Joel Plays Backyard Cricket With The Best Of The Best

Griffith’s young Joel Schaefer had the experience of a lifetime when he got to play cricket with some of the sport’s biggest names.

His mother, Kiley Schaefer had been watching the Today Show with Brett Lee when they announced a competition.

“You had to write in 20 words or less your best backyard cricket match,” Ms Schaefer said.

“At the time, Joel was only 17 so I entered and put in Joel’s name.

“Then I forgot about it until they rang weeks later.

“I didn’t even believe them when they rang.

“I thought it was a scam or something, but it was all legit.

“Joel was over the moon.

“He couldn’t believe that he got to play with Brett Lee, Glenn McGrath and Elise Healey.

“I grew up with these guys, Joel just knew them as the best of the best.”

It was a dream come true for the cricket-mad Schaefer family.

Joel and his father Geoff were flown to Sydney, put up in a hotel and spent the day with cricket’s big names, even playing with them in a backyard-style match.

The competition that Ms Schaefer had entered was a Toyota Australia comp to play a backyard cricket tournament against legends like Brett Lee and Glenn McGrath.

It wasn’t until after she had won the competition that she fully understood what it was all about, though.

Ms Schaefer said people could buy a fundraising ticket for $5 and nominate a club for the money to go to.

She nominated the Griffith Cricket Club.

The experience would not have been made possible without the Toyota Australia’s Good For Cricket Raffle, an initiative that amplifies and uplifts local cricket clubs across Australia.

This year alone, the raffle has raised over $745,8325 for over 1300 clubs across Australia, with 100 per cent of profits going toward grassroots cricket.

Ms Schaefer thanked Griffith’s Camden Lane, Joel’s place of employment for their support of his taking the opportunity to experience his win.

The raffle remains open until February 26, with the draw taking place at 12 noon on March 4.

The winner will be notified by phone and email if provided.

The Toyota Good For Cricket Raffle provides all the raffle prizes and it is completely free for clubs to register.

• Topics:

• Cricket
• People