Sporty mother gets kitted out for the weekend

Here some tips on surviving a sport-filled weekend.

Charisse Farr writes a column for QT Magazine called Mum's the Word. Picture: Rob Williams

SILLY mid-off. Yorker. Doosra. Golden duck. Jaffa.

Honestly, cricket has its own language, and it most definitely has its own brand of (slightly fanatical) followers. Having grown up on a healthy diet of rugby league, the whole cricket sub-culture was something my husband tried to get me involved in. He took me to games, but it was to day three of a Sheffield Shield game back in the late 90s, and his efforts were in vain - I never quite showed much interest in the game.

So of course (as these things happen) our child has become cricket-obsessed like his father. It started with watching it on telly and playing in the backyard. Then it progressed to following cricket players - I was quite taken aback with how upset he was when Mitchell Johnson retired.

And so, it wasn't much of a surprise when he wanted to play the game. Our whole cricket caper started last year when he played T20 on a Friday night. I was quite happy with this - it was one hour on a Friday night and that was it for the week. It then progressed to a Saturday morning session for a couple of hours (with an hour training on a weekday afternoon) towards the end of last season.

Not surprisingly, cricket has been played again this season. Training one afternoon a week and a two-hour game on a Saturday morning. The last couple of weekends though, the child has been playing on Sunday afternoons as well. So as a person who wasn't really into cricket, I've ended up having a cricket-filled weekend - and it doesn't look to be ending.

We are fortunate enough to be in a team where the coach and the other parents are awesome. It certainly makes the games much more enjoyable. We all seem to be relaxed about it all - most of the boys are under 10, so we're not exactly playing for sheep stations here!

So, if you're like me and you've accidentally lost your weekend to sport, here some tips on surviving a sport-filled weekend:

Invest in a decent chair. Our cheap chairs didn't cut the mustard after a while.

Pack lots of food. Not only for the child, but also for yourself.

Bring lots of water. This goes without saying, but honestly, pack twice as much water as you think you need.

Make sure you have sunscreen and insect repellent.

Also, bring a book. Bring a sketchbook. Bring an electronic device (and a battery pack!). Because honestly, sometimes you just must tune out. Unless, like my husband, you are one of the previously mentioned fanatical cricket fans who is in absolute heaven with the cricket-filled weekend! - Charisse

P.S. I've recently been to another live cricket game since that bore-fest of a Shield match in the 90s. I've decided that Big Bash is a version of the game that I can totally get behind. Much to my husband's disgust. But he's a fanatical cricket fan so I'm not taking any notice of him!