The parents of a teenage cricketer who died after being struck by a ball during a training session have spoken out, expressing their support for the teammate who delivered the fatal throw.
Ben Austin, 17, died after being hit in the neck by a cricket ball during batting practice at Wally Tew Reserve in Ferntree Gully, Victoria, on October 28 last year.
Ben’s parents, Jace and Tracey Austin, spoke on Tuesday night to 7.30 Report about the circumstances surrounding their son’s death.
The program reported a cricket thrower was being used to deliver the ball to Ben, who was wearing a helmet but not a neck guard at the time of the incident.
He was rushed to hospital and placed on life support but died two days later.
Medical records obtained by the program showed Ben died from an intracranial haemorrhage caused by a traumatic injury to the neck. Doctors advised his parents that a neck guard may not have prevented his death.
Neck guards are not mandatory at junior levels of cricket, though they are required for elite players facing pace bowling.
Mr Austin said his son’s death was a tragic accident and did not believe the sport was at fault.
He said he initially thought he would never be able to watch cricket again, but later changed his mind.
“Whether it was through Benny or through just a feeling I got, I said, ‘no, I have to … that’s not fair,’” he told the 7.30 Report.
“It had nothing to do with the game. Benny loved it that much.”
Ms Austin described the incident as a one-in-a-million event and said her son was deeply passionate about sport.
Ben played cricket for several teams, also played Australian rules football, and had planned to become a physical education teacher after finishing school.
“He was amazing. He was my boy, he was kind, he was caring, he had time for everyone,” Ms Austin said.
“If you were three or if you were 80, he’d stop and he’d listen and he was just so loved.”
The Austins said they have remained in close contact with the teammate who threw the ball and continue to check in on his wellbeing.
“We got him to go to the hospital … he didn’t want to come,” Mr Austin said.
“I said, ‘no, mate, you’ve got to come’. And we just hugged him and said, it wasn’t your fault.
“We’ve given him Benny’s bat to use. We’ve given him Benny’s shirt and I’ve even said he’s going to be my cricket son now.
“I just know Benny. If he could talk to me and he could get the phone and ring me he’d make clear that it was definitely not anyone’s fault. It was just a freak accident.”
Lee Thompson, president of Ferntree Cricket Club, said the club also viewed Ben’s death as a tragic accident.
“It’s ultimately for the authorities and the people like that to look at what happened and see if anything good can come out of it from a safety perspective,” he said.
“For us, our most important thing as a club is it’s getting around each and every one of us and making sure everyone’s OK.
“Every day we come to this beautiful cricket reserve we think of Ben and every day we play a game of cricket we think of Ben.
“The whole club does that. I can’t see that ever changing to be honest.”
Images: ABC/Ferntree Gully Cricket Club
