Durham County Cricket Board have appointed two full-time Women’s and Girls’ Cricket Development Officers to work exclusively on the women’s and girls’ pathway in Durham.
The two new positions will ensure that the female game across the county is strategically developed and well-supported by the Cricket Board at all levels – from participation to performance.
Marsha Davies and Rachel Hopkins have accepted their new roles after working for the Cricket Board as Club and Coach Development Officers prior to this.
As part of their work programme, Marsha and Rachel will choose six focus cricket clubs to work with on a regular basis in the next year with the aim to develop sustainable offers catering for all players by creating a comprehensive pathway within the chosen clubs.
On top of that, the development officers will support other clubs in the county, that are at a position to develop participation offers by supporting them through Chance to Shine delivery and All Stars Cricket promotion.
The positions were created for Marsha and Rachel in a conscious effort to strengthen the women’s and girls’ cricket opportunities across the county and to make use of the potential there is in Durham to bring the game forward.
Director of Cricket Development Graeme Weeks said: “I’m extremely excited to have two full-time development officers exclusively focused on the female game in Durham.
“It is massively important to have women leading the women’s game for us and to make this happen in reality has been a goal of ours for a while.
“I think it makes a massive difference when girls across our pathway see women delivering and coaching them. It creates role models that girls aspire to and shows them that there is a pathway for them.”
Reflecting on the success the County Board have had with women’s cricket in past years, Graeme said: “We’ve seen a massive potential in the female game in the past couple of years with the initiatives we have been driving but I think that we’ve only scratched the surface.
“Having Marsha and Rachel purely focused on developing the game for girls and women gives us a lot more reach and will accelerate that potential massively.
More importantly, it will give clubs comprehensive and focused support in the field and we will hopefully be able to create women’s and girl’s hubs committed to providing sustainable opportunities across the board.”
Graeme added: “Marsha and Rachel are extremely passionate and invested in the development of the female game and I am certain that they will make a huge difference in bringing the game forward in Durham.”