On international women’s day, Glamorgan Cricket would like to celebrate and thank all the women across Wales - from grassroots to the elite level - who inspire others to love and be part of the game.
Together with Cricket Wales, the club continues to promote, support and invest in women’s cricket at all levels and is committed to its future development and growth.
2021 is set to be an exciting year for women’s cricket in Wales with the club taking over the women and girls' pathway system from Cricket Wales, while two new professional women’s teams have been formed in Western Storm and Welsh Fire representing Wales and the south West.
On the club’s strategy, Deputy Chair, Ann-Marie Smale MBE, said: “Women and girls’ cricket is a key priority for the club and is discussed in depth at every board meeting.
“We understand its importance and the need to grow the game and introduce it to a wider audience. It provides one of the biggest growth opportunities in cricket and forms a key part of our joint ECB strategy, ‘Inspiring generations in Wales.’
“We want cricket to be a gender balanced and an equal opportunities game and there’s been a real shift towards that in recent times.
“We’ve put a big investment in taking over the Wales girls age-group pathways, with responsibility for running the coaching programmes and contact hours in a professional context so girls can now see that cricket can be a profession for them and that’s why our strategic link to Western Storm is vital.”
In 2021, Glamorgan has teamed up with Somerset and Gloucestershire and formally setup Western Storm Ltd. as part of an exciting new era in the women’s domestic game.
Western Storm now sits within an eight regional structure model which will provide world class training, coaching and match play opportunities to develop the most talented female players in the areas.
The squad contains young local Welsh talent, including 18-year-old Alex Griffiths, who has signed a full-time professional contract with Western Storm, which has been part-funded by Glamorgan.
Western Storm have been training at Sophia Gardens throughout the winter and part of their fixture list this year will see them play in Cardiff when they take on the Thunder in a T20 on Wednesday, 25th August.
This season will also see the introduction of The Hundred and Sophia Gardens will host four Welsh Fire women’s matches. These games will offer supporters the opportunity to watch some of the very best female players in the world in Cardiff, including Australian captain Meg Lanning.
“I’m really excited by the prospect of seeing some to these fantastic players take centre stage,” added Ann-Marie. “My daughter is in the Western Storm Academy and players like Meg Lanning are a huge inspiration to her.
“Some of our homegrown players will hopefully be playing alongside them and be able to learn from them and see how they approach the game.
“The more girls can see these role models in action the better. It will really help the women’s and girl’s game thrive in Wales and inspire future generations to engage and develop a love for cricket.”