6 January 2025

By William O’Chee

Tom Weil – rower, veteran, historian, philanthropist and good friend – died in 2024 after a valiant battle with throat cancer. Those who knew him will always sing his praises, and those who were fortunate enough to call him their friend will always mourn his passing.

What few realise is that Tom’s mother was a New Zealander, and he often confided in me that reconsidered himself an Antipodean. 

And while Tom was a passionate rower, he also had a reasonably refined appreciation of cricket. In fact, we had discussed the possibility of our attending a cricket test match together when he was next in Australia. 

Alas, the cruel demon that is cancer deprived us of that pleasure in person, but our shared promise would not be beaten.

For seventeen years now, the annual Sydney cricket test match, played in the first week of January, has been turned into a fundraiser for cancer care. This was the legacy of much-loved Australian test cricketer, Glenn McGrath and his wife, Jane, who was at the time fighting chronic breast cancer. Jane died in 2008.

At what is now known as the Pink Test, cricket supporters are encouraged to wear pink, and to donate to the McGrath Foundation, which uses the money to provide breast care nurses to women and men battling breast cancer. This year, the McGrath Foundation expanded their objects to providing cancer care nurses for those suffering all cancers. One of the ways this can be done is by purchasing “virtual seats” at the Sydney Cricket ground for Day Three of the test match.

What better way to remember Tom, and fight back against cancer, than to buy two virtual seats?

In Australia, one in two people will contract cancer during their lifetime. With good science, and good care, many will survive what was once life-ending. But more needs to be done, so please consider donating at www.pinktest.com.au. There is a similar charity in the United Kingdom, (www.ruthstraussfoundation.com created by English player, Andrew Strauss. 

For those rowers who also love their cricket, this summer’s test series between Australia and India has been one of the best in living memory. The test match in Melbourne attracted a record breaking 373,691 attendees.

With India holding the Border-Gavaskar trophy, Australia needed to win the five-match series; a draw would mean India retaining the trophy. Australia went to Sydney 2-1 ahead in the series after a rain affected draw in Brisbane. The two sides were just four runs apart after their respective first innings. An Indian batting collapse in their second innings set up a nail-biting Australian chase on the third day, but Australia eventually won by six wickets.

Tom wore his much-loved pink Leander tie, of course. The McGrath Foundation gave us two virtual seats with a great view of the match, but the best innings belonged to Tom.