Travis Head’s dad Simon super proud after son’s second century against New Zealand on Boxing Day, celebrated over pub steaks
Travis Head’s dad Simon started Friday worried his choice of MCG seat might prove a jinx. But he ended it celebrating Travis’s “most special” ton over steaks at a Melbourne pub.
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As Travis Head pushed towards his second Test ton in Melbourne on Friday, his dad, Simon, was worried about swapping seats.
Simon sat in the players’ families indoor hospitality area at the MCG a day earlier when Travis battled the New Zealand attack amid scrutiny about his spot in the team and got to stumps unbeaten on 25.
Nervous and not wanting to prove a jinx, Simon returned to the same spot on day two, only to have a change of heart with the Redbacks captain on the cusp of a century.
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“On 98 I said to Jess, his partner, ‘we should go outside’, but we didn’t want to,” Simon told The Advertiser.
“Everyone else was saying ‘you’ve got to be out there’, not being so superstitious.
“So we moved outside then I realised it was tea time and we had to wait another bloody 20 minutes.
“It seemed like ages.
“It was very nerve-racking and very emotional (when he reached 100).
“I did well up a bit and I’m not ashamed of it – it’s a very special moment for him.
“We just stood up and cheered him, clapped him and tried to soak it in.
“The atmosphere of the crowd was unbelievable.
“I’m just super proud of him.”
Simon fielded plenty of pre-match calls from family members, asking if he knew whether Travis would be picked for what would be his 17th Test.
Conjecture suggested the left-hand batsman’s position was in jeopardy after scoring 24 in his only innings in the two-Test series against Pakistan, then 56 and 5 versus the Kiwis in Perth.
But the fact the Tea Tree Gully product never told his dad to cancel his flights to Melbourne was a promising sign that “maybe he knows something that I don’t”.
Simon said Travis’s five-hour knock of 114 was more special than his maiden century – 161 against Sri Lanka in Canberra last summer – because of the circumstances.
“I’m really rapt for him to be able to respond the way he did,” said Simon, who also attended last year’s Boxing Day match when Travis scored 20 and 34 against India.
“It was a good reward for him for the work he’s done.
“Then for it to be a Boxing Day hundred – it’s like an English player making a hundred at Lord’s – it’s held in a bit higher esteem.”
Simon spent about 30 minutes catching up with Travis in the change rooms after play.
“I just gave him a big hug and said ‘well done’,” he said.
“I did ask him for his bat but he laughed at me said ‘I don’t think so’.”
That night Simon, Travis, Jess and a few friends went to a pub just outside the city for a quiet dinner, where they reflected on the day over steaks.
“I think we’re still pinching ourselves,” Simon said.
It will be just the Heads and Jess at dinner on Sunday, when there is more cause for celebration – it is Travis’s 26th birthday.
“Apparently I’m shouting tea so I’m a bit nervous,” Simon said with a laugh.
“I’m pretty sure we’re not going to McDonalds.”
Simon hoped Travis’s innings was the start of a new tradition.
“Hopefully he plays a few more Boxing Day Tests and does the same thing (scores a century) and gives himself a birthday present every year.”