Douglas Warren turned into a spinner because of a sore back and he hasn’t looked back since

It went back to when Warren was 14 and involved in Sub-District club Balwyn’s Academy program.

Lowrie was coach.

Warren was a 14-year-old hopeful bowling left-arm medium-pace.

“He came up to me at his first session and said, ‘My back is a bit sore, do you mind if I try to bowl off-spin?’ He had never done it before,’’ Lowrie tells CODE Sports.

“After about six balls, I said to him, ‘Mate, if I were you I would stick to spin, there is something special there’.’’

Warren confirms the story.

And from that night, he’s bowled only the slow stuff that seized Lowrie’s eye.

“I haven’t looked back,’’ he says.

Maybe he can look forward to something, too.

When the Victorian high-ups announce their state squad for 2023-24, there’s a decent chance the Uni bowler will be included as one of the fresh faces.

The prospect of joining the squad and becoming a full-time cricketer excites the 21-year-old, who works two days a week as a curator with his club and does “bits and bobs’’ at Leonda By The Yarra in Kew.

“Fingers crossed there will be some good news come through with that (squad),’’ he says.

“To do cricket full-time and get paid for it would be very nice. Not many people get that privilege. To get the best coaching staff, the best facilities and whatever else that comes from being a contracted player, that would be pretty exciting.’’

The state seconds call-up that had James Lowrie puffing with pride came in late February against the ACT at the Merv Hughes Oval in Footscray.

It gave Warren an appreciation of the difference between club cricket and the next level.

The wicket was flat and the visitors’ No.3 Blake Macdonald blitzed a pair of centuries.

Warren had figures of 0-41 off 14 overs and 0-51 off 10.

“There wasn’t much there for the spinner,’’ he says.

“It was tough toil for four days. I got bashed around by Blake Macdonald, which was eye-opening. He hit the ball about as clean as I’ve seen bowling to someone.’’

He went away from the match with a focus to “put six good balls in the same area a bit more, not missing line and length and getting put away’’.

Two weeks later, the Victorian seconds went to Tasmania.

It was a bit of a shambles: the team’s original flight was cancelled and when the players did get to Hobart, they were without their luggage.

The match was turned into a three-day affair. The first day was played in howling winds.

But unlike against the ACT, Warren felt he got involved in the game.

He took two wickets in both innings, bowling 26 overs in the first.

“The pitch had a bit more fur on it, which was nice. I got a couple to turn and found a bit of rhythm, being able to bowl a longer spell,’’ he says.

“I found that one much more enjoyable from a personal perspective and found travelling with the boys enjoyable too, in terms of getting to know people and getting invested in the team culture.’’

Craig Howard, the former state leggie who famously encouraged Test tyro Todd Murphy to start bowling offies, made the trip with the Vics as coach and spent time talking spin with Warren.

They clicked like LEGO bricks.

“Craig’s been really, really good recently,’’ Warren says.

“I got to know him through ‘Swan’ Richards at the Crusaders and Swan got me to have a bowl in front of him at pre-season last year. I think he took a bit of a liking to me, which is quite nice. He’s a fantastic spin-bowling coach. I couldn’t speak highly enough of him.’’

Warren emerged from both second XI fixtures knowing that, at state seconds level, bad balls are quickly and crushingly dealt with by batters who sweat on them.

It was an experience for him to play red-ball cricket.

The 50-over format was adopted for both the 2020-21 and 2021-22 Victorian Premier Cricket seasons because of Covid.

Warren made his debut for Uni in 2020-21; it wasn’t until this season that he took part in a two-day match in the top level of Victorian club cricket.

He’s had to adapt.

“I haven’t played a lot of high-level, longer-format cricket, which means I’m a bit more comfortable playing in the shorter form at the moment,’’ he says.

“Only playing with the white-ball, I’ve found myself developing quicker balls and sliders and that sort of stuff. But towards the end of last season, I really enjoyed the longer format, being able to bowl those longer spells and work over batsmen. I got a little bit slower in my flight and a bit more up-and-over trying to drop the ball, instead of sliding balls into pads and trying blow people’s boards off.’’

*****

Douglas Warren grew up in Fitzroy, played junior cricket with Edinburgh and joined Balwyn in the Subbies when he was still a teenager and Liam Murphy, now running Victorian Premier Cricket, was senior coach.

The young spinner played first XI cricket for the Tigers for two years and also captained the Trinity Grammar team.

He joined Uni – the home of one of his teachers, James Bett – in 2019-20.

His results were unremarkable until last season, when he took 28 wickets.

But Cricket Victoria’s coaches were watching him after he’d impressed as a late addition to the emerging players program last year.

Cricket Victoria’s head of male cricket, David Hussey, called Warren in January to say he’d been selected in the state second XI.

“It was a bit of a surprise. I was hoping more than anything … I’d had an OK year,’’ Warren says.

“It was quite exciting. It’s nice to see David Hussey’s name show up on the phone when it’s buzzing!’’

Melbourne Uni coach Daniel Hutton says Warren’s energy is “incredible’’ and his competitiveness “amazing’’.

“He’s just so determined to be the best player that he can be and so determined to do everything he can to win, and it really comes out in his bowling,’’ Hutton says.

“He bowls at a much quicker pace than most other spinners but he still gives it a good rip. When there is spin in the wicket, he gets the ball to turn. He’d be 6’3”, too. So he’s tall, he bowls at a quick pace and he spins it with all that effort and energy he brings. It’s a handful for batsmen.’’

And the sore back Douglas Warren had when he was 14, that led him to bowl spin in front of James Lowrie at the Balwyn Academy eight years ago?

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“It never got diagnosed but I’m pretty sure it related to stress fractures,’’ he says.

“I had an MRI recently and they found a couple of old stress fractures, so it’s likely to have been them.’’

Since that back injury, it’s fair to say Douglas Warren and his cricket haven’t looked back.