markgfh

Hello everyone, I help to run the girls' section at Dulwich Cricket Club -- we are growing fast (we tripled our primary school age members last year) and have places for girls in most if not all training groups this summer. Training is on Tuesdays for U9s and U11s, and Wednesdays for older girls. No experience necessary at the younger ages. Matches tend to be on Sundays, occasionally Saturdays or midweek evenings. We've just secured a long-term lease on the Griffin Sports Ground in Dulwich Village, which we're developing as the home of our Women's and Girls' teams. It'll be the first cricket ground in the country to put women and girls first, and we will be building new net facilities and a new square. Exiting times ahead! Cricket is the fastest-growing sport for girls, and fantastic fun. Let me know if you'd like more information or to sign your daughter up! Thanks, Mark Henderson

We're expanding the girls' section at Dulwich Cricket Club, and would love to hear from parents of any girls in school years 3 to 6 who would like to play. You can find out joining details here -- https://www.dulwichcc.com/juniors-news -- or drop me a line in the comments and I will get in touch. You can follow us on Twitter at @DulwichCCGirls It's huge fun and one of the fastest growing sports for girls. At the under 11 level, we play an inclusive form of cricket that gives everyone a chance to bat, bowl and field. It allows girls of different experience and ability to play in the same team, while being matched against opponents with a similar level of skill. We play with a soft ball, so there?s no need for any protective equipment. We have a superb coaching team (led by Kira Chathli, a key player for Surrey Women), and have developed lots of girls who have been selected by Surrey and London Schools, some after just a year or two of proper cricket. But you shouldn?t think this is just for the super-sporty ? we have girls of all standards and experience, including plenty of complete beginners, and the beauty of the format we play is that they can all play together safely and enjoyably. It?s extremely sociable, and great fun. Running the under 11 girls last season, it was wonderful to see them build friendships, encourage one another, and grow into a team. The younger girls learned from the older and more experienced ones, while the older girls developed real leadership skills. It?s great for their physical development, their confidence, their teamwork, and their social skills. It?s been a fantastic positive experience for my own daughter ? she recommends it highly! We will be running a dedicated group coaching sessions for girls in years 3, 4, 5 and 6 on Tuesdays after school ? a 4.30-6 session which will generally suit the younger group better, and a 6.15-7.45 session that will be more suitable for older or more experienced girls. But both are suitable for all abilities. We'll train at the Griffin Sports Ground in Dulwich Village. We run a range of matches (within the club and against other clubs), at the weekends (usually Sundays) and sometimes on weekday late afternoons. We try to ensure that everybody who wants one gets a game ? more than 30 girls turned out for the U11 girls last summer. The membership fee is ?40 (there is a sibling discount), which entitles girls to use the excellent club net facilities and to be selected for matches (there is an additional ?5 fee for each match played to cover pitch hire), and we also charge a ?85 fee for the coaching programme. Parents get free social membership of Dulwich Sports Club too. There is no waiting list for girls in the under 11 age group -- we do unfortunately have waiting lists in most boys age groups. If you are looking for a place for your son I will be glad to introduce you to the keeper of the waiting lists. Let me know if your daughter would like to play! Mark Henderson