Sport
‘As soon as I found out I let my boss know’: Mooroopna’s Michael Ford gets set to represent Victoria
Mooroopna’s Michael Ford will pull on the navy blue of Victoria in February, with the cricketing talent selected in Victoria’s Intellectual Disability squad.
Set to represent his state at the National Cricket Inclusion Championships in Brisbane, the spinner successfully made it through a trial for the opportunity.
“I was very excited when I finally got the email,” Ford said.
“I got straight on to my family and friends and everyone at the cricket club was happy for me.
“As soon as I found out I let my boss know at work.”
Initially selected for the 2022 edition of the championships, Ford did not get to compete due to the tournament being cancelled because of COVID-19.
Travelling to Ballarat to trial for next year’s edition, Ford said windy conditions made it difficult to showcase his skills.
“It (the wind) tested me out with the bat,” he said.
“We’ve got a few swing bowlers in the team, so that made things interesting, but I just played every ball on its merit when batting and just played shots at the right time and then I got given the chance of having a bowl and I got a few wickets.”
His second go at the competition, the talent will travel to Melbourne to train with the squad in the lead up to the event.
“This Sunday we’ve got our first training in Melbourne at the Junction Oval,” he said.
“The first week after the new year we’ll really get into it with a briefing in Melbourne."
Currently plying his trade at Mooroopna Cricket Club in the Cricket Shepparton D-grade competition, Ford will also take part in practice games against the state’s deaf and police squads ahead of the national tournament.
Taking the time to thank his parents Andrea and Gary along with girlfriend Erin, Ford was full of praise for the support he had received at Mooroopna Cricket Club.
“The cricket club have been really good in supporting me through it,” he said.