8-year-old Ruby is one of the smallest children in her class and as a result has always been reluctant to take part fully in PE lessons. She was shy, lacked confidence and didn’t feel like she could play at the same level as everyone else because she didn’t see herself as ‘sporty’. However, what she found in cricket was a sport where being the smallest didn’t matter. Her dad, Chris Hutchinson said; “Ruby found that she didn’t have to be the strongest or quickest fielder in her class in order to take part. Instead she became the most accurate and was soon one of the key members of her team.” 

Chance to Shine’s visits to Ruby’s school in Doncaster have helped her beyond  the cricket field. Ruby’s coach James MacConnachie recalls: “When I first met Ruby, she wasn’t the biggest fan of cricket.  She would take part but was always the last to volunteer for games during the sessions. By the second and third weeks, we noticed that Ruby had a real knack for fielding and was able to consistently hit the stumps. In the session at the end of term Ruby hit the stumps five times in a row which I think is still a record!” 

With a few years left at school, Ruby still has time to perfect her cricketing skills but her progress in such a short amount of time has been remarkable. Ruby has really started to enjoy her cricket and that has spread to other sports at school. She now volunteers first for anything whether it’s tig on the playground or cricket on the field.