Australian cricket has paid tribute to girls’s cricket trailblazer Norma Johnston who died on the age of 95.
Johnston (nee Whiteman) performed seven Tests for Australia between 1948 and 1951 and was Australia’s oldest dwelling Test cricketer at 95 years and 13 days previous.
Former Aussie captain and member of the Invincibles of 1948 Bill Brown, who died in 2008, is Australia’s oldest ever Test cricketer, having died 95 years and 229 days.
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An all-rounder, Johnston batted within the center order and bowled medium tempo, scoring 151 runs at 25.16 and taking 22 wickets at 17.26 within the post-war Australian girls’s staff.
But after simply three years within the staff, Johnston retired in 1951 and returned to Bathurst and was a outstanding member of the native sporting group.
Australia males’s cricket skipper Pat Cummins paid tribute to Johnston through social media, calling her “a pioneer of the women’s game.”
“She was passionate about cricket, about her home town of Bathurst and the many women who would follow in her footsteps representing their state and country,” Cummins wrote.
“Her contribution to Australian cricket and the friendships she made with so many within the game will live on forever.
“My thoughts are with her family and many friends.”
Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley launched a press release paying tribute to the ladies’s cricket pioneer.
“Everyone across Australian Cricket will be saddened to hear of Norma’s passing,” he mentioned.
“As a pioneer, Norma not only made a wonderful contribution as a player but helped set the platform for the many thousands of women and girls now playing the game.
“On behalf of everyone in Australian Cricket I would like to offer my sincere condolences to Norma’s family and friends at this sad time.”
The Australian Cricketer’s Association additionally launched a press release, calling Johnston “a trailblazer who helped lay the path for all of the women playing the game today.”
“Her inspiration and influence extended across generations – including Ellyse Perry, who Norma fondly recalled meeting when the Australian star was just 15 years old.
“Norma was regarded as a players’ player, a sound middle-order bat, and a second- or third-change bowling option. Off the field, she was remembered by her teammates as a beautiful personality who was always fun to be around.”
Originally printed as Australia’s oldest dwelling Test cricketer Norma Johnston dies at 95
