ST Georges Basins Joanne Kelly has once again proven that age is no barrier, by making her Australian Country Cricket Championships debut at the tender age of 43.
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In doing so, she became just the 22nd player to ever don the NSW Bush Breakers uniform.
To be selected in the side was a massive honour for me, Kelly said.
Country cricket is so strong and at 43 to be named alongside some great young talent coming through was huge.
I was so grateful for the opportunity and to know that I still have skills to offer.
After the 14-person squad was named in December, Kelly and her team met in Sydney briefly before heading to Shepparton, Victoria for the championships.
We [the team] met each other the day before we flew out and stayed in Sydney the night, she said.
We all ate dinner together and had the opportunity to have a chat and also the debutants were presented their caps by NSW Breakers and Sydney Thunder player and Bush Breaker herself, Lisa Griffith.
She shared her passion of what playing for the Bush Breakers is all about.
On arrival to Victoria, the team had a hard training in 45 degree temperatures, preparing them for the tough week ahead.
Our first game was against Northern Territory and we kept them to 4/76 from their 20 overs, she said.
We got the total none down in 11 overs and I scored 32 not out a great way to get into the tournament and it felt great to contribute.
Unfortunately, Kellys side couldnt carry their momentum into game two against Western Australia
We kept them to 9/87 from their 20 overs, which was a good start, she said.
We should have won this game but came up short being bowled out for 82 that was a game that got away from us.
The following day, the Breakers faced a double header, against perennial powerhouses Queensland and Victoria.
Against Queensland, we batted first and ended with 2/122, with me being run out for 17, Kelly said.
Thankfully, we managed to keep them to 9/111 from their 20 overs to secure out second win.
Later that day, Victoria batted first and were 0/61 after the first six overs.
We managed to pull them back somehow and they finished with 6/120.
With the bat, we did not start so well, being 1/29 after our first six overs.
I was top scorer with 27 and somehow managed to be out there for four overs without facing a ball but unfortunately, we finished at 7/96.
After this double header, Kelly missed matches five and six, due to fluid in her knee but her team kept battling in the tournament.
Game five was against South Australia, who first scored 5/121 before we chased down their target and won by hitting a six on the second last ball in the innings, Kelly said.
Game six was against East Asia Pacific, which are a group of ladies from Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Fiji and even Japan.
EAP, who were the reigning champions, were very quick across the ground and had rocket arms from the outfield.
We batted first and were 3/13 after four overs but scrambled to make 9/88.
But we were never really in the game, with EAP running down our score in the 18th over.
These results saw NSW (3-3) scrape into fourth position on run rate, by just 0.02, setting up a semi-final showdown with Victoria.
Our bowling was much better against Victoria in this game compared to the round match, keeping them to 6/108 form their 20 overs, Kelly said.
I managed to do enough work with the physio and in the pool over the previous two days to get on the park for this game which was great thankfully we fielded first ,which gave my knee plenty of time to warm up.
It was decided that due to my injury, I would bat at four, so the team could hopefully get off to a good start and begin strong with the running between wickets.
Unfortunately things didnt go quite to plan and I ended up at the crease in the sixth over.
I put on a 46 run partnership with captain Kate Jackson.
The team required 14 runs from the last over and we managed 11, meaning we went down narrowly by two runs.
Despite the loss, I thought we did really well to keep them down to 108 and we ended up just short.
T20 matches should be close and we pushed this one right to the end and gave ourselves a chance.
After being knocked out one game short of the final, Kelly reflected on her first experience with the Bush Breakers.
Overall, I dont think we played to our potential as a team, she said.
They are a great group of talented players and I thoroughly enjoyed my time away with them.
Its always difficult when you put players who have never played together before and have them perform straight away.
I believe if we could keep the same group together next year, we would perform a lot better as a unit and would be more competitive.
Personally I was happy to be able to contribute.
I must say I havent played a week-long outdoor cricket carnival for close to 20 years and I learned a lot about my body and what I need to work on for the future to keep it in strong working order.
Despite representing her country in 2016, Kelly still ranks this as one of her top achievements to date.
I am certainly very proud to be given the opportunity to represent NSW again, she said.
It has been a long time since that has happened in outdoor cricket.
I believe it was reward for all the effort I have put into my game and fitness over the past few years and a selection on form rather than age, which is always nice.
Kelly will now return to play for her St George-Sutherland Cricket Club in Sydney, where the season has recently shifted to the 50 over form.
She hopes more strong performances in this competition, which she has already scored 201 runs this season, can lead to more representative cricket in the future.
I would love the opportunity to represent the Bush Breakers again, she said.
But for now my main goal is competing for NSW in indoor cricket and getting myself into a position to be considered for the Australian Masters team that will head over to Capetown in October for the World Series.