Australian cricket superstar Nathan Lyon was mobbed by local players and fans after making a surprise visit to Harris Park Cricket Club earlier this month.
On November 8, Harris Park Cricket Club hosted a special community event to mark the launch of NRMA Insurance’s community cricket grant program.
Taking place at Mays Hill Oval in Parramatta, the event saw dozens of local cricket players come together for a fun afternoon of cricket activities and more.
But it was the 36-year-old spin bowler’s surprise appearance that really got everyone at the club talking.
“It was about half an hour of chaos! Nathan Lyon would’ve thought he’d just rocked up in India fresh off the plane. He was bowling to the kids, and the parents were just as excited as the young ones,” Harris Park Cricket Club President, Nakul Pednekar told Parra News.
“The whole event NRMA Insurance put on was excellent and the kids and adults absolutely loved it.”
With the summer of cricket just getting underway here in Australia, Pednekar said the event was a great way to bring the local cricket community together as well as promote the club itself, which he started with a bunch of his mates back in 2020.
“It’s set to be a huge summer with Pakistan currently playing Australia at the moment and India on their way to our shores,” Pednekar said.
“Harris Park is the heart of the subcontinental community in Parramatta and it was great to bring everyone together all in the spirit of cricket.”
This summer, NRMA Insurance is helping to bring more people together by offering 12 grants valued at $5,000 to local cricket clubs to host events like this to celebrate the contribution local cricket clubs make in bringing people together and creating strong community connection.
“From a club perspective, this event was an amazing opportunity to not only put on a show for the members of our club, like the kids, but also for the parents to make sure that we’re front of mind when they are signing up their kids to play sport next year,” Pednekar.
“This season will be our biggest yet! We have five junior teams, two summer adult teams and we had about six winter teams. We also have an all-girls teams and a women’s team enjoying their first season together this year.”
Harris Park Cricket Club was formed in 2020 by three mates – all with Indian backgrounds – following the COVID lockdowns.
Cricket is Harris Park Cricket Club’s foundation, but the primary goal of the club is to foster friendships, cultural understanding and community support.
To apply for a NRMA Insurance grant, visit http://www.nrma.com.au/cricket.
Nathan Taylor is Parra News' sports journalist. He also compiles the weekly Chatter on the Box TV column. Nathan is an award-winning journalist, who has worked in western Sydney media for more than a decade.