Whiston Parish Church Belles prove the perfect advert

Tom Pollard reflects on a satisfying first visit to Whiston Parish Church Cricket Club to watch women’s cricket with his family.

Despite living just a stone’s throw away from Whiston Cricket Ground, I had never visited since moving to Rotherham.

I now have a four-year-old daughter and want to champion women’s sport wherever possible, so despite it being a dreary Sunday morning with intermittent showers, I was compelled to watch Whiston Belles women’s team who were playing Conisbrough Crusaders.

It was a Division 3 East softball match in the South Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League.

My wife, daughter and I, complete with the viewing essentials: blanket, beverages and snacks, set off on our short journey. We had only made a single turn off the main road and suddenly felt we were approaching a cricket ground in the middle of stunning countryside.

A few winding single roads and a spectacular church later, we had arrived at a beautiful cricket ground, complete with clubhouse and training facilities.

We found our spot and laid out our blanket now fully prepared for a great game of cricket and we weren’t disappointed. I don’t think there are much finer sights in life than a cover drive in front of a stunning backdrop.

I witnessed a few in a cracking showdown between two competitive teams. The opening bowler for Whiston (Mollie Jenkinson 1-14) was particularly impressive to watch. With a bowling action that was clearly natural talent that had been honed through training and attentive coaches.

In the end, the Belles were victorious by just seven runs but both teams showed promise and there was brilliance from players of all ages.

Softball cricket is eight-a-side, 16 overs an innings and dismissals result in five runs being subtracted from a batter’s total. Conisborough (56) are top of the division from, you guessed it, Whiston Parish Church (54), who have a game in hand. All to play for.

My wife and I have grown up around cricket clubs. Both our mums made the teas and our dads played, while we split our time between stealing fondant fancies off the food tables and imitating our favourite players with our best friends (I recently found out my wife has a strikingly similar action to Muttiah Muralitharan).

As we got a bit older, we were both worried that this sense of community and belonging, where our cricket friends were not just weekend acquaintances, had been lost.

As we stood on the boundary observing the game being played, we were approached by a lovely gentleman named Bill Jenkinson who reignited our faith.

He spoke proudly of how his daughters were currently playing (three Jenkinsons in the XI!) and that the community of Whiston Parish Church CC is one to be proud of. With senior teams including a Sunday Development XI and women’s hardball and softball squads, plus junior age-groups, the feeling my wife and I had as we walked away was inclusion.

A group of families who mingled and laughed and were more than just cricket colleagues. A diverse mix of ages and backgrounds, all coming together to enjoy cricket in what appears to be a thriving community built around a beautiful cricketing space.

As we walked back to our car, my wife turned to me and said she wanted us to come back soon; I looked at my daughter who asked if she could come down and train here. I don’t think grassroots cricket games can go much better than that.