Jordan Bell's love for cricket began when he was four years old, now 25 and an established player, he is preparing for his second season as captain of Mandurah Cricket Club's A grade team.
Growing up in a sporty family, Bell said it was easy for him to find himself following a sports pathway in his adulthood.
"I grew up in a very sporty family - it was always AFL in winter and cricket in the summer.
"When I first started up properly, I was at school.
"I went to Frederick Irwin and they had a cricket program there for under 11s and under 12s."
At 15, Bell moved from his school team over to the team at Mandurah Cricket Club, a place he would see himself returning to often throughout his late teens to adulthood.
"I did a bit of bouncing around, I played lower grades in the state comp for Willetton when transitioning from juniors to seniors.
"I played for Lakeview when I was in Kalgoorlie for University before returning to Mandurah."
The 2021/22 season will be Bell's second season as captain, with last year being a crucial experience for him to carry into this year.
"Being captain last year was a bit of a learning curve for me.
"I'm only 25 now, this year we'll hopefully have a little less up and down and a little more up," he laughed.
Bell added that Mandurah Cricket Club will see a number of new recruits who he said will bring the team a more competitive edge.
"We've got Joel who has come over from Rockingham to join our coaching ranks - he will also be an important member of our A grade team.
"We also have Tom Balkwill back from Rockingham, who is a keeper batsman in the A grade. They are two very important recruits."
There will also be a string of talented bowlers on the field for the club, including Stuart Mclean and Aidan Fitzpatrick.
One of Bell's main goals as captain, he said, was getting to the season's finals.
"Probably the main thing I'm wanting from a team perspective is to get Mandurah back into the finals.
"We've got a stronger core this year, finals is always the aspiration for the season - last year we came 7th out of 10.
"With our new additions we are definitely aiming for the post-season top four."
Bell also has a personal goal for the upcoming season, as a batter.
"Personally I'd like to have a better year with the bat," he said.
"We've got stronger bowling stocks than last year so I want to focus more on efforts with the bat."
He added that he believed his biggest competitors would be Singleton, Waroona and Halls Head.
"Thinking back to last year Singleton and Waroona are two teams that come to mind as big competitors given they've been competing for the top spots for the last few years.
"If Halls Head kept their team from last year they are definitely going to be tough competitors.
"We are going up against them in round one so it'll be good to see where we're at.
"It's a good, heated rivalry between the two teams.
"I also think Baldivis is starting to come together as well putting themselves right up there."
Round one of the 2021/22 cricket season will begin on October 9.
Samantha Ferguson
Samantha Ferguson is a journalist at the Mandurah Mail. She is an entertainment, sport, crime, community and education journalist with a special interest in investigative pieces and human interest stories.
Samantha Ferguson is a journalist at the Mandurah Mail. She is an entertainment, sport, crime, community and education journalist with a special interest in investigative pieces and human interest stories.
