Former Plenty Valley cricketer Tayla Vlaeminck made her return to the Victorian side for its women’s National Cricket League clash against the ACT Comets at Junction Oval on Tuesday afternoon
The injury riddled fast bowler played her first game for the state since December 2021. She bowled six overs in her return game, going for just 21 runs without taking a wicket.
Before the game she said it was exciting to be out of the rehab room and back with the team.
“I’m really excited, I think the last two weeks just being back with the squad post-Christmas and feeling a part of the team and being able to train and join in on all the sessions has been really fun,” she said.
“I think tomorrow is going to be exciting and hopefully we can get through it and get a win.
“It hasn’t felt as long as past breaks have felt, which has been nice. It’s been a little bit different as well, I’ve never rehab-ed a shoulder, so that kind of gave it a new fresh tilt.
“I spent a bit of time in the gym early days and was able to get back to some bowling drills and working on that stuff that I worked on before I played those games in England, that was good to be able to re-enforce that again and I hadn’t lost it which was a bit of a relief.
After a string of injuries and time on the sidelines, she said she now knows what is needed to keep her on the park and feels confident that her body will no longer let her down.
“I’m someone who just likes to attack everything and wants to do everything at 120 per cent and I’ve pretty quickly learnt over the last few years that I can’t do that, while it’s been hard it’s definitely something that I’ve gotten out of it,” she said.
“My body feels great now, I’ve been training unrestricted for a couple of weeks and I feel really good so hopefully the time I’ve spent in the gym and fixing my action will set me up now for a couple of years of uninterrupted cricket.”
Cricket Victoria’s head of female cricket, Sharelle McMahon, said the team were thrilled to welcome Vlaeminck back as they looked to continue their winning form into the new year.
“It is fantastic to be able to have …Tayla back in a playing capacity,” McMahon said.
“Tayla has worked incredibly hard to get back into a position to play cricket again. She has been so positive and resilient throughout her injury, and we can’t wait to see her back out there.
“It is a big week for the girls after we put together two fantastic wins against the Breakers before Christmas. We’ll be looking to replicate that with strong performances against the Comets next week.”
While Victoria played again on Thursday, Vlaeminck was not a part of the starting XI as she was managed for the clash.
