Darren Pattinson
by Ken Piesse
Darren Pattinson's trip of a lifetime to sunny Yorkshire for a season of league cricket in '07 turned so sour that it took him three months to recover.
After just two games he developed bone spurs, returned early and didn't play in the first half of the summer at all.
But the injuries to Victoria's frontliners, combined with the retirement of Mick Lewis gave him an early opportunity to return and he has taken it, with both hands.
"There's a few injuries around and it gave me a bit of an opening to get back in, like happened last year," he said.
With three wickets for 14 from seven overs in Victoria's must-win Ford Ranger Cup game in Perth, Pattinson's return was ever-so-timely.
Other than a Twenty20 appearance and a one-day game back at Dandenong, he'd hardly played any cricket at all and thanks the selectors for allowing him to have a full bowl in the second XI fixture against NSW seconds at Haileybury.
"They wanted to pull me out halfway through.the game, but I asked to play on as I needed the bowling. It really helped me in Perth."
Pattinson had bone spurs removed from his ankle and having missed so much cricket, is eagerly anticipating the rest of the summer, hoping he can shoulder some more responsibility.
His teenage brother, James, is part of the Australian Under 19 team for the coming World Cup. He, like Darren, can be very fast.
Originally from Doveton, Pattinson has been playing at Dandenong since 1999. He works as a roof-tiler for a living but says he has been doing more office work of late as his cricket commitments have been taking a priority.
Asked about his shortened English season, he said he would have liked to have played a full season but knew something was wrong so returned straight away for an operation.
He says it is a privilege to be around the Victorian squad right now as it heads for play-offs in all three competitions.
"To defeat WA the way we did was a big thrill for us all," he said.
"Our record there (at the WACA Ground) hadn't been good. It was a must-win game for us."
Pattinson says the camaraderie among the squad members has ensured the tightest possible unit as the Bushrangers seek more silverware in the weeks ahead.
