Excitement for young children chose to hand the winner’s medals at the BBL Grand Final
A small group of kids have been chosen to present the medals at the BBL Grand Final. What the kids had to say.
Tasmania
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A select group of kids will have the opportunity to present the winning players from Monday night’s BBL decider their medals.
The kids from all over Australia have been flown to Hobart as part of the Woolworths Cricket Blast First XI.
Frankie Mountney is one of the children chosen to present the medals at the game.
The eight-year-old from Launceston said she was excited to be given the opportunity.
“I’ve been playing cricket for three years now,” Frankie said.
“I’m too young to play cricket for a club, but the coach from the South Launceston Cricket Club invited me to train with the under-12s.
“I may even be able to play with them next year.”
For the opportunity to be part of the Woolworths Cricket Blast First XI, Frankie had to apply with a video.
“I love cricket and I’m enthusiastic, and I think that’s why I was chosen,” she said.
Frankie said her favourite Hobart Hurricanes players were Riley Meredith and Matthew Wade.
Having been born deaf and required to wear bilateral cochlear implants, Frankie’s mother, Steph, said her daughter was cricket-mad.
“She’s always excited to get out there and play cricket – not just on Saturday mornings when they have games – but any opportunities to play in the backyard with her big brother, Luca, and her dad,” Ms Mountney said.
“That’s all she does all summer, pretty much. It’s really great to see a kid with a disability have as many opportunities as able-bodied kids.
“She’s got her purple headband to match the Hurricanes gear to hold her implants in. It’s really lovely to see her striving as a kid with a disability.
The first ball in the BBL decider between the Hobart Hurricanes and Sydney Thunder is expected to be bowled at 7.15pm on Monday at Ninja Stadium.
Sydney Thunder Captain David Warner said he was not phased about playing the decider on away turf.
“We just got to embrace it. It’s pretty difficult for people to travel to Hobart,” Warner said.
“For us, it’s about entertaining and putting our best performance forward, and hopefully – if we come up trumps – then we can hold this bad boy [the BBL trophy] tomorrow night.”
Hobart Hurricanes Captain Nathan Ellis said the team was well prepared for the big game.
“It’s been a good few days; had a few days off – which was really timely, I think – but it’s also given us the chance to have a pretty relaxed lead-in, a relaxed lead-in,” Ellis said.
“I’m pretty excited now. It’s starting to sink in that it’s tomorrow.
“Pretty excited with the opportunity to play in front of a sold-out home crowd.”
Ellis said he was not worried about the team being too relaxed by having a longer break between games than the Thunder.
“There’s probably no perfect recipe. Ours was just going away for two days.
“We had two days completely tools down, and we’ve had a three-day lead-in.”
The possibility of being able to hold aloft the BBL trophy was exciting for Ellis.
“These are the games as professional cricketers you want to play in,” he said.
“You’re definitely trying to temper expectations at the moment and treat it as if it’s any other game, as the cliche says.
“But these are the games you want to be a part of and to have the opportunity to play a home final is really good.”
Ellis said he believed the game had the potential to be a watershed moment for cricket in the state.
“We’re well aware of how big it is for Tasmanian cricket. The goal is to win, and that’ll be huge to be the first ones to bring it home.
“But again – I’m a realist, and I know what T20 cricket is. We just need to have a good day, and hopefully, it’ll fall our way.”
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Originally published as Excitement for young children chose to hand the winner’s medals at the BBL Grand Final
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