‘Trailblazer’ honoured
ONE of the all-time great Townsville innings was remembered with a moment of silence before a ball was bowled.
Margaret Mckay, the first woman to become a life member of Suburban Parks Cricket Club, passed away last week at the age of 100.
The long-time cricket fanatic, who was also a life member of the North Queensland Junior Cricket Association, initially never took to the sport.
It was when Margaret’s son,
former Sub Parks batsman and director of coaching Ian Mckay, began to play that she started to fall in love with the game.
Before the club’s clash with
Brothers on Saturday, the two teams lined up side-by-side for a minute’s silence in her honour.
Two bats, helmets and pairs of gloves were laid in front as a mark of respect.
When informed of the tribute, Mckay said he was overwhelmed, touched by how his mother’s contributions had never been forgotten.
“It means a great deal,” Mckay said. “I’m actually a bit lost for words and very much appreciative of the gesture of Subs to do that.
“It was my club all the way from when I started until I (moved) away from Townsville. I haven’t lived in Townsville for a long time but have a real soft spot for Subs.
“I can remember once in under-15s we were playing and I had a period of time I had dropped a few catches in a few matches. I dropped a catch at slip this day and I was feeling pretty lousy and I could hear this voice from the sideline, ‘not another one’.
“She wasn’t yelling at me, but I was tuned to her voice. I reminded her of that a few times over the years.
“For them (Sub Parks) to do that 20-odd years after we stopped being involved with the club is so much appreciated.”
Unfortunately, Sub Parks were unable to capitalise on the emotion, going down to Brothers by eight wickets.
An early onslaught with the ball from Brothers quick Justin Rawlins, who finished with figures of 5-13 and took a wicket with the opening ball of the match, reduced their rivals to 8-30.
Eventually, Sub Parks limped to 85, before Brothers chased down the target within 19 overs. But despite the defeat, the day still belonged to the Mckay family.
Fellow club life member Ray Gartrell knew the Mckay family well in their time in Townsville, and described Margaret as a “trailblazer” for women’s involvement in cricket.
With roles ranging from publicity officer to club secretary, Gartrell said he had rarely seen someone give so selflessly to the game.
“I raise my bat to salute Margaret on a brilliant innings,” Gartrell said.