaverages. Each match-day you rise at noon, remember that itis Saturday and not Sunday, rush like crazy to get ready, thenresign yourself to the fact that you will have to be latebecause you have not put on your bets at the TAB as yet. Atthe end of the day, each player retreats to the club tocelebrate the bruises, the catch you almost caught, or the factthat you reached double figures with the bat for the first timein ten years.Such is life at the Weston Creek Cricket Club. A typicalpost-match session at the dub can be summed up like this.63