Dominic Bandara earns Victorian Premier Cricket First XI debut with Melbourne

Dominic Bandara was told he would make his Victorian Premier Cricket First XI debut for Melbourne against Casey-South Melbourne on Saturday.

Bandara, 19, was on shift at Bundy's Bar and Bites in Warrnambool when he found out he'd achieved "a goal I've had for a while now".

"I was working at dad's bar last night and I got a call from the coach," he told The Standard.

"I didn't know what to expect when I got a call from him but I just answered out the back quickly.

"He just said 'you're playing division one this week'. I was kind of shocked so I was like 'are you serious'.

"I was pretty excited when I heard that."

Bandara said his father Jayaweera - a former Warrnambool and District Cricket Association player of the year - was "pretty happy" too.

"He might even consider coming down and have people work in the bar, so it's pretty big," he laughed.

"He knows I have been working towards it. He's backed me in so it's good to see a bit of reward now but it's only the start."

Bandara, who has trained with Melbourne since he was 13, had played two games for the club this season, which had a delayed start due to COVID-19 restrictions.

"It's been pretty crazy," he said of his elevation.

"They reward success through the grades. If you're going to make runs, they'll put you up through the grades.

"I made 70 (in the thirds) and then 42 not out and hit a six to win the game last week (in division two).

"They are good grounds and good clubs, they take it seriously so it pushes me and most people to their best."

Bandara, who is studying business management at RMIT after finishing school at Melbourne Grammar in 2019, said he wanted to embrace the opportunity.

"I have had little interruptions. I had school cricket until I was 18," he said.

"I couldn't really give it a crack then. I was only playing one or two games a year because of school cricket.

"I was studying for school last year so I only played after Christmas. This year was the real year for me to give it a crack and then COVID hit.

"But somehow in between Melbourne and Warrnambool, I have got a game."

His home club, Russells Creek, provided an opportunity to play and train during restrictions.

"I like all the boys down here at Russells Creek and obviously dad's been there for a while and I have been there since I was probably eight, going to training and watching his games," Bandara said.

"I am lucky they have had me back, knowing I hadn't fully committed to them.

"They have put a bit of time into me and helped me out. With the lockdown I couldn't go to Melbourne to train or go to the nets with anyone from Melbourne so it was good to have people down here I could train with."

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