A cricket club is launching a dedicated girls’ team for the upcoming season.
Witham Cricket Club says the move marks a shift away from what had previously felt like “a tick-box exercise” and towards a meaningful commitment to developing girls’ cricket.
Caroline Boden, the club’s treasurer and administrator, said: "I’m breaking away from the main Colts group, to start a girls’ team in the next season.
"Traditionally, it was seen as a tick-box exercise.
"I wasn’t satisfied with that.
"I thought that they deserved so much better.
"But, with our breakaway team, we’ve got great support from the coaches."
The club’s entry into the East Anglian Premier League requires it to host at least one girls’ fixture.
She said recent experiences have shown the enthusiasm among young girls for the sport, including a cricket festival held at the end of August.
Ms Boden said: "We had Ingatestone, Upminster and Colchester Sunbears.
"They came to our ground and had some games.
"I said to myself that ‘there’s our momentum to really push this for next year’.
"The girls were fantastic, across many different abilities.
"Some had never played cricket before.
"But they picked up a bat and got involved.
"It was brilliant to see."
She believes the sport can be both competitive and social, and offers significant benefits to young people, including those with additional needs.
Ms Boden said: "There are children who have neurodiverse problems, and like the structure of cricket, and find it calming.
"It would normally be a stumbling block, but they are thriving."
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