Challenging the convention of cricket being a male-dominated sport is a central tenet of Chance to Shine’s work, and the charity has worked closely with the Durham Cricket Board and local schools to achieve this. 

In January, Jean Brennan, head of PE at Teesdale Comprehensive, got in touch with Durham Cricket Board member Darren Brown, with the outcome being regular coaching sessions for the girls at the school, funded through Chance to Shine. The attendance at the club, consistently over 20 per session, has made the project a huge success, while the potential for expansion makes it all the more exciting.

Darren, who has worked with Durham and Chance to Shine for a decade now, believes that this current initiative is one of the best he’s been associated with, regarding it as “invaluable” in “giving students opportunities that they may not have been able to access.” 

Club regular Evie says that there were “not many opportunities for girls to play sport outside of school”, and that being “fun” and “not too serious”, the project represented a “great opportunity to get friends involved.” 

This project, and much of Chance to Shine’s work, aims to ensure that the sport continues to become ever-more accessible for girls, and to bring through a new crop of female players to play club and county cricket. And even for those who won’t progress to these levels, it is still a great opportunity to try something new and improve their sporting and social skills.