By JESSE GRAHAM
CRICKET bats made in Healesville have been donated to the Vatican’s cricket team, to hopefully clinch them a win against England later this year.
Willow Blue Australia’s Ian Callen donated about 15 hand-made cricket bats to The St Peter’s XI cricket team, which is made up of Vatican priests, to be used against the Church of England in Rome this October.
Mr Callen told the Mail the donation came after speaking to Australian Ambassador to the HolySee, John McCarthy – a brother of a friend of his – following St Peter’s XI loss against the Archbishop of Canterbury last year.
“He was telling me that the cricket team had just been beaten against the Archbishop of Canterbury, and I said that’s probably because they weren’t using Willow Blue timber,” he said, and laughed.
“Next thing we know, we got an email from the Vatican saying ‘The Pope would love one of your bats and if you wanted to donate them to the team that would be fantastic’.”
The bats are handmade at the TarraWarra business, out of timber grown on plantations around TarraWarra and Healesville.
Mr Callen said the wood used for the bats are from English Willow trees, first brought to the country in 1902 by English captain, Archie MacLaren.
That willow tree became a plantation at Shepherd’s Flat near Daylesford, before it was cut down in 1956.
“That was the end of the industry,” Mr Callen said.
“21 years ago, we started working on re-building that industry in Healesville.
“Our trees are reaching the stage where they’re producing cricket bats.
“Healesville and the Yarra Valley has not only become a fantastic wine-growing region, but also the centre of the Australian cricket bat willow industry.”
Before the bats could go overseas, however, they had to be blessed by a priest – that’s where St Brigid’s Primary School and Healesville priest Father Julian Langridge came in.
Mr Callen said that students from St Brigid’s wrote an essay for the Pope on how to play cricket, while Fr Langridge blessed the Vatican-bound bats before they were sent out.
He said the bats made in the valley were sent all over the world, and that the wood used to make them was more resilient than its English counterparts.
“We’ve got the lasting, resilient properties that MacLaren chose – those fantastic rebound properties,” Mr Callen said.
Those qualified to use the special willow trees have to be trained by the business, and Mr Callen said 50 bat makers from across the country had just gone through that process.
“Our timber will go to those bat makers, who will make bats within their local cricket community to service them,” he said.
He said some of these trained bat makers would be donating bats to lay priests, who will take them to their communities to promote the sport.
