Faith Thomas

Thomas was born at the Nepabunna Aboriginal Mission in South Australia. Her mother, Ivy, was an Adnyamathanha woman and her father German.[1] Her mother took her to the Colebrook Home for Aboriginal Children in Quorn when she was a baby.[2][3] She played cricket with other children at Colebrook using stones as balls, and making bats from wood they found.[1]

Thomas completed her nursing training in 1954, and was South Australia's first Indigenous nurse to be employed as a public servant.[4][5] Thomas undertook midwifery training in Adelaide at Queen Victoria Hospital in Adelaide and in 1958 was employed to work at Raukkan (known then as Point McLeay Aboriginal Reserve).[4]

After being introduced to cricket by a colleague at Royal Adelaide Hospital, she soon made the state women's team. She played for the South Australia Women's cricket team between 1956 and 1958.

In 1958 she was selected for the Australian national team.[6] She played her only international match against England.[2][7][8] She was the first Aboriginal woman to be selected to represent Australia in sport, and until 2019 (following the selection of Ashleigh Gardner)[9] was the only Indigenous woman to play test cricket for Australia.[10][11]