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Speaker 1: Sitsy and with her with Kate Ritchie Podcast.

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Speaker 2: We've got a very special guest and his mum in

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Speaker 2: the studio today. His name is Jack Gibbons Johnson. Now

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Speaker 2: Jack is well, very good cricketer, but received some pretty

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Speaker 2: bad news recently and we need to have a chat

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Speaker 2: to him and his mum. He's here with his beautiful mum, Mandy. Jack, Mandy,

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Speaker 2: Welcome to the studio.

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Speaker 3: Thank you, thanks, thanks for coming in.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, lovely to see you. Under the circumstances, Jack, you're

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Speaker 4: on crutches at the moment. You've had an operation on

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Speaker 4: your leg. Explain to everybody what's been going on.

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Speaker 5: So, yeah, around last year, late last year, I think

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Speaker 5: it was October, I was diagnosed with an osteosarcoma, which

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Speaker 5: is a type of bone cancer in the knee.

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Speaker 2: So you were just getting a bit of pain in

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Speaker 2: there playing cricketer or how did you you know about.

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Speaker 5: It since the start of the year. So I started

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Speaker 5: twenty twenty two, I've I couldn't really stretch it or

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Speaker 5: bend it back. Progressively got worse and like I remember

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Speaker 5: playing there was like a soccer finals and I remember

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Speaker 5: playing and less I couldn't run it like I was

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Speaker 5: just really really painful. And then that's when the physio

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Speaker 5: was like, yeah, maybe it should be we should go

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Speaker 5: get an X ray. It was a day after my

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Speaker 5: first cricket game for the year. At the start, I

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Speaker 5: didn't really understand most of its kind of thought, oh,

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Speaker 5: you know, I'll go through this and I'll be all right.

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Speaker 5: And but it wasn't until like, yeah, like in the

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Speaker 5: middle kind of after this surgery where it really got

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Speaker 5: tough because I lost my mobility. Yeah, and you lose

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Speaker 5: all your independence and then you get mum and dad

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Speaker 5: to do everything and you're in so much pain, and

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Speaker 5: I think, yeah, that's when you know that you know

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Speaker 5: this is a hard journey, and you know it's kind

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Speaker 5: of the hardest part.

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Speaker 2: You love your cricket, great cricketer, yourself that we heard,

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Speaker 2: So when the tumor was found on your leg, can

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Speaker 2: you basically tell us, you know, just how much did

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Speaker 2: they had to take out of your leg to get

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Speaker 2: that as much as that that tumor rout.

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Speaker 5: I believe it was sixteen centimeters around that, yeah, from

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Speaker 5: the knee and then sixteenth centimes above that theme.

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Speaker 3: And what's got you through it? Jack?

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Speaker 2: What's been you know, is it having got mums? Mums

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Speaker 2: getting me upset already? But is it having mum and

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Speaker 2: dad there and your sister there? What's been getting you

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Speaker 2: through this?

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Speaker 5: Yeah? Definitely having just support like them families been so yeah,

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Speaker 5: so supportive and just even like the cricket club they

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Speaker 5: had dedicated a whole round to sarcoma which was amazing,

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Speaker 5: and the school as well, and just having you know,

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Speaker 5: so many people just text you and like just know

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Speaker 5: that you're they're behind you and got support and you

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Speaker 5: can reach out to anyone at any time. And yeah,

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Speaker 5: it's really just been that support network that have just

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Speaker 5: kept me going, even you know when things are tough

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Speaker 5: and you know, days feel like you know years, that

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Speaker 5: day is just terrible, just feel so long and you

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Speaker 5: just have to kind of know that you know it

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Speaker 5: will get better, Things will get better.

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Speaker 2: Can I ask as a seventeen year old boy, I mean,

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Speaker 2: it's it's probably the toughest time of your life anyway,

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Speaker 2: you know, going through high school, going through your HSC,

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Speaker 2: get news like this in some of your dark days?

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Speaker 2: What goes through your mind as a seventeen year old boy,

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Speaker 2: what are you thinking?

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Speaker 5: Yeah, well, obviously Initially you'd have sort of yeah, and

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Speaker 5: a lot of anxiety and worry about what could happen,

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Speaker 5: and you know the possibilities. You know, you could die

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Speaker 5: from it. You know that's especially being in a ward

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Speaker 5: where you're the youngest by like thirty years. It's really

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Speaker 5: just a lonely place sometimes. And I remember I was

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Speaker 5: in a shared board and you just hear so many

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Speaker 5: horrible stories from like the patients next to you, just

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Speaker 5: spread everywhere, and they're talking about you know, when they

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Speaker 5: when they pass away, or they're going to do their children.

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Speaker 5: It just yeah, it really affects you mentally, just you

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Speaker 5: know they're kind of giving up or of course, you.

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Speaker 2: Know what about you, mum? In these tough moments, how

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Speaker 2: do you go?

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Speaker 6: Yeah, it's been tough to see my child in so

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Speaker 6: much pain, and yeah it's been a bit hard. But

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Speaker 6: you know, I've got a great husband, Joel, and Jack's

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Speaker 6: twin sister Ava, and we've really a really close unit,

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Speaker 6: but now even closer. And I'm just so proud of

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Speaker 6: Jack and how he's coped with something that you know,

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Speaker 6: do you think you only get canceled when you're you're old,

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Speaker 6: But it's something pretty tough for a seventeen year old

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Speaker 6: or sixteen. He was sixteen when he was diagnosed and

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Speaker 6: it's changed his life and together as a family, we

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Speaker 6: are looking forward to a positive future.

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Speaker 2: Well do you know what it's also and I know

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Speaker 2: how close you guys are as a family, and it's

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Speaker 2: all about creating memories and that as well. You guys

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Speaker 2: just thought you were coming in for a bit of

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Speaker 2: a tour today, but we just wanted to say to

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Speaker 2: you that we've got your back and your story really

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Speaker 2: really touched us. So we want to create a memory

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Speaker 2: for you guys, thanks to Aaron Finch and also what if,

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Speaker 2: we're going to be sending you and your family and

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Speaker 2: a much needed holiday to the Gold Coast return flight

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Speaker 2: four nights stays so you can take a break and

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Speaker 2: continue to make some of these cherished memories together. We

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Speaker 2: also have another gift for you. We've got a special

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Speaker 2: guest stuff on the screen for you, Jack. His name

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Speaker 2: is Pat Cummins. Have you ever heard of this blocast?

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Speaker 6: We do.

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Speaker 3: Aret. Hey Jack, thanks for sharing your story. That was amazing.

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Speaker 3: I've been listening for the last little bit. Yeah, very privileged,

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Speaker 3: So yeah, thanks that mate. How are you doing Yeah,

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Speaker 3: not too bad obviously, you know.

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Speaker 5: It's looking forward to that surgery and just being able

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Speaker 5: to move again and rehab and hopefully back to cricket.

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Speaker 2: Jack, is there a message that you want to hand

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Speaker 2: to our captain here of Australia about a looming Ashes

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Speaker 2: tour coming up?

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Speaker 3: Is there anything that you want to say to Pat?

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Speaker 3: Any tips?

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Speaker 5: Just where you've done well previously, so I'm sure you'll

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Speaker 5: do well again and give it to those poems for guests.

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Speaker 3: Stuff it up. I think that's what he's saying.

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Speaker 7: Already, better speaker than the front of the boys.

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Speaker 3: I'm doing that one now. Pat.

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Speaker 2: We do have someone else that's going to be helping

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Speaker 2: you out, is backs to Hold from the Sydney Thundery.

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Speaker 2: He's the weak keeper there. He is from Pat and

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Speaker 2: the boys. They've signed for you, Jack.

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Speaker 3: Thanks.

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Speaker 1: Oh wow, I'm not buttering up marm Jack.

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Speaker 3: That's signed by the Australian cricket team. Jack. Wow, you

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Speaker 3: boys back.

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Speaker 2: You know something like this, You know, when you train

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Speaker 2: so hard and you know sport is your is your life.

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Speaker 2: To do something like this and to get involved and

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Speaker 2: make someone's day, it must be quite big for the

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Speaker 2: boys in the town.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely, it's a great perspective shifter for us.

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Speaker 1: We're able to live a hobby and get paid to

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Speaker 1: do it, so for us to take time out of

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Speaker 1: our days to look after Jack and put a different

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Speaker 1: aspect to his life, hopefully we have highlighted a permanent

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Speaker 1: his time.

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Speaker 2: Absolutely well, Pat, we know how busy you are leading

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Speaker 2: up to the ashes, so we really appreciate your time, mate,

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Speaker 2: So thank you very much for coming on.

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Speaker 3: Any last words that you want to have for Jack.

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Speaker 3: Thanks again for sharing his story.

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Speaker 7: Jack, You're amazing mate, You've you've done brilliantly so far

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Speaker 7: and you're affecting so many lives positively by sharing your story.

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Speaker 7: And yeah, thanks for gunning us all involved and all

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Speaker 7: the best with what's next.

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Speaker 3: And yeah, hopefully you can get back to a couple

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Speaker 3: of those sports and we're all right behind you, mate. Thank you,

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Speaker 3: doesn't pass here, continue to look good. Thank you so

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Speaker 3: much mate, than good luck, Thanks all about Jack.

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Speaker 2: You have an amazing family, Jack, and they're all here

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Speaker 2: today watching your Mum's got the flowers there. But you

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Speaker 2: also have an amazing support base around you as well, mate,

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Speaker 2: so don't ever think that you're going through this alone.

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Speaker 2: And don't ever feel like that your dream of playing

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Speaker 2: cricket is over. I think we're going to see you

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Speaker 2: back out on the cricket pitch again and stay positive, mate.

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Speaker 3: We can't wait to see you.

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Speaker 4: We want to say a big thank you to what

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Speaker 4: If because they're helping out sending you on the family

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Speaker 4: to the Gold Coast four nights return flights for so

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Speaker 4: much needed time away, and we want to thank them

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Speaker 4: by reminding everybody if you're thinking about planning an XT trip,

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Speaker 4: today what if It's Ozzie for travel. Also thanks to

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Speaker 4: Paton Baxter for the signed bat from the Australian cricket team.

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Speaker 4: We know how much you love your cricket mate, so

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Speaker 4: you'll get a lot of enjoyment out of that.

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Speaker 3: Bitsy and Wipper with Kate Ritchie is a Nova podcast.

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Speaker 1: For more great comedy shows like this, head to novapodcast

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Speaker 1: dot com dot Au.