Sport
From Colbo to Katandra: Hadleigh Sirett out to deliver his adopted community a premiership
Colbinabbin product Hadleigh Sirett understands all to well how vital sporting clubs are to small regional communities.
Growing up in a tiny country town — like Colbo — the local cricket, football and netball clubs are more than just places to play, win and lose matches.
It is where friendships are born, memories are made, laughter is shared and tears are sometimes shed.
They are the heartbeat of those small communities.
Onlookers at Katandra Recreation Reserve last weekend saw exactly the power and importance of their local sporting clubs.
They were truly special scenes at Katandra — where the inspired Eagles rallied together to defeat Numurkah in the semi-final clash and in doing so, secured a Haisman Shield grand final berth in the wake of tragedy.
Sirett was there, in the thick of the outpouring of emotions, as Katandra got the win for Clayton Simpson.
“We had our backs against the wall, but we found a way to get over the line. It was probably one of the best wins of my cricket career,” Sirett said.
“To have a win like that, after everything that happened that week, to see the town and community come together like that, it was as good a feeling as you could ever imagine.
“It was always going to be tough because the emotions were so high. After the tribute to Clayton we went back into the rooms and Jedd (Wright) brought us together and he just hit the nail on the head with his speech.
“He spoke about embracing and enjoying the time with your mates because you just never know what’s around the corner.
“It was a special day to be a part of.”
Sirett’s journey to becoming a valued member of the Katandra sporting community began thanks to the friendships he made while he was cutting his teeth in representative cricket.
“I got to play with Jedd, Ray (Ireland), Sam (Wright) and Andrew (Riordan) about 16 or 17 years ago when we were in Northern Rivers and it was there where I got to know the boys,” he said.
“Once I picked up my job in Shepp it made it pretty easy to make the commitment to playing in Katandra and it’s just been a bit of a natural progression to be honest.
“We’re all best mates and it’s a lot of fun playing cricket together.”
Sirett, who has claimed 23 wickets and scored 139 runs this summer, is gearing up for his third crack at Haisman Shield silverware.
The freakishly talented all-rounder was a member of the club’s iconic 2017-18 triumph over rival Numurkah and 12 months later he was in the side that suffered that bitter loss to the Blues.
It has been a challenging period for the Eagles since that heartbreak in 2018-19, but now — more than four years on — Sirett and co are ready for another shot at glory with a date to come against Central Park-St Brendan’s.
“It’s been a little while now since we were last there, but not a whole lot has changed since in terms of the cattle,” Sirett said.
“The season has been fantastic; we really pushed Mooroopna, had quite a few out against Kyabram, but outside of those two losses we’ve been pretty good.
“I think we have gone better than what most people have expected, but it’s a talented list, so it’s been no surprise.
“They (Central Park-St Brendan’s) have a lot of experience and we know nothing will be easy on Saturday.
“But we’ve had to really earn our place in this grand final and we’re capable of anything.”
No matter what happens on Saturday afternoon, the boy from Colbo is well and truly a Katandra local.