Greg and Ian do their bit

Ian Healy is on the ticketing gate at Drummoyne Oval today – or at least, for a split second, it appeared so. In fact, it’s his brother Greg, chairman of the club.

The other Ian and Greg may the more well-known Australian brothers, but cricket is a rite of passage for the Healy clan – Ian’s famously so, while Greg made the Queensland squad and their other brother Ken had two games for the state. The family’s legacy is now being carried forward by Greg’s daughter Alyssa Healy, a member of the Shooting Stars.

Having lived in New South Wales for the last 14 years, Greg’s eight-year involvement in Drummoyne came when Alyssa moved to the club to take advantage of learning from such international players as Michelle Gosko and Leonie Coleman. The stellar roll call of former players includes Julie Hayes, Lisa Keightley and Belinda Clark.

And, unlike some women’s grade clubs, who rarely get to play on the top square, the women play on the beautiful ground every Sunday and, should other men’s matches arise, they still take priority.

Healy is a staunch supporter of the women’s game and delighted for five matches to be held here, for which the club re-laid the turf and replaced the sightscreens. During games, he has been gateman, general manager and on the groundstaff.

For his part, Ian, a genuine fan, promotes the game where he can. “He’s an ambassador for women’s cricket,” says Greg Healy. “He lives in Brisbane so he’s flying down on Sunday off his own back to see the final.

“He’s a real supporter of it, as are the guys like Michael Slater, Mark Taylor, they promote it on Channel Nine through the commentary team. Quite regularly through the [lunchtime] Cricket Show they have snippets of women’s cricket so it’s growing, we just need to make sure it continues to grow at the grassroots, at the schools.”

Which is where Greg Healy comes in. He has been overwhelmed by the media attention the game’s had: “It’s actually in the mainstream newspapers too, with photos. Normally women’s cricket seems to post everything on websites, this is actually really good.” He would have loved a televised game for Drummoyne, too. But his main focus will come after the World Cup, with the next generation.

To this end, the local children have been invited, and representatives from the club have gone to schools as personal ambassadors. Though there are none here today, when Australia played here there were around 700 schoolchildren, with some volunteering for scoreboard duties in exchange for a donation from the club.

Initiatives such as CrickHit, for whom Alyssa is ambassador, help no end. The scheme gives children a free taste of the game and indeed it was where she began. Competing sports could claim here – she has state junior colours in five sports – but, unsurprisingly, cricket has her heart.

But her father is keen to accentuate all the talented girls in her grade side. He gives a hot tip, to look out for young legspinner Angela Reakes, who came down from northern New South Wales to nearby UTS university which has links with the Drummoyne club. Australia's campaign may have faltered, but it's not so for enthusiasm at the grassroots.

The past week or so has shown that women’s cricket is in good hands in Sydney, with host clubs enthusiastically embracing the opportunity to stage World Cup matches. Though Drummoyne only has one more game here – the 5th-place play-off on Saturday – having world-class players on their ground has already helped to attract tomorrow’s stars.