Faith Thomas
Adnyamathanha woman, Faith Thomas (née Coultard), was born at Nepabunna Aboriginal Mission, SA, in 1933 to an Aboriginal mother and European father. At the age of three months, she was taken with the consent of her family to be raised at the Colebrook Home in Quorn, SA. It was here that Faith (perhaps) began to lay the foundations for her fast-bowling skills by throwing rocks at the galahs in the trees.
As a young woman Faith left to study nursing at Royal Adelaide Hospital, where in 1954 she was the first of six Aboriginal women in South Australia to complete professional training as a nurse. It was while studying that Faith became keenly interested in sport, particularly hockey and cricket.
While in Adelaide, when bowling against the Adelaide Teachers’ College Faith took six wickets for none - a feat that established her status as the fastest female bowler of the time. Her reputation spread quickly and after playing only two grade games for South Australia, Faith was selected to play Test cricket for Australia in 1958. When she debuted Junction Oval in Melbourne in that year’s Test against England, Faith Thomas secured her place in Australian history as the first Aboriginal person to represent Australia in any international sport.
Image courtesy of Sydney Cricket Ground Museum
After her initial Test appearance, Faith was selected for the upcoming International tours of England and New Zealand, but upon realising this would mean being on board a ship for five weeks, she declined the offer.
Instead, Faith resumed her nursing career and began working at Point McLeay Aboriginal Reserve, (now Raukkan) later that year. She went on to provide many decades of care to many through the South Australian Public Health system, working widely in Aboriginal health and community services. As a nurse and midwife, Faith continued to acknowledge the skills of local healers who know the complexities of Indigenous values, spirituality and culture. During this time, she continued to be active in sport playing hockey for the Northern Territory and serving as a member of the Aboriginal Sports Foundation.
In 2019, in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, Faith Thomas was awarded an Order of Australia for services to cricket and the Indigenous community. Faith is a hero to many aspiring First Nations people who work and train hard to achieve greatness in the many sports played in Australia – especially cricket.