Chance to shine - Educating through cricket

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Charlotte Edwards MBE

Making her international debut at the tender age of 16, and England captain since 2005, Charlotte is not only a player many wish to emulate, but also an inspirational member of the Chance to shine team. A natural and consistent batsman, she has scored a total of 11 international hundreds, with her highest score of 173* at the age of 17. Her meteoric rise from being spotted playing schools’ Kwik Cricket on the outfield at Chelmsford Cricket Club in 1990 to ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year in 2008 reflects Chance to Shine’s aspirations and she is a fantastic role model for the girls involved in the programme. Charlotte was awarded the MBE for services to sport in 2009.

Charlotte was unaware of the existence of an England women’s team when she was at school so is delighted to be part of the promotion of the game. She believes she’s in a very fortunate position to be able to be a role model and influence children through her success and have a positive impact in schools and clubs. She finds working with Chance to Shine very rewarding, and the best moment of her coaching so far has been in Stevenage, working with an after school club, where the girls not only outnumbered but also beat the boys!

Caroline Atkins

Like many youngsters, back garden ball games with her brothers led opening bat Caroline to join her local boys’ cricket club – Burgess Hill, in West Sussex – keen to learn more. Her passion for the game really ignited when her father got involved in coaching and later started a girls’ team at her school.

At that stage, all Caroline knew was that she loved this game where she could hit the ball hard, run fast, take wickets and play with her friends, but it was her Dad’s vision (as well as his petrol!) that took her up and down the country for more training and matches, because he could see her playing for England one day. This she achieved, at the age of 20, against Australia, in 2001.

Now, over fifty one day internationals, a world record opening stand (of 268 in an ODI with Sarah Taylor, of which Caroline scored 145),  a couple of world cup wins and some Ashes triumphs later, Caroline’s reflection is that she was just lucky – and she worked very, very hard. Having a keen father and cricketing brothers gave her the opportunity to play, but Caroline now wants to help make cricket more accessible for school children and allow them to realise for themselves what a fantastic game it is to be a part of.

Helping teachers to use cricket more in PE is something that Caroline wants to achieve with Chance to shine. And ultimately, she hopes that she can increase opportunities for girls to play cricket in schools and in clubs in the South West. “There’s so much to cricket that keeps surprising you.” she says, “I would be thrilled to help anyone discover a love for the game like I have.”

Katherine Brunt

Fast bowler Katherine spent her youth watching former England star Darren Gough at Barnsley Cricket Club. From the day she first met him and he signed her bat, he inspired her to become a fast bowler. Since her debut in 2004, despite a career-threatening back injury that kept her sidelined for over a year, she has become one of the world’s best bowlers. Her performances in the historic 2005 Ashes win led to her being named Vodafone England Player of the Year in early 2006.

Having been inspired watching top-class players from a young age but without an opportunity to have any coaching of a good standard at school, Katherine wanted to provide children with that experience through Chance to Shine. She is an inspiration to girls around the country and particularly her home, Yorkshire, and loves being an ambassador for Chance to Shine, encouraging girls to take up cricket. Her favourite moment of her role so far is a budding young female cricketer telling her she wanted to follow in her footsteps. She has had great results in her schools so far, despite being hit by a rather enthusiastic girl’s bat during a rainy session last winter(!), with one of her schools winning the Lady Taverners Indoor U13 tournament.

Lydia Greenway

Kent-born Lydia revolutionised cricket at her local Hayes Cricket Club by deciding - at the age of 10 - to start up a team with her sister and school friends (including current England bowler Lynsey Askew), a team which is now going from strength to strength.

Making her England debut in 2003, aged just 17, her rise from club to international cricket is testament to the importance of a good club setup, something she is delighted to help with for budding young female cricketers in her role with Chance to Shine.

Seeing children improve week after week is something she finds incredibly rewarding but Lydia believes the main thing is seeing her youngsters enjoy and express themselves in cricket, especially if they have never had the opportunity to do so before.

Her influence on children through Chance to Shine was demonstrated by a proud moment during a break time after a school session. As normal, they all came storming out into the playground full of energy and ready to play games, but on this particular occasion instead of seeing the familiar footballs flying around a group of children came out with stumps, bats and balls and started setting up a game of cricket, and by the end of the break time all but a few of the children were joining in – she strongly feels this is what her job is all about.

Jenny Gunn

Nottingham-based all-rounder Jenny has been an England regular since the age of 17, and was one of the first women to be selected for the Nottinghamshire CCC Academy. A keen sportswoman, she followed in her former Notts Forest footballer father’s footsteps, representing Notts County FC Centre of Excellence before choosing cricket.

Jenny’s cricketing talent was discovered, like many of the girls, at primary school, where she was lucky enough to be visited by Nottinghamshire cricketers. She moved on to play club cricket at Thrumpton CC, and played a pivotal role in their women’s team.

Having grown up in a family of cricket-lovers, Jenny now realises how many people have given up their time to help her to realise her potential, and feels privileged to be able to give something back to a game that has given her so much. Seeing children smiling because of her coaching is something that makes her job worthwhile.

Danielle Hazell

Durham girl Danielle started playing cricket aged 12, after watching her dad play and thinking ‘I can do this’. Yet to make her international debut, but part of the ICC World Twenty20 winning squad, the all-rounder hopes that soon she will get the chance to break into the senior team. Whilst working hard at her cricket at the Durham Academy, she is enjoying being able to give something back to the game. She finds it hugely rewarding providing opportunities to children that wouldn’t normally get the chance to play cricket, and hopes to find a future England star from the North East.

Her most memorable Chance to Shine moment so far has been at a cricket festival seeing so many girls taking part in, and enjoying something that they would not have tried had she not visited their school.