He has played representative cricket for the Horsham Cricket Association at country week, for the Western Waves at the Youth Premier League and most impressively, he won a gold medal with Victoria at the School Sports Australia National Cricket Championships.

But in the winter months his sporting ability stretches beyond cricket. Connor is a state competitor for cross-country running, a runner-up best and fairest footballer, and an impressive golfer and basketballer.

Funnily enough, cricket was in fact not Connor’s first sporting choice. Connor’s father Rodney said Connor only fell in love with cricket after there was limited opportunity in Rupanyup’s tennis team.

“He wasn’t actually going to play cricket, but the tennis club went from two teams to one team so there wasn’t much opportunity for him,” Rodney said.

“The C Grade cricket team was short so he filled in and did pretty well.” 

Connor found – seemingly like most sports – that he had a gift for cricket.

“I filled in for C Grade in the cricket one time and I took three wickets,” Connor said.

“I’m going alright in C Grade now.”

One particular highlight in the Horsham Cricket Association came in a contest against Lubeck-Murtoa last season, when Connor was only 11-years-old.

Connor came in at number eleven with his Dad batting at the other end. Rup-Minyip was struggling at 9-82, but the Weidemann’s put on a 62 run partnership for the eleventh wicket, dragging the side to a respectable total of 144. 

The father-son partnership proved to be match winning for Rup-Minyip, as Lubeck-Murtoa went on to fall 17 runs short in their run chase.

Connor had shown enough as a talented youngster to earn a position in the Western Waves under-14 team as a 12-year-old this summer.

After the Youth Premier League tournament in Melbourne in January, Western Waves coach Alastair Templeton said Connor had shown an incredibly talent.

“He was the youngest in the team by a mile, but his maturity for a 12-year-old is through the roof,” Templeton said. “You forget just how young he is.

“To have someone that young and to play as well as he did is very uncommon.”

One particular highlight at the Youth Premier League came when Connor made a not out 44 against Barwon, a team who would go on to finish second at the tournament.

“He nearly got us over the line against one of the best teams in the state,” Templeton said.

“The thing that stands out for him is his effort and determination, not many 12-year-olds have his concentration.”

With Victoria at the School Sports Australia National Cricket Championships, Connor also showed his bowling talent, taking seven wickets across the tournament.

Templeton said he could see Connor continuing to grow and becoming an impressive cricketer. But said he wanted to keep the pressure off him as much as possible.

“He’s just got to enjoy it, not put too much pressure on himself and just learn that every time you play at a higher level it’s going to be hard and you’re going to have trouble, but you can learn from it,” Templeton said.

“It’s hard to judge because every kid develops at a different rate and goes through different things… but for his age he’s probably one of the best I’ve seen.”

Connor has also shown a rugged determination well beyond his years. He frequently gets up early in the morning to go for a run, or does extra running before football training. 

“The main thing is he works really hard,” Templeton said. “The whole week we were in Melbourne he didn’t eat a piece of junk food, he only drank water. He really understands how hard work and doing everything right is going to give him the best chance to succeed.”

But while he’s shown his cricketing ability, Connor said he wasn’t sure whether he preferred it to football.

Playing in Rupanyup’s under-14s side since he was 9-years-old, Connor won a runner-up best-and-fairest last season, second only to his older brother Lachie.

“It depends what season it is, winter is footy summer is cricket,” Connor said. “They’re both good.”

Connor and his brother Lachie last year also took on a unique sporting endeavour, creating their own sports apparel “Ultimate Sports”. 

“We just thought of making a brand and Lachie designed the logo,” Connor said. “We’ve got hats, t-shirts, socks. It’s pretty cool.” 

Connor’s Mum Andrea said the camaraderie among the Weidemann siblings was a key part to Connor’s development. 

“I can’t stop him, he’s out there in the nets constantly with his brothers,” she said.

“They help each other, Connors cricket improved when Lachie was training. They’re all helping each along.”