Dual sports star a rare talent
YOUNG gun Zoe Benjamin is showing she’s a sports star in the making, excelling in both her cricket and football endeavours.
YOUNG gun Zoe Benjamin is showing she’s a sports star in the making, excelling in both her cricket and football endeavours.
The 13-year-old has been compared to Ellyse Perry, who represents Australia in both cricket and football tournaments, after recently making the Cricket NSW development squad for the second consecutive season.
Earlier in the year Benjamin was a regular feature for the Sutherland Shire and Miranda football clubs.
“She’s getting right up there and going gangbusters at everything she does,” Benjamin’s dad Sidney told The AJN.
“We’re incredibly proud of her and she’s got some great talent and really wants to go as far as she can.”
Benjamin has put her football career on hold to focus on cricket, considering she plays for several teams, headlined by Universities Women’s Cricket Club’s under-17 Brewer Shield side.
“Her soccer has taken a backward step at the moment,” Sidney said.
“She had a couple of knee injuries and dialled back to get it right for cricket.”
The talented youngster, who bats at number three for her grade side, fell just short of notching her maiden century earlier this season – dismissed for 98 on the last ball of the match.
Now with her focus on the development team, Benjamin will be able to learn from the best in the country, including recently retired star Lisa Sthalekar.
“She looks up to some great players,” Sidney said.
“The likes of Alex Blackwell, who plays in Universities’ first grade team, and one of her coaches, Kate Owen, who plays for Canberra.”
But despite developing into an emerging star in the cricketing world, she also has the goal of representing Australia in the football tournament at the next Maccabiah Games in 2017.
“She really wanted to go this time, but she was too young,” Sidney said.
“So she’s got her heart set on going next time, which would be a big achievement for her.”
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