WOMEN’S & GIRLS DEVELOPMENT AT RAILWAY UNION (25.8.2025)

We are very grateful for the support of the Cricket Leinster Inclusion Fund grant in memory of Paul Reynolds. As a club, we have been making a concerted effort to grow female participation across all ages over recent seasons.

The award of the grant has allowed us to purchase kit to ensure that new players have access to equipment, and the cost is not seen as a barrier to entry in our sport.

We have participated in  a number of development games this season and thank Leinster, Pembroke and Terenure for engaging with us on these fixtures. These have given opportunities to players of all abilities, and experience, to play in more games and allow players to continue to develop their skills and knowledge of the game. The Cricket Leinster Inclusion grant has helped us to arrange these fixtures and provide a social experience for our team and our opponents with match teas after the games. It is something which we would love to expand on next season, and would welcome  conversations with more clubs on this concept.

On the girls side, we fielded under-11 and under-13 teams this season which has been a success. A number of the under-13 players also playing in the development games to become more used to hard ball cricket and practice simple things like running between the wickets, or fielding positions – things that those of us who have played for years take for granted.

The grant has also been hugely beneficial in helping us to arrange specific training sessions for the girls and allowing them access to qualified coaches alongside their friends. We aim to continue this in the off season in our indoor net facility meaning cricket can be played all year round at Park Avenue.

We have engaged more parents in cricket and have had willing umpires and scorers this season, and will look to continue to share our passion for cricket as a sport for all going forward. It has also been brilliant to see a number of mothers and daughters training and playing together, creating a unique opportunity to participate in sport across generations – not to forget the enthusiastic grandparents on the sidelines.

We have seen the benefits of this in our increased numbers this season. We have seen an almost 60% increase in numbers in our girls youth and women’s teams. We appreciate that we are starting from a lower base than many clubs but we are committed to retaining girls in sport and providing opportunities to participate for all. As a club, we would welcome new players of any age, ability or experience as we look to grow our membership further so, please do not hesitate to get in touch if you would like to give cricket a try. 

We would like to thank Cricket Leinster and the Paul Reynolds Inclusion Fund for their support and are proud of what we have achieved this season. Our focus remains on being an inclusive and community based club. We have no doubt that the work put in over the course of the 2025 season has laid foundations to grow and develop into 2026 and beyond. Thank you once again for your support.