McCarthy recognised for sporting success by Lockhart Shire

McCarthy said he had a suspicion something was coming after his wife and sister started asking him questions earlier in the year, but was shocked when he heard he was the winner.

A farming accident in late 2021 resulted in McCarthy undergoing a leg amputation and in the 13 months since he has found himself excelling in wheelchair tennis, Australian rules football, and basketball.

"I wasn't as sporty (before the accident), I was working on a farm, had my farm, so I was pretty busy with work," McCarthy said.

"I played quite a bit of night tennis locally out at The Rock, I wanted to get into more sports but work takes over a fair bit, so I guess having the time off after having the amputation gave me the time to get into them."

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Since taking up wheelchair sports McCarthy said it's been a pleasure to meet and play alongside other athletes with disabilities, and he hopes to see more people engaging with wheelchair competitions.

"I love it, it's one of those things that once you do it, you're like, jeez, why didn't I do this before? You sort of regret not getting into sports, and the wheelchair sports, they are great, I'd encourage everybody to have a go, able-bodied or any level of disability," he said.

Playing tennis before his accident, McCarthy took up wheelchair tennis not long after his accident. Though the rules are mostly the same, he said it took at least 6 months to get the hang of it.

"The playing style is completely different. So trying to change the way you serve and play your forehand and backhand, trying to adjust to those was a fair bit of a challenge, and occasionally I still serve it like I would have before the accident and you get a fault or double fault, but then you come back and you're like, okay I'm going to do it this way," he said.

"I'm getting better every time I play which is good."

Since taking up the sport McCarthy has travelled across Australia to compete, gaining himself a world ranking and competing at the highest level domestically.

Currently ranked 262, he's hoping to continue to improve his rank and is currently looking at flights for upcoming tournaments in Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne.

Travelling three hours each way for a 90 minute coaching session in Canberra, McCarthy said there isn't any wheelchair tennis hubs closer to him.

Despite the travel, he said he enjoys playing and would like to see more people involved in wheelchair tennis across the board. Honoured to be recognised for his sporting efforts, he hopes the award will bring more notice to para-sports.

"I guess I didn't think my achievements or contributions were worthy of that recognition, you always expect that someone else should get it, not yourself. It was a bit of a surprise, a little bit overwhelming. I was pretty humbled by it," he said.

"It is nice and it's great to shine a light on the disability sports area, as well.

"Wheelchair sports in general, they're not just for people with disability, able-bodied people can get in and have a go too, and the range of people with disabilities that are able to compete in these sports is pretty amazing as well."

McCarthy was one of four individuals recognised by the Shire on Wednesday alongside Australia Day Awardee Michael Flinn, Citizen of the Year Keith Edgerton, and Young Citizen of the Year Nicholas Madden.

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