Former State all-rounder not done just yet

He might have swapped the black and gold of the Western Warriors for the blue of the South West District Police, but David Bandy has not called stumps on his illustrious cricketing career just yet. While he admits the end of his cricket career has taken a back seat to his burgeoning new life as a police officer, the former first class all-rounder has suited up for the Eaton Beavers this season. “I have just recently become a Police officer and have chosen to work in the South West District,” he said. “Bunbury is one of the stations that holds a lot of the promise for fast-tracking my career as opposed to if I had just stayed stagnate in the metro areas. “I fortuitously bumped into a family friend of mine and he said ‘mate, you’ve got to come down and play for the Eaton Beavers’.” “The standard is fantastic, it is very, very competitive. “It reminds me of some of the professional leagues overseas where you have a couple of former names, and a couple of real young talents coming through and guys in support roles around them. “I am more than certain my best days are behind me, but I have enjoyed coming down and trying to impart anything I can on to those people who want to listen.” The 42-year old said he had enjoyed using the club as a way to meet new people and become involved in a new community. “There is nothing quite like immersing yourself in a club, even if it is a new one, because everyone loves the game,” he said. “The job is first and foremost because you want to make sure you are doing the right thing by your employer, but in the time I have been down there I have been impressed by what I have seen and they’ve had a bit of success in the lead up to the New Year break.” Bandy made his first class debut for Western Australia in 2005 and played all three formats for the Warriors over a five-year period before his professional career came to an abrupt end in 2010. Having scored 1144 runs playing first grade for Subiaco-Floreat, the most by any player in a single season this century, his State contract was not renewed and Bandy took a break from cricket. “That was a bitter sweet year, it was the best I’ve ever played and the fittest I’ve ever been but it was also the year I was not awarded a one-year renewal after a two-year deal,” he said. “It was a real disappointment, the end of my State career. ”It affected me so badly I had a year off, I couldn’t watch cricket.” Bandy was drawn back to cricket by none other than the late Ken Judge, who recruited him to CBC Cricket Club in Perth, and now, 10 years after his Warriors stint ended, he is still playing. ”We had a bit of success from there and I just kept playing cricket and then all of a sudden you move to a new spot and blokes know a bit about you and are banging your door down,” he said. “I have always had the rubber arm, it is tricky to say no and when you move to a new area it is a great way to get to know people. “Even though my fitness is not what it used to be and I’m a bit slower around the field, it has been absolutely fantastic.” The first years of Bandy’s first class and list A career overlapped with the back end of Murray Goodwin’s, the other former Warrior in the BDCA competition. “Muzz and I did play a couple of games together before he retired from first class cricket,” he said. “He is a good mate of mine, a good competitor and a great athlete.” Since his round four debut against Colts, Bandy has played three games, breaking through with a middle-order contribution of 43 in round eight against Leschenault.