Mowbray cricketer Jarrod Freeman has just returned home after enjoying his most successful national cricket championship to date with the Tasmanian under-17 team.
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The 16-year-old, right-arm, off-spin bowler and middle order batsman took nine wickets and scored 300 runs at an average of about 43.
“It was my best national carnival overall by far,” Freeman said.
“The Tassie coaches were happy with me – especially my efforts with the bat.
“I was pretty happy with my fielding and bowling so all-round it was pretty good.”
The year 10 Port Dalrymple student hails from George Town where he played his junior cricket before joining the Mowbray Cricket Club two years ago to play with the Eagles in the Cricket North competition.
“I chose Mowbray because of the good facilities and it seemed like a welcoming club so I gave it a go and have never looked back,” Freeman said.
“I see myself as more of a bowling all-rounder – I bowl more than I bat but I got the chance to bat in the national carnival and it paid off.”
Freeman’s father Steve played 450 games for Beaconsfield scoring plenty of runs in the process so the cricket talent runs in the family.
“Dad told me there were going to be lots of pace bowlers around and to give spin a go so I started bowling off-spin and have kept going with it.”
Freeman has a bright future in the sport and has already represented Tasmania at under-15, under-17 and under-19 level.
“I represented the Cricket Australia XI in the national under-17 carnival last year after the national under-15 championships in Darwin,” he said.
“And this year I was the only Tasmanian picked again for the CA XI which will play in the national under-19 championships in Adelaide in December.
“I’m very excited to be picked and proud to represent Tasmania – I wasn’t really expecting it but I am really looking forward to it and should be good.”
Freeman credited Mowbray’s Clinton Reid and Roger Brown for helping him develop his game along with Shannon Tubb from Cricket Tas.
”Obviously the long-term goal is to play for Australia one day and if I can keep going from where I am now hopefully it pans out well,” he said.
He also toured England in July with the Cricket Tasmania development squad which he said improved his cricket.
“We had two Tasmanian Tigers players in Ben McDermott and Hamish Kingston with us which helped a lot and I learnt a lot off them.
“It was an amazing experience and a good lead-in for me for the national under-17 carnival.”
