Sights set on baggy green

MOST 14-year-old cricketers walk out on to the field on a Saturday morning to have fun with their mates, to play as hard as they can for a few hours, and to try and get a win.
After the game, they might get a bite to eat, rest up at home, or go to the movies. They’ll sleep soundly that night, thinking of the next week’s play.
Kooweerup’s Greg Interlandi is not your average 14-year-old cricketer.
After trying his heart out each morning for his Pakenham junior team, he’ll maintain his game-face for the afternoon, when he dons the whites once more … for the A Grade side.
Greg made his debut with Pakenham’s big boys two weeks ago and has no plans to relinquish his spot. He’s having too much fun.
“My (A Grade) debut was pretty good, actually,” he said.
“It was a little bit scary, being at the top level, but I was fine.
“I was just amazed to be out there.”
From the moment he started playing organised cricket, Greg’s seemingly limitless talent was on show for all to see.
“(West Gippsland Cricket Association junior cricket co-ordinator) Jeff Stephanitsch saw the potential in him from the start,” Greg’s dad, Craig, said.
Greg was 12 at the time. The same year he started playing, he was not only invited to try out for his school side, but a junior state team as well.
Though his tryout for the Victorian side was unsuccessful, Greg wasn’t dissuaded.
He was selected to play inter-league, which he has been playing for the two years since.
“Both Greg and his brother (Brandon) have always had a ball in their hands,” Mr Interlandi said.
“From the minute they could walk, they had a football or basketball or something in their hands.
“Even at home, they’d be playing around.
“They’ll treat our lounge room like a football field or a basketball court.”
It’s that endless energy that fuels Greg’s biggest cricketing strength. While most juniors love seeing stumps fly or the ball sail over the fence, Greg loves taking a spectacular diving catch.
When asked to rate his most natural skill, Greg said: “Probably fielding, then batting, then bowling”.
Why fielding? “Because of my reaction time and hand-eye co-ordination”, he said.
“(Pakenham Premier grade captain-coach) Mick Torney said to me he’s never seen a boy of Greg’s age with his hand-eye co-ordination,” Mr Interlandi said.
Greg struggled to describe the feeling he had when given such a glowing endorsement.
“It was remarkable,” he said.
“To take that responsibility of playing for that side was very good for me.
“To play Premier grade was like my playing for Australia.”
Greg literally dreams of playing for his country, and it’s something he doesn’t have to go far to find motivation for.
His mother’s first cousin is former Australian middle-order batsman Greg “Fat Cat” Ritchie.
Mr Interlandi took his son to his first Boxing Day test match two summers ago. It’s an experience the youngster won’t soon forget, and one that made him imagine life out in the middle on the big stage, in the baggy green.
“The atmosphere was huge,” Greg said.
“It was great fun.”
“Those guys are there to play for their country.
“They’re there to have fun and show the kids what people are capable of doing with hard work.”
Those aren’t hollow words.
“After each game I play, at night before I go to sleep, I just review the game in my head and think about what I should do out on the ground and how it will turn out,” Greg said.
“I watch cricket before I go to bed as well.”
Mr Interlandi said: “He does it every day and every night.
“He’s always flicking through Austar to see if there’s any cricket being played overseas.
“There’s been a few times we’ve heard the TV on at 2am, 3am.
“Lo and behold, Greg is sitting there watching a game.”
When Greg’s playing career finishes, at whichever level he reaches, he wants to coach – to teach the game to players no older than he is now.
“I want to teach kids the steps you need to go through to be successful, the types of food you need to eat, everything just to play the best you can,” he said.
Greg idolises Australian skipper Michael Clarke, maybe more for his captaincy and maturity than his batting.
And it’s that attitude that helped the under-15 junior find his berth at Premier level.
“The A Grade guys said they believed it would be beneficial for his cricket career to be with them, train with them, warm up with them and be in their atmosphere, than being in the lower levels,” Mr Interlandi said.
“He’ll train with them for the rest of the season and play with them from now – including finals.”
Greg said his biggest impression from his days so far as a senior cricketer is “just the respect you’re given straight away as a young player”.
“Every one of your team-mates respect you and you have to respect them. You’ve been brought into the top class.
“You have to act how they do, be as mature as possible and follow their rules.”
Greg has captaincy aspirations of his own and thinks his time as a senior player already has helped develop his leadership skills.
“I like to show my (junior) team-mates what I’ve been taught in the seniors, through attitude and training,” he said.
Greg knows an extended stint at top level must mean more hard work behind the scenes, more time honing his skills.
“My brother and I do a lot of catching and working on our reflex skills at home,” he said.
“We practice our bowling too.”
Mr Interlandi said: “The advantage of living on a farm is that it’s like you’ve got your own oval.
“The boys have got their ownsort of cricket pitch and they put cones down where they want the fielders.
“If the ball hits one of them, you’re out.
“They’re always out there together and they even asked me to put up lights so they could train at night time.
“I said that was going a little bit too far at this stage, but we’ll see what happens.”
‘Going a little bit too far’ … words young Greg Interlandi might well take as a challenge.