The first four Women’s Club Cricket Development Officers appointed by the ECB begin their new jobs when they arrive for a briefing session at Lords today, Tuesday 2 May, 2000. The four new jobs cover the South West, the East Midlands, the North and the Home Counties and have been funded by Sport England.

Step forward for Women’s Cricket

“This is a great step forward for Women’s Cricket giving us a major injection of effort,” says Barbara Daniels, the ECB’s National Manager Women’s Cricket. “There are too few clubs to satisfy the demands of youngsters wanting to continue the game. These new Women’s Club Cricket Development Officers (WCCDOs) will sustain existing clubs, encourage the formation of new groups and attract more players and administrators into the women’s game, in addition to setting up competition structures for junior cricket. They will be working with existing development colleagues.”

Sport England Funding £120k this year

The new posts have been funded by Sport England with £120k this year, from the £282k granted for grass roots cricket. Trina Miller, of Sport England’s Cricket Service Team says, “We identified this specific area, Club Development, where the women’s game needs the professional support long enjoyed by the men. The appointments follow the merger of the Women’s Cricket Association with the ECB, which has been a significant time for Women’s Cricket. We are delighted with these new WCCDOs and keen to see the impact these initial appointments will make.”

The new Women’s Club Cricket Development Officers:-

Jackie Summers - the South West covering Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset, based in South Dartmoor Community College, Ashburton, Devon.

Helen Pugh - the East Midlands covering Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Northamptonshire, based at Trent Bridge

Pauline Peel - the North covering Durham, Cumbria and Northumberland, based at Durham County Cricket Ground.

Jenny Day - the Home Counties, covering Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire, based in High Wycombe.

Jackie Summers (35) was brought up in Somerset and now lives in Exeter. She has been playing cricket since primary school although girls were not allowed to play in her secondary school. Later she started a team, the ISCA Nomads because there was not one to join. “It is still the team to beat!” she says. “Part of my job will be securing quality pitches for women’s teams. There are already some men’s clubs with good facilities keen to have women on board. We need to find more.” Jackie ran her own business for a number of years and more recently worked for the Exeter Post Delivery Service.

Helen Pugh, East Midlands, (26) is a Community Sports Development Officer at Bishop Stopford School and lives in Kettering, Northants. She was previously the first Manager of the Worcestershire Cricket Centre. “I like developing new ventures,” she says “although I already know part of my territory, I shall have to get to know Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.” Helen started playing cricket at junior school with the boys and still plays with a local men’s club as well as in a women’s team. She got her Sports Science and Physical Education Degree at Loughborough and is currently working on a Masters Degree in Sport’s Development.

Jenny Day, Home Counties, (26) is currently living in Cambridge, but will be moving to her new base in High Wycombe. “It is exciting and daunting at the same time to have a new role and to be working in a new part of the country,” she says. Jenny got her degree in Sport Studies and Leisure Studies at De Montfort University and has recently been working as an Assistant Sports Development Officer for Cottenham Village College and Cambridge City Council. She has two cricket mad brothers, has played a bit herself and also enjoys tennis, swimming and hockey.

Pauline Peel, North, (38) and has been involved in cricket throughout her life with her father, husband and children. She currently plays with Shotley Bridge Ladies and the Durham Ladies team, which she helped to set up last year. She got her Level II Coaching Qualification in 1999. Pauline is leaving local government to take up her new role. “I can’t wait to get started,” she says, “there is so much to do. It is a big patch but now that my son is at University and my daughter more independent, I am free to travel through the region. ”

Growth in Women’s Cricket

The appointments have been made as the numbers involved in the women’s game are increasing. There has been an 8% rise in the number of clubs, resulting in a 19% rise in the number of women playing cricket since 1998. The number of primary school girls involved has increased from 354,000 to 433,800 and secondary school figures have increased from 139,000 to 174,400. The latest opportunity, to combine improving cricket while studying for a degree at the six University Centres of Excellence, is attracting women as well as men.

Further information from: Eileen Mullen Tel: 020 7432 1272 Media Relations Women’s Cricket E-mail: eileen.mullen@ecb.co.uk

© 2000