Bulls quick retires with 232 wickets to his name, will return to work as a full-time policeman
Favourite Feldman farewells double life
As he rededicates his life to the Queensland Police Service, retiring Bulls paceman Luke Feldman has no doubt he leaves his state's bowling stocks in strong hands.
Queensland's JLT Sheffield Shield season came to an end in Perth on Friday with a 136-run loss to Western Australia, spelling the end of the Townsville policeman's career.
The 34-year-old Feldman has continued his work in blue in the Far North during his 63-game first-class career and juggled his two lives with aplomb.
Image Id: DEC450DA8A674D9481E443B389CC858C Image Caption: Feldman celebrates a wicket at the WACA this week // AAPOn his very first tour with the Bulls in 2009, he famously arrested an intruder who had broken into his hotel room in the Melbourne suburb of St Kilda.
He retires with 232 first-class wickets, including a best of 6-32, and eight five-wicket hauls.
He was also with five different KFC BBL clubs during his career; the Hurricanes, Sixers, Thunder, Stars and Heat.
He says the depth of Queensland’s fast-bowling talent has made it easier to walk away from the professional game.
"The bowling group will be led by Michael Neser and we have a battery of fast bowlers,” he said.
“Billy Stanlake is still a novice in red ball cricket so he'll keep getting better.
"We've got Brendan Doggett, who is out injured but is a fantastic bowler, Mark Steketee has taken 40 wickets this year at an average of stuff-all and then there's a good group behind them."
Feldman knows he got the most out of his cricket career while juggling two professions and is now looking forward to focusing on being a policeman.
"I pretty much knew at the start of the year this would be my last season so I just wanted to perform and do well for my state," Feldman said.
Image Id: 45703E362D0F4EC68FE353DE62CE167D Image Caption: Feldman puts everything into an LBW appeal // AAP"The Queensland Police Service has been fantastic to me. I've been working the whole time and I (will be) a police officer 14 years in May now. They've allowed me to take the time off work and play and live my dream."
Of his memorable first tour to Melbourne, Feldman told the Courier Mail this week: “We were staying at Fitzroy St, St Kilda, which was a questionable area. I was rooming with Nick Kruger and at 2am he rang me up and balcony and saw a guy down there handing out drinks from our mini-bar. I had my badge in my wallet and I ran down in my footy shorts and grabbed him and said ‘wrong roommate’”.