ANIKA Learoyd describes her time in City's third-grade team as "cricket school".
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The NSW Breakers and Sydney Thunder rookie spent the previous two summers plying her trade in the Newcastle District Cricket Association senior ranks.
Her Saturday afternoon venture came after playing juniors for the same club in the morning and followed by commitments for Sydney-based Northern Districts in NSW Women's Premier competition each Sunday.
Learoyd, now aged 18 and living in Hornsby, said her and dad John would "make a weekend of it" as they embarked on a "12-hour round trip" from home in Red Rock, just north of Coffs Harbour.
"They were long days and big weekends," Learoyd told the Newcastle Herald.
"Sometimes 130 overs of play on a Saturday and then turning around and doing it all again on Sunday.
"I just wanted to play as much cricket as possible.
"[In juniors] I played against some really strong boys and some of them I've noticed are down here [Sydney] as well now in various competitions.
"Third grade was like cricket school. It was really important for me and I learned a lot about how to play cricket, especially in the longer format."
Under the tutelage of Tommy Anderson, City's third-grade captain, club coach and now in charge of the Newcastle women's representative squad, teenager Learoyd scored a combined 572 runs at an average of 30.11 across Newcastle's junior and senior competitions.
This featured two unbeaten half-centuries by the right-hander in thirds and 16 wickets, mainly in her age group, bowling leg-spin.
However, the 2020-21 season is haping up much differently for Learoyd with her "hard work" paying off.
A few months ago she made the move to live in the state capital after being offered a contract by the Breakers in June.
This was followed by a two-year deal with the Thunder in August.
Learoyd, along with Novocastrian duo Sam Bates (Thunder) and Corinne Hall (Hobart Hurricanes), will this weekend join a Women's Big Bash League "bubble" at Homebush for the duration of the tournament.
"I'm really excited about it," she said.
"It's been one of the longest pre-seasons ever. It will obviously be different than before, but for me it's a really good opportunity. There's going to be so much talent around and I want to try and learn as much as I can."
Learoyd, who has represented the NSW Women's Indigenous team and ACT-NSW Country under 18s at national level, made her maiden appearance for the Breakers in February amid making 541 runs at 54.1 for NDs in NSW Women's Premier last season.
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Josh Callinan
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
