Glamorgan County Cricket Club are excited to confirm that we have submitted a bid for a Tier 1 professional Women’s cricket team from 2025 with the aim to see cricket become the number one Women’s team sport in Wales.
By creating a seamless pathway from grassroots cricket, to include All Stars and Dynamos Cricket, through to the professional Glamorgan Women’s team, and beyond to worldwide franchise tournaments and International recognition, this opportunity would give our Women and Girls the opportunity to be the best that they can be.
“I have been involved in the Women and Girls' game for over 20 years,” said Aimee Rees, Head of Women and Girls’ Cricket, Glamorgan County Cricket Club.
“I was one of the 11 female cricketers selected to represent Wales in the inaugural fixture against Scotland at Ynysangharad Park, where Wales won by six wickets. I am incredibly proud when I think back to receiving my first Welsh cap and that I played in the first ever international fixture.
“I am incredibly passionate and proud of the role I hold at Glamorgan. I helped to develop and shape the female game in Wales on a part-time basis for twenty years prior to working in cricket full-time for the last eighteen months. I love the opportunity Glamorgan and the current programme gives women and girls in Wales to develop as people and cricketers. We are providing a cricket and holistic programme to help them achieve their goals and aspirations on and off the pitch.
“The programme has already supported International and professional cricketers: Rachel Priest, Danielle Gibson, Sophia Smale, Alex Griffiths, Claire Nicholas, Lauren Parfitt and Bethan Gammon, and I know there are many more to come with the infrastructure we currently have in place.
“Seeing Glamorgan awarded a Tier One team would be my proudest moment to date. I strongly believe we would embrace the opportunity and make the whole nation proud.
“Glamorgan as a club has shown its commitment to developing young cricketers in Wales by making the county age group pathway free of charge for boys and girls for the past four years. In the girls’ pathway alone, Glamorgan has invested more than £250,000 since taking over the running of the national teams in 2020. This is not something we were obligated to do, it’s something the club has felt strongly about investing in.”
Dan Cherry, Glamorgan Chief Executive added: “With a long and rich history of Women’s cricket in Wales, the whole team at Glamorgan is extremely excited by the possibility of a professional Glamorgan Women’s team playing in Tier One of a newly established competition.
“To be able to offer the opportunity for young women and girls from all over Wales, to develop their skills and transition through a fully operated pathway then to go on and represent a team based in their own country will be transformational for Women’s cricket in Wales.
“Despite having long established traditions of women and girls playing cricket in Wales, the growth we have seen in the sport over recent years has been stratospheric. Working alongside Cricket Wales we have seen one of the biggest take-ups of cricket from girls through All Stars and Dynamos. It has been great to see more girls with bats and balls in their hands and more women experiencing cricket positively whether by playing at local clubs or attending matches at Sophia Gardens.
“The Cricket Wales’ clubs’ audit in 2023 shows a very healthy picture for the Women and Girls’ game with girls’ participation rising by 274% since 2013 and women’s participation increasing by 1096% since 2013.
“The opportunity to manage and host the Welsh Fire Women’s team in Cardiff over the past three years has shown us all the great benefits of Men’s and Women’s teams standing shoulder-to-shoulder, united under one badge and bringing some of the world’s best cricketers onto our Cardiff stage.
“We have already received support for our bid from the Welsh Government, Cricket Wales, Sport Wales and a number of leading Welsh businesses and this would be an enormous boost for cricket in our country.”
Ann-Marie Smale, Deputy Chair and Women’s Cricket Lead on the Glamorgan Board said: “Glamorgan CCC has a rich history and tradition in Women and Girls’ cricket from Lynne Thomas making her England debut in 1966, to multiple successes for Newport CC in ECB club competitions and a significant number of our girls coming through the pathway to play for Western Storm in recent years.
“We have led the way in Women and Girls’ cricket over the last 20 years and we aim to continue this phenomenal track record and drive Women’s cricket forward with a Glamorgan Women’s team fully embedded in our club and representing our great nation.
“As Glamorgan CCC is the only professional team in Wales and plays a key role in promoting our national summer sport throughout the Principality, it is vital to understand that we are not simply representing a county but are carrying the hopes of a nation.”