A LOVE for his home club, the sport in general and a small community drives Jordan McDonald to put his hand up to volunteer at Bullants Cricket Club.
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The 26-year-old has been the secretary and treasurer at the Noradjuha-based club for the past two seasons.
“My name was suggested as someone to fill a vacancy so I stepped up,” he said. “It’s certainly been an interesting learning curve but it’s also been really good.”
McDonald was quick to point towards the club’s new junior team as something that has added a little more energy to the club this season.
It’s certainly been an interesting learning curve but it’s also been really good.
“It’s the first time we’ve had a junior side for something like ten years and hopefully that helps us move forward as a club,” he said.
“Most of the kids are still pretty young but it’s really good having them there.
“There are now more parents around the club and there is an extra buzz around at trainings because they train before us.
“A fair few of the senior guys try to get there to help coach them.”
The club has talked about reintroducing a junior team in the Horsham Cricket Association for a couple of years.
“It was something that had been brought up at the last couple of general meetings but then there wasn’t the numbers there,” McDonald said.
“Susan McKenry really started the drive to get it going this season.”
For McDonald, who started his cricket in the under-14s at Noradjuha, it is a particularly pleasing development.
He played A Grade with his home club until making the move to Quantong to play with mates after the 2009-10 season.
When Quantong decided to move to C Grade McDonald made the move back to the Bullants.
“Cricket is just a great game but it can be frustrating at times,” he said.
Cricket is just a great game but it can be frustrating at times.
“I think playing with a good group of mates helps.
“Everyone at the Bullants gets along really well so we throw around some banter and sledge each other to have a laugh.”
The importance of the social aspect meant McDonald would continue to play for as long as he could.
“You can be on top of the world taking five wickets and then the next week you will get hit out of the park,” he said.
“Sometimes when you have that bad run of form it would be much easier sitting on the sidelines but once you catch that cricket bug you don’t want to give up. It’s a pretty good bug to have.”
Volunteering is something McDonald also thinks he will continue to do for quite some time.
We wouldn’t have cricket – especially out at Noradjuha – without volunteers.
“We wouldn’t have cricket – especially out at Noradjuha – without volunteers,” he said.
“Everyone is pretty busy working in some way or another but those ones that volunteer an put there time in are so valuable.
“It’s not just around our club but all through the association.”