Wartime discovery mystifies resident

SHARON Wilson is trying to solve the mystery of a rare army issue cricket bat from the Second World War which was hidden away on the property she bought.

Sharon Wilson sits with a cricket bat found in the cubby house of a Burgess Street property in Raceview where she used to reside. Sharon is keen to find out the story behind the wartime cricket bat. . Picture: Claudia Baxter

HELMET, rifle, cricket bat.

A rare army issue bat from the Second World War was discovered by the resident of a Raceview house nearly 10 years ago.

A decade on, Sharon Wilson is searching for information about her find.

The bat was hidden away in the rafters of a cubby house on the property Ms Wilson bought.

An inscription on the front of the bat backs up Ms Wilson's claims, reading "war time manufacture, Australian Army Amenities Service".

A curious Ms Wilson did online research on the bat but couldn't find the exact make or the history of cricket bats in the war effort.

"I found a similar bat on the Australian War Memorial website but it's not the same," she said.

War Memorial curator Rebecca Britt said war time bats were an uncommon find.

"We've only got two in our collection," she said.

"It's something that would have had a long life after the war."

Ms Britt said the Amenities Service ordered bats to be sent to Australian units around the world to help boost morale and keep the troops entertained.

"The Amenities Service was part of the army dedicated to making life a bit more comfortable for the troops," she said.

"Sport was used as a way of entertaining, building morale in a unit as well as a way of keeping fit.

"Games would have varied kind of ad hoc inside a unit or very organised between the navy and air force or between Australians and the English in kind of a mini-Ashes."

Originally published as Wartime discovery mystifies resident