Ricky Ponting sails with the team on ABN AMRO ONE
by Kate Fairclough 2 Feb 2006 09:48 GMT
Two of sports’ leading skippers met on the high seas today when Ricky Ponting, the skipper of the Australian cricket team, went sailing with Mike Sanderson, the skipper of ABN AMRO ONE. Both captains lead from the front and manage world-beating teams, with Australia dominating cricket and TEAM ABN AMRO currently topping the leader board in the Volvo Ocean Race. ABN AMRO ONE and TWO are lying in first and second place respectively in the race.
Ahead of his one day match against South Africa in Melbourne on Friday, Ponting paid a visit to the Docklands waterfront to congratulate the performance of the young crew onboard ABN AMRO TWO. The team, which includes fellow Australians Nick Bice and Luke Molloy are the young guns in the race. However this has not stopped them as they set the world monohull 24 hour distance record on the leg into Melbourne and have not only been competing against a world class fleet of ocean sailors, but have consistently been pushing ABN AMRO ONE for first position.
Talking with Mike Sanderson as he sailed in Port Phillip Bay onboard the record breaking yacht, Ponting commented “I have had a great day - I even had a bit of a steer out there for a while. I had to concentrate pretty hard, harder than I have ever had to concentrate on a cricket field ever I think!! I really enjoyed it though, just seeing the guys out there and seeing the teamwork and how the boat runs was just great. The teamwork is quite similar to that of a cricket team with each of the crew having a specific task but I am glad that I chose cricket, although Mike (Sanderson) said he wouldn’t have been up for cricket like we do so I guess it is what you are used to. A great day and I hope all the guys have a good next leg – I will be following them.”
Sanderson, impressed with Ricky’s skills on the 70 foot record breaking boat said “Ricky got stuck right in on the boat, it was obvious from the start that this guy’s a real team player. He was full of questions and totally keen to keep pushing it, wanting to get a bit more out of the boat - our kind of guy!”
For Nick Bice and Luke Molloy, the young Australian crewmembers on ABN AMRO TWO, it was a real privilege to meet a national hero. Nick, an avid cricket fan who grew up in Adelaide and who hasn’t been home for the past two years during the build up to the race said, “It was really great to meet Ricky today and have him out in the bay training with us, we got some good sailing in. I’m really hoping to make it down to the match tomorrow to see him and the team play, good luck to the guys!”
Equally for Luke Molloy, who lives in Brisbane, the experience was a real treat, “It was cool to have Ricky come sailing this afternoon, he was really keen to see what we do and it was great to have a professional sportsman like him around. Hopefully the team gave him a good taste of what life is like out there in the open water and you can tell he definitely enjoys the competitive element of racing!”