Cricket Witness No 4 - Women at the WIcket

104 Separate but Equal: Feminism Divides the Game Officially, the English Women’s Cricket Federation was less interested in taming the game, as its revenue relied on attracting crowds eager to see competitive league cricket. Nevertheless, some players like Ruby Humphries, who was a member of both the English Federation and the Association, advised women in the Yorkshire Observer that they should ‘always be as charming as possible’ when playing and ‘on no account must take part in excessive throwing of a ball, as it is very damaging to the shoulder muscles.’ That same year the paper ran an ‘ultimate sports girl’ cash competition to discover ‘which form of sport produces the most graceful and charming girls’. Dozens of cricketers sent in pictures of themselves. 34 Physical recreation was increasingly seen as a means of enhancing femininity, not diminishing it. In acknowledging women’s supposedly innate limitations and strengths, cricketers subtly used the language of new feminism to shun unpalatable and unflattering comparisons with men and demand recognition in their own right. This was an essential way of convincing a sceptical public of the suitability of the sport, and assuring the male cricketing establishment that women were not challenging their supremacy over the game. ‘Exploited by men’ It was the Association’s commitment to feminist ideals that caused the largest division between themselves and the English Women’s Cricket Federation. Although relations between the two organisations were generally cordial, with Association and English Federation teams occasionally playing, discussions over merging the organisations failed in 1933, and the WCA deliberately hurried the formation of county associations in Lancashire and Yorkshire to stem the flow of clubs to their rival body. The Association – like their forerunners the All-England Women’s Hockey Association and physical training colleges – were what sociologist Jennifer Hargreaves has termed a ‘sports separatist’ organisation. 35 Unlike the English Federation, the majority of whose officials were men and whose regulations specifically required a male umpire, the Association barred men from holding any formal or voting power, and attempted to use female umpires and scorers wherever possible. Naturally they still relied heavily on male support in a range of areas from coaching and hiring pitches, to gate recipes and support in the media. Yet sports separatist bodies, to which nearly all men’s sporting bodies belonged, were a way women could avoid discrimination and male chauvinism that was commonplace in other mixed-sex sports clubs, such as golf and tennis. Hockey had experienced a similar split: the Women’s Hockey Association disallowing formal male power or league competitions, while the English Ladies’ Hockey Leagues Association (operating in Lancashire and Cheshire) was controlled mainly by men. 36 Disallowing male power ensured the needs of female players were always placed first and women experienced equal opportunities within the organisation. Owning your own ground, or hiring another’s, gave women greater access to the resources needed to play, rather than being relegated behind the demands of the men’s