Steventon Cricket Club taking members to ICC Women’s Final

Steventon Cricket Club, based in South Oxfordshire, is planning the trip to Lord’s this summer, as a celebration of the growth of women’s and girls’ cricket at the club.

The group will include all of the club’s women’s players and girls’ players, as well as a lot of the coaches, scorers, umpires, family members, and spectators.

The club, which runs teams for girls under 11, 13, 15, 18, and 19, as well as two women’s hardball teams and an occasional softball team, had no junior cricket for boys or girls, or any women’s cricket just a few years ago.

The journey to revive cricket in the village began in 2019, when Steventon Cricket Club coach Joe Bennett, reflecting on the success of England winning the Men’s World Cup and the Ashes series, decided to gauge interest in the sport at the local primary school.

Mr Bennett said: “We put out a message on a Wednesday and ran an introductory session on the Friday.

“Around 40 kids turned up, which made us think there might be something here.”

This encouraged the club to establish a full junior programme in 2020, with the number of children playing by the end of the summer reaching about 70.

A significant number of these were girls, which led to the formation of a girls’ team in 2021.

In April 2021, a female coach from a nearby club was contacted to run taster sessions, and the first session saw around 14 girls participating.

The club’s under-15 girls’ team then joined the Oxfordshire league.

The club’s women’s and girls’ section continued to grow, with many mums becoming All Stars activators and forming the first softball team.

In 2022, the club entered the Home Counties Women’s Cricket League, and after a challenging start, they have now achieved back-to-back promotions.

The club first organised a women’s and girls’ club trip to Lord’s in 2022 to watch an ODI between England and India.

The trip was a success, with more than 50 members attending, and the club has been keen to replicate the experience ever since.

The upcoming trip to the Women’s World Cup Final has generated significant excitement among the club members.

The club purchased extra tickets to accommodate new players joining the second women’s team, which was launched over the winter.

With the rapid growth of women’s cricket, both in England and globally, Mr Bennett hopes that with the support of the club committee and the local community, the women’s and girls’ section at Steventon will continue to flourish.