By Oliver Lees
Macedon is gearing up to field its first senior women’s side in the upcoming Gisborne District Cricket Association season.
Cats assistant women’s co-ordinator Joanna Roch said the club was excited to get a women’s team on the park after the recent success of their under-17 girls side.
“We’ve had a girls team for a couple years now and they made the grand final in their first year and won it last season, so we thought we’d give it a try,” she said.
“We knew there were already a couple teams in the district, so we thought we would see if we could field a side of our own. We’re really trying to focus on women’s girls and cricket, because the girls have been really successful.
“We’ve now already got a few players ready to join the seniors including some mums of junior players and a lot of the under-17s team.”
The Cats will join a growing contingent of senior women’s outfits in the GDCA.
The competition is expected to grow from four to six teams this season, with last year’s premier Lancefield adding a second team alongside the Cats.
Roch said it was an exciting prospect to be creating a pathway for women to continue with their cricket at Macedon, including her daughter, who plays at the club.
“Some of our girls have started playing with Milo Cricket, so they’ve been playing probably for six or seven years and started with the boys,” she said.
“A couple of years ago, before we had any teams, we had the girls playing with Woodend, then we decided we had enough interest to have our own team.
“The club has had a focus on keeping everyone together. The [under-17s] girls have been training with the boys. I think that’s been a really good thing for them, it’s helped push them to compete and want to continue to improve.
“Overall the process has been absolutely fantastic, the club has been really supportive of girls cricket and has made them feel really included and welcome.”
Roch said she was confident the Cats would have enough players to field a side, but still encouraged anyone with an interest in the game to come down and give it a shot.
“We’re still looking for people that are still wanting to give it a go, it doesn’t matter if you have no experience,” she said.
“We’re just wanting to give it a try and see what happens, and have some fun along the way.”
The team trains on Mondays and Wednesdays and matches will be played on Sunday afternoons.
The GDCA season will begin on the weekend of November 13.
To get involved, contact Joanna: 0427 819 268.
