Lift off of Cricket Australia’s entry-level program now called the Woolworths Cricket Blast, that is.

The annual launch took place at the iconic Parkes Radio Telescope, or more fondly known as the Dish, on Thursday, involving 60 children from around the Lachlan district.

When Cricket Australia’s communications officer, Catherine Ellis, was preparing for this year’s launch – which usually takes place in Sydney – she wanted to do something special.

Given the name of the new junior program is “blast”, she thought there was no better place to hold the launch than at the Dish in the Parkes Shire.

And to make the occasion that little more special, four Big Bash League players and three junior cricketers climbed the Dish to re-enact the famous cricket scene from the movie The Dish, a story of Australia’s involvement in the 1969 moon landing that was filmed 18 years ago.

The movie saw two engineers turn the giant radio telescope, used for beaming live television pictures of the Apollo 11 mission to the world, into a makeshift cricket pitch.

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Nate Henry and Nina Richardson-Bartley from Parkes and Nate Vincent from Condobolin had the opportunity to join some of the country’s biggest hitters, Big Bash League heroes Chris Lynn, Peter Handscomb, Alyssa Healy and Ash Gardner as they tried to “blast” a ball into space to officially launch the new kids program.

Australian cricketer Nic Carey was also present for Thursday’s launch.

Prior to the re-enactment, children from Parkes, Orange, Dubbo, Condoblin, Forbes and Cowra, enjoyed cricketing workshops with the Big Bash stars.

“I didn’t quite get the ball into orbit, but it was a great experience,” said Chris Lynn, Brisbane Heat star and one of the world’s biggest hitters.

“I’ve played cricket in lots of places. In the backyard, the driveway, inside the house, but never on top of a radio telescope. This was amazing.”

Parkes Radio Telescope Operations Scientist John Sarkissian said the whole occasion was very rare for the facility.

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Woolworths Cricket Blast is a fun, fast program for girls and boys of all abilities between the ages of five to 10 to learn new skills and play Australia’s favourite sport, while experiencing the same energy and excitement associated with Big Bash cricket. 

The program consists of two levels – Junior Blasters and Master Blasters and is delivered at more than 2000 centres around Australia, including regional areas like Parkes. 

Cricket Australia’s Executive General Manager of Community Cricket, Belinda Clark said the new program demonstrates the organisation’s commitment to providing Australian kids with fun and engaging cricket experiences. 

“We are always looking for new ways to encourage more girls and boys to pick up a bat and ball and gain enjoyment from the game, and this program is a great introduction to the game,” she said.

“ We have also focussed on supporting the clubs that run the program to ensure our resources for parents and volunteers are first rate.”

Commenting on the unique cricket visit to Parkes, Dr Douglas Bock, Director of Astronomy and Space Science for CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, said the Dish could inspire many young Australians in many fields, including aspiring cricketers.

“Not only is it used everyday by astronomers around the world to explore our universe, it’s also a source of inspiration for many people – including young cricketers – encouraging them to make the ‘impossible’ possible,” Dr Bock said.

The Woolworths Cricket Blast program will begin across the country this month.

For more information on the program and to register, please visit playcricket.com.au

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