A Spirited conversation with Morna Nielsen

Name: Morna Nielsen
Age: 22
Nickname: Mornface, Mornana
Club: East Shirley (Christchurch), Melville (Hamilton)
Born: Tauranga
Reside: Christchurch/Hamilton
Other teams: White Ferns, NZ Emerging players
Occupation: Studying civil engineering
Playing role: Bowler
Batting style: RH middle/lower order
Bowling style: LH orthodox
Twitter handle: @mornface

What was you first cricket experience?
Playing on the field at primary school – I don’t really remember too much more than that, far too old.

Batter, batsman or batswoman?
Batter; batswomen is far too difficult to say in the middle of a sentence.

Who was your cricket idol/hero growing up?  
Stephen Fleming, for his tactical nous.

What advice would you have for a young girl wanting to give cricket a go?
Have fun and try it – it can’t be beaten.

How difficult is it to find a balance between cricket commitments and holding down a “real” job?
I’m not too sure. I’ll find out soon enough, once study is finished. The combination of uni and training keeps your day pretty occupied and allows the flexibility that the girls who are working don’t get.

Which provincial ground/association has the best catering? Any specialities?
Easily Cobham Oval in Whangarei. The Thai beef salad is outstanding. I can’t wait to get back and play there this season.

Which opponent would you consider your most difficult opponent to play against?  
Sophie Devine because she can hit the ball so far - she wouldn’t look out of place in a men’s game.

Who is the most interesting person you follow on Twitter, and why?
Julius Sharpe, very witty - @juliussharpe.

Did you play in boy’s teams as a youngster? When did you move into girl’s/women’s sides?
I played with boys until intermediate but then I went to an all-girls school.

What’s your best/funniest cricketing story? 
Down in Christchurch a few years ago, Lou Miliken did some alterations to Ane Swart’s playing pants. Ane couldn’t work out why her pants were so short on one leg - she thought they had shrunk in the wash. It turned out Lou had taken to them with the scissors. To make matters even better, the next day Lou cut the other leg so Ane had two breezy ankles and couldn’t do anything about it - she only had one pair of playing pants. Check out the link for better story telling - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louise_Milliken.

What’s one thing about you that most people wouldn’t know (or would find surprising)?
I have an irrational fear of flying.


For a full set of Northern Spirit profiles and my views on the women’s domestic game, have a read of A Spirited conversation with the Northern Spirit.