Fast bowler Mickey Edwards has been blogging for yorkshireccc.com during his two years with the county. Here is his final blog before leaving the county and heading home to Australia later this month.
As my time at Yorkshire comes to an end, so too does my career as a professional cricketer.
The injury I suffered at Lord’s at the end April – a recurrence of left foot injury which happened at the end of last year – was the one that broke the camel’s back or, you might say, the camel’s foot.
Unfortunately, it just never healed properly and went again during our Championship defeat against Middlesex.
It had sort of been lingering since January, but it hadn’t been bad at all. I actually thought it was something else, a tight muscle or tendonitis or something. But, by the third day at Lord’s, I struggled to walk over the road from the hotel to the ground.
I had painkillers to get me out there. But I was in the middle of an over and said to Ben Coad at mid-off, ‘My foot’s broken here’. He told me to go off, and I knew it was more than likely going to be my last spell.
So much so, I was in floods of tears on the bathroom floor in the dressing room at Lord’s.
Picture by Ian Roman/Abu Dhabi Cricket and Sports hub. Mickey Edwards during Yorkshire’s pre-season tour of Abu Dhabi in March.
That whole week was strange. I remember being sat up watching YouTube videos of Freddie Flintoff bowling at Jacques Kallis and then playing there.
But, reflecting back, my last game was at Lord’s, which was a bucket list thing to do. I’ve never been dismissed at the Home of Cricket – that’s my claim to fame – and my last wicket I got was Max Holden, the brother-in-law of one of my best mates.
And I feel at peace with my decision. I’m ready to get onto the next chapter of my life now.
I will go home at the end of October. While I’ll still play club cricket for Manly, I haven’t got the drive for pro cricket any more.
That’s not what people may want to hear, but I’ve had so many injuries throughout my career that I don’t have the drive to come back and do it all again.
I’ve been doing quite a lot of work experience upstairs in the Yorkshire offices since June. I started off doing some stuff in commercial, sponsorships and partnerships. Then they needed a hand in accounts. I’ve been doing that for three months now.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Mickey Edwards celebrates dismissing Glamorgan’s David Lloyd in May of last year.
That’s been really good. It’s been nice to have a routine of 9-5.
When you’re playing, you take the whole stress of, ‘Where’s my body at, how am I bowling, will I get into the team?’ with you all the time. To go to work and not think about it as much has been quite nice.
The transition’s been easier than I expected.
The scariest thing about being a pro cricketer is knowing that it will come to an end. I’ve been doing it for 10 years now, and when you’ve been doing it for that long, the harder it is to have a soft landing into the real world.
I’ve always done a lot to make that transition easier, because – at the end of the day – I’ve been injured a lot. It’s always kind of been like, ‘The end is nigh’.
I will be working as a labourer for the summer back home whilst playing club cricket, which I’m fit enough to do.
Picture by Ed Sykes/SWpix.com. Mickey Edwards helped unveil Yorkshire’s Vitality Blast shirt in 2023, modelling the shirt at Thongsbridge Cricket Club in Huddersfield.
Then, myself and my girlfriend, Katey, are going travelling for a couple of months next year. We’re thinking Vietnam and maybe Japan. Then I’ll go home and find a real job.
I don’t really have a clue yet what that will be. It’s been good fun taste-testing a few different things and seeing what I enjoy, and I’m grateful to Yorkshire for giving me that chance.
Just before I talk about Yorkshire, there’s a lot of pride there when I look back on my career as a whole.
There are times when I’ve been looking at it through a different lens, one of missed opportunity. But when you put down all the things I wanted to achieve in a career, I’ve done it.
I played for New South Wales in one-day and four-day cricket, something I’m very proud of. I played for Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash as well. I came over here to Yorkshire and moved my life here, which has been amazing.
I was on the field for Australia in a Test Match at the SCG as 12th man and had the crowd chanting, ‘Hey Mickey’ at me. That’s a bucket list moment if ever there was one!
Picture by Paul Kane/Getty Images. Mickey Edwards presents younger brother Jack (l) with his New South Wales cap in September 2018. Both played in the One-Day Cup match against Western Australia.
The proudest moment of my career was being able to play in the game when my brother, Jack, debuted for New South Wales and I presented him with his cap.
Those are the things you look back on with most happiness. It’s not so much the playing and the wickets you take, it’s things like that which make yourself and your family proud.
You look at Stuart Broad and the amazing end to his career – him sailing off into the sunset. But it doesn’t work out like that for everyone. Still, as I say, I’m quite content.
So, to Yorkshire.
From a cricketing point of view, the last two years couldn’t have gone less to plan. It’s gone completely wrong with the amount of time I’ve been available for. But, from a life point of view, making friends and the experience, it couldn’t have gone any better.
This club is an amazing place, it really is. I can’t speak highly enough of the people here, taking me in and making me feel very, very welcome.
Picture by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images. Mickey Edwards sub-fielded for Australia in a January 2017 Test Match at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The whole purpose of me coming here was to get out of my comfort zone and meet some new people. I’ve done just that.
It’s been the most exciting two years of my life, I would say. I’ll look back on these two years with a lot of happiness.
Watching Hilly get capped the other day was an exciting moment for all of us. To see someone like that flourish was a great moment. It made me feel part of something very special, and I’ve made friends for life. I can’t wait to see him do well.
But that’s the same for all the lads. This squad is going places. In my mind, there’s no doubt about that.
It’s really clicked for us over the last couple of months, and the morale around the place is unbelievable.
I only see it going one way, which is exciting for the club.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Yorkshire’s squad celebrate promotion to Division One of the Vitality County Championship, the photograph taken on Sunday evening after the draw with Northamptonshire. Mickey Edwards is on the back row.
