When ACT Meteors young guns Grace Lyons and Amy Hunter received a call from Head Coach Erin Osborne, the last thing they expected to hear was the opportunity to be amongst the Australian Women's squad ahead of their two T20 Internationals against South Africa at Manuka Oval last month.
"I was literally at home after training and I got a call from ‘Oz’, and whenever I get a call from Oz I get worried," Lyons said.
"I answered it and she asked if I wanted an opportunity to be around the Aussie girls."
Lyons and Hunter obviously leaped at the opportunity without hesitation. Come Saturday, the pair pinched themselves as they were greeted to the glorious sight of their own green and gold jerseys, something the pair had dreamed of.
“It’s pretty cool. When we walked in in the first game and saw the uniform, we were a bit like 'oh, this is pretty mad',” Lyons said.
The pair were keen to soak in how some of the best players in the world went about their business and how they could implement aspects of their game into their own. As a 'keeper herself, Lyons was particularly keen to observe Aussie skipper, Alyssa Healy.
“The opportunity to be around the Aussie girls was heaps of fun and to see how each individual player goes about their processes and what they do on game day,” Lyons said.
“During the game it was really cool to see how much energy she (Alyssa) has in the field and, obviously being the captain herself, the time she takes with bowlers and setting the fields,” she said.
Lyons and Hunter, both 18, are fresh faces amongst the Meteors squad this season and have both played key roles for the team across the season.
In her rookie WNCL season, Lyons has taken to the difficult gig of opening the batting with open arms, regularly making starts and a top score of 33 for the season. She has also been proven to be a safe set of hands behind the stumps with four catches and one stumping for the season.
Hunter, also in her rookie season and fresh from being named in the Team of the Tournament at the Under 19 Female National Championships, has had the opportunity to take the new ball at points of the season, notably taking the scalp of destructive South African international Lizelle Lee when the Meteors hosted Tasmania.
The pair will now rest up, ahead of a series of technical and game development sessions to formally wrap up the Meteors season.
Article by UC Sports Media student Oliver Nguyen