WOMEN’S & GIRLS’ CRICKET

Cricket NSW had a remarkable year, breaking registration records with over 8,300 5-12 year-old girls playing in Woolworths Cricket Blast and junior girls’ cricket.

These achievements were made possible through key initiatives and the dedication of club volunteers and Community Cricket Experience staff . The Commonwealth Bank’s support through Cricket Australia’s Growing Cricket for Girls Fund also played a role in funding these programs. The season began with after-school programs for girls, attracting over 700 participants in Term 2, despite not being cricket season traditionally. Additionally, the launch of WiCKETs, funded by a NSW Government Her Sport Her Way Grant, and the inaugural national Women’s and Girls’ Week, in collaboration with Cricket Australia, further promoted girls’ involvement in cricket, fostering growth at both the junior and senior levels.

Join the WiCKETS group here: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/wicketwomen

In November, Australian cricket celebrated its first annual Women’s and Girls’ Week, a collaboration between Cricket Australia and Cricket NSW, during the week of the WBBL finals from November 21 to 27. The week highlighted the growth in participation and profile of women’s and girls’ cricket in Australia and celebrated those who have driven this growth, including women’s cricket pioneers, administrators, players, umpires, volunteers and others. For the next seven days, CNSW carried out activities celebrating great female role models and programs that are driving growth and participation of women in the sport, including organising a Girls’ Club Photo Competition which saw unprecedented success with clubs across NSW sending photos of their women and girls playing cricket.

Throughout the season, clubs and volunteers worked hard to ensure that girls could play in either girlsonly competitions or in mixed teams, culminating in an increase in Junior Girls Cricket and Senior Women’s Cricket.

Notching Up The Numbers

WHERE: Warriewood Sports Valley, Warriewood

REGION: Northern Beaches WHEN: February and March, 2023

Cricket NSW collaborated with the Peninsula Cricket Club to conduct an all-girls Woolworths Cricket Blast program, providing 14 girls with their first cricket experience at Warriewood Sports Field in Warriewood.

POP-UP SCHOOL CRICKET

WHERE: Minnamurra Public School, Minnamurra, Queanbeyan Public School, Queanbeyan REGION: Illawarra, Southern Inland

WHEN: November, 2022 to March, 2022

The season started with after-school programs for girls funded by the Growing Cricket For Girls Fund. Term 2 saw over 700 girls participating, setting the stage for a record-breaking year. Minnamurra Public School’s girls-only Lunchtime Cricket Blast

Program, funded by the Sporting Schools program, attracted 230 registrations in Term 4. Queanbeyan Public School also launched a girls-only lunchtime program, engaging 45 girls in December.

More and more girls are coming in to play and love cricket across the state via girls-only programs.

She Did Play

WHERE: Across NSW REGION: All regions

WHEN: August, 2022 to March, 2022

Through the NSW Government’s Her Sport Her Way Grant, Cricket NSW delivered coaching sessions called ‘She Can Play’ in targeted areas. Notably, NSW Breakers stars Stella Campbell and Anika Learoyd coached a local girls’ squad in Sydney’s Hills District. Learoyd and teammate

HIT WiCKETs

WHERE: Across NSW REGION: All regions

WHEN: September 2022 to Ongoing

Surprise Visit

WHERE: St John Bosco Cricket Club, Engadine

REGION: Sutherland

WHEN: November

In A League Of Her Own

WHERE: Various grounds in Penrith, Nepean-Hawkesbury

REGION: Nepean/Hawkesbury

The target was to get 200 WiCKETs – but this number was quickly surpassed and now stands at over 330 women.

In September, WiCKETs launched as a networking initiative in partnership with the Her Sport Her Way Program from the NSW Office of Sport. The initiative aimed to connect and share best practice among females in cricket, with the launch held at Charter Hall’s offices in Sydney CBD. The event featured Karen Robbins, a Cricket NSW board member, and the CEO of the Office of Sport. Karen Jones. Charter Hall are the major partner of the NSW Breakers.

WOMEN & GIRLS’ WEEK

WHERE: Across NSW REGION: All regions

WHEN: November 2022

Cricket Australia and Cricket NSW collaborated to celebrate the inaugural Women and Girls Week during the WBBL finals . The week highlighted the contributions of women in cricket, beginning with a video featuring representative women and girls from seven states and territories in conversation with former Australian women’s team captain and NSW great, Lisa Sthalekar. CNSW shared stories throughout the week, showcasing women and girls in cricket across NSW.

Ashleigh Gardner, Alana King and Annabel Sutherland from the Australia Women’s Cricket team surprised a local cricket club in Engadine, offering young players the opportunity to meet their cricket idols. St John Bosco Cricket Club played a pioneering role in promoting girls’ cricket in the Sutherland region by organising an all-girls cricket competition.

WHEN: February and March, 2023

After a five-year absence, the local Hawkesbury and Penrith associations joined forces to revive the Thunder Girls Cricket League. Four teams participated in the There were over 40 girls participate in the six-week competition at the end of summer in 2023, exceeding the goal of 24 participants.

All Ready In Albury

WHERE: North St Oval, Albury REGION: Riverina

WHEN: October to December 2022

The Cricket Albury Wodonga Girls’ Social Competition, re-established two years ago, witnessed a significant increase in participation from 45 to 85 girls this season. Managed by local volunteer Maddison Howard, the competition featured eight teams playing every Monday night over a six-week period.

Playing To A Crowd

WHERE: Welby Oval

REGION: Shoalhaven

WHEN: September

Women’s cricket competitions thrived in NSW, with Bowral Cricket Club winning the Tina Macpherson Cup in the grand final of the Highlands women’s competition. The showdown at Welby Oval attracted over 150 spectators, as the Wingello Tigers finished with 8 for 89 off their 20 overs after winning the toss.