Surrey County Cricket Club hosted a members event to celebrate women’s cricket at The Kia Oval on May 26, moments after the thrilling game between South East Stars and Northern Diamonds concluded.
The event saw Surrey’s Steve Elworthy, Chief Executive Officer; Patricia Garrard, President; Emma Calvert, Director of Women’s Cricket, and Sarah Lynch, Cricket Participation Manager at Surrey Cricket Foundation, take the stage and speak about the achievements of women’s cricket in the county and country.
Throughout the event, the floor was also open to an interactive audience – with Jane Powell, Yorkshire CCC’s first female president, also present in the crowd – to ask questions and give their own thoughts on the present and future of the women’s game.
In an engaging conversation, the speakers acknowledged the growing profile of the sport, highlighted the hard work that is being done on the ground to promote the game as well as recognised the need to keep moving forward.
Following the presentations, Surrey and South East Stars’ Alice Capsey, Aylish Cranstone, and Bryony Smith joined the audience for an insightful panel discussion, where the fans got to hear some fascinating stories from the players. Young supporters and their parents also received an opportunity to nudge the star players for some valuable cricketing advice.
With a fantastic crowd and two incredible contests, the T20 double-header day on May 26 was a big success for the Club. It is a central part of the Club’s vision to keep working towards the growth of the women’s game, and hosting double-headers at The Kia Oval is seen as a way of showcasing the skill of women cricketers to a larger audience.
Steve Elworthy said: “Today has been a brilliant endorsement of women’s cricket at The Kia Oval; hosting double-headers ensures that we can offer a springboard to the women’s game. It is certainly something that we want to push for in the future as well.
“We want women’s cricket to become a part of the Club’s DNA, and to achieve that, we will continue to work towards driving the sport forward.”
Emma Calvert said: “A big thank you to all the supporters of the women’s game and everyone who is working for the betterment of the game.
“Within a year, South East Stars have come a long way. We became the first team to have 11 professionals in our ranks, but at this time last year, we only had five professionally-contracted players in our squad, with players managing cricket around full-time jobs and education.
“Full-time contracts and the growth of the coaching staff have been a massive boost for the players. They can now focus entirely on the game and become the best version of themselves as cricketers.”
