Episodes
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Sheila is the co-founder and first CEO of Sport Environment Alliance but that is just part of her outstanding contribution around growing the awareness and introducing strategies and plans around sustainability in sport to ensure a healthier planet and happy people!
This includes presenting at a number of international Sustainability Leaders conferences and last year Sheila was Head of Sustainability for the FIFA Women’s World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand.
Sheila has recently established her own business “ Happy Planet People “
Happy Planet People
We also have a fascinating discussion about early childhood growing up as a child of hardworking refugee parents and some of the valuable lessons about life passed on to her by her parents.
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Megan is the granddaughter of the great Victorian and Australian batsman Bill Ponsford after whom a grandstand is named at the MCG.
She is a Ponsford and proud of it!
Megan is also the author of two books, one a photographic record of the Melbourne Cricket Ground including some wonderful behind the scenes areas that are not generally seen by the public and the other titled “The HAS-BEENs and NEVER-WILL-BE's, A boys own adventure of Australian cricket and the Raj“ is a fascinating insight into Australia’s first cricket tour to India in 1935/36 albeit an official tour.
We chat, of course, about Megan’s grandfather and her publications and current projects.
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Georgie is a dynamic young journalist and commentator from England who is currently in Australia covering the summer of cricket as well as other sports .
Georgie has covered World Cups, Olympic Games and as well as working on cricket this summer will also be doing some commentary on Volleyball.
She is also a Young Ambassador for the MCC Foundation (UK) and co-hosts a podcast called Women’s Cricket Chat.
Georgie has been very open about some of the challenges she has faced with mental health challenges over the years and during the podcast provides some sound advice to those who may be facing similar challenges.
This is a really vibrant epsiode and a “must listen” for those who follow CWOB !
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The CC Morris Library is the largest collection of cricket literature and memorabilia in the Western Hemisphere and was established in the 1960’s. It has a fascinating history and included among its collection is a three-handled trophy presented to the winning team in the USA’s first interscholastic girls' cricket match held in 1895.
Throughout the 19th Century and for almost 100 years until the 1920’s, cricket, with its particular emphasis upon ethics and sportsmanship, was a distinctive element in the social life of the Philadelphia area and at the time was probably the only city where for a brief period, cricket could draw as large attendance and command as full journalistic reporting as baseball.
Paul has a wealth of knowledge about the history of cricket in the Philadelphia area and some of the great players in the USA from years gone by and offers some interesting thoughts on cricket in the USA today as well as his former college, Haverford College where cricket is still played by both male and female students.
He also provides information about an annual cricket festival in Philadelphia and the wonderful museum that forms part of the CC Morris Library.
Links:
CC Morris Library website -
Tamara established Cricket Kindness in 2016 dedicated to addressing the desperate shortage of cricket equipment in developing countries around the world and in disadvantaged communities in England and Australia .
Cricket Kindness was inspired by Tamara’s heartfelt determination to make the world a happier place for cricket loving communities unable to access proper equipment and uniforms.
Over the past ten years, the Cricket Kindness Project has given thousands of children, teenagers and adults throughout Antigua &Barbuda, Barbados, Trinidad, Nevis, Guyana, Sri Lanka, Fiji, The Solomon Islands, Nepal, Sierra Leone, England and Australia the simple joy of access to equipment to play the great game of cricket.
Tamara has also worked at Cricket NSW and assisted in the management of their Cricket Foundation and is currently a Non Executive Director at Kit Bag For Kids.
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Natalie is someone who has done it all in the game of cricket and is still making a significant contribution to the sport.
As a young player Natalie represented Victoria at the U17 /U19 levels and was also an Australian U17 representative but it is arguably since her junior playing days that she has made an even more profound contribution to the sport.
Natalie played a key role in the establishment of the Bacchus Marsh CC Women’s and Junior Girls program and as a current Director she provides advice and technical knowledge around the delivery of the women’s cricket competitions,
Natalie is still playing for Essendon Maribyrnong Park Ladies CC where she is captain /coach of the Third Eleven and earlier this year she also accepted a role in Singapore as High Performance Coach of the Singapore Sunbirds (women’s team) in preparation for a forthcoming Tri-Series Competition.In between all of her coaching, playing and administration, Natalie established her own business, Fierce Girls Cricket supplying female designed clothing and equipment and offers sponsorships and ambassador programs including advocacy for Female Cricket!
Natalie has simply done it all!! -
Tawanda Karasa, Founder and Secretary of Grassroots Cricket whose mission is to partner with organisations and individuals to build a world where all children are equal and have access to fulfill their potential.
Tawanda is passionate corporate social responsibility and youth development and social justice and has introduced a number of successful programs in his home country of Zimbabwe combining sporting skills and life skills to disadvantaged children.
While this episode is not specifically about women’s cricket it is a “must listen”to hear how cricket is helping thousands of young people in need. -
Lauren is a freelance journalist in South Africa possessing a powerful storytelling ability, along with the intentionally honed skill of creating ease and calm while interviewing individuals and whose words and comments are vital to a carefully curated and researched story.
Lauren is a specialist in the area of women’s news, analysis, sport, profiling and interviewing. She is passionate about women’s empowerment in the sporting world and hosts her own sports journalism show called “ She Speaks Sport”.
This is a fascinating discussion -
Nicole is a young woman who has come through the traditional cricket pathway since starting the game in a boys cricket team in Moe in Gippsland Victoria.
Nicole toured with CWOB to Fiji in 2015 and it was easy to see even then she was a naturally talented player and leader.
She has represented Victoria and the Melbourne Stars in the WBBL as a wicketkeeper and top order batter and is one of the young shining stars in Australian cricket and it is wonderful to hear about her journey in the game thus far.
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An inspiring discussion with Cheryll about Fairbreak Global and its mission to progress equality on a truly global scale, using cricket as a vehicle to do so.
Cheryll has been CEO of Fairbreak for just over 18 months and has as her aim to nurture people as individuals or collectively to move forward on their chosen path and to empower people by giving them the tools/capacity to take the next step with newfound confidence.
Fairbreak Global is certainly doing just that through their invitational tours which now have ICC approval and involve players and umpires from ICC Associate countries as well as full members countries.
Fairbreak is committed to pushing the envelope, breaking down barriers and driving positive change, one match at a time, inspiring action towards a more equitable future for all.
You can certainly hear Cheryll’s passion to this commitment in this podcast as she also outlines her vision for the future which will hopefully include matches here in Australia.
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This is a wonderful chat with a woman who is changing the landscape for girls and women’s clothing in the sport of cricket. An American by birth who has lived in London for the past twenty years Leigh actually saw her first game of cricket in Australia but years later when her daughter started playing the game in London, Leigh could see that the players uniforms were totally tailored for boys.
She set about changing the landscape for young girls and women for both their onfield clothing and off field team wear and is succeeding !
This is a wonderful discussion not only about her desire to provide bespoke on and off field uniforms but also how Leigh has developed a portal for female players to access all the information required about girls/women’s cricket and has also engaged the assistance of former England player Lydia Greenway to assist her.
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Marcella has done it all from a young woman playing the game at club level, representing her State, an administrator for the Victorian Women’s Cricket Association, working for Cricket Victoria and now the Co-ordinator of Women’s Cricket at the Melbourne Cricket Club as well as being the team Manager for Cricket Without Borders on a number of tours.
This is a most enjoyable discussion with someone who has given everything to the sport and continues to do so with a great passion for the game of cricket. -
Tanya Gallina is the General Manager, Commercial Operations and Partnerships and has enjoyed a wonderful career in professional sport at the Hawthorn and Carlton AFL Clubs, Melbourne Victory and is now a member of the senior management team at the MCC.
We discuss the evolution of the MCG from a pure sporting venue to an entertainment venue, the amazing ICC Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup Final along with the documentary that was produced about the Final.
There are many critical partnerships associated with the management of the MCG including government, commercial partnerships and the various users of the venue including cricket and football franchises along with concert promoters and all fall within the scope of Tanya’s role at the MCG. -
Olivia is the CEO of Cricket ACT ( Canberra) and has had an extensive career in high performance sport at the Australian Institute of Sport and then at Cricket Australia. We discuss Olivia’s love of cricket from a you ng age which has stayed with her and her desire to continue to grow the game in the ACT and provide a welcoming environment for all who wish to be involved in the sport in whatever capacity they choose and irrespective of their background .We also discuss some of the unique partnerships Qlivia has developed for women’s cricket and cricket in general through her role as CEO.
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Jenny also featured in Episode 4 of our Podcast – this Episode is a special one for CWOB as Jenny travels to Fiji with the support of CWOB – we have a special relationship with Fiji having undertaken two tours there and had an opportunity to meet and play against their women’s teams and have developed a strong relationship with Cricket Fiji. On this tour Jenny meets many of their players and undertakes a number of school visits.
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Cath has had a lifelong involvement in the game of cricket and has a strong connection with the Pioneers Victorian Women’s Cricket Association which we talk about as well as the 150 th Anniversary of the first game of women’s cricket in Australia which is to be held on the 29th March in Bendigo which is where the first game was played in 1874.
Cath provides some good background around the first match and the “Pioneers”!
Links:
Cricket Without Borders website -
David is the Librarian at the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) Library at the MCG but had a close connection with former Victorian and Australian “great” in Betty Wilson regarded in her time as the “female Bradman”.
Among her many accolades Betty Wilson is a member of the Australian Sporting Hall of Fame, the Australian and ICC Cricket Halls of Fame and an Honorary Member of the Melbourne Cricket Club.
In a fascinating discussion David talks about his family connection to Betty Wilson and takes us inside the life of Betty Wilson.
Links:
Cricket Without Borders website -
Alan is the Head of Cricket Operations at the Japan Cricket Association a position he has held since 2015. Alan has been instrumental in managing the growth of the sport at the grass roots level and now oversees all cricket throughout the country and the operations and logistics that go with having three National Squads.
In 2012 Alan also wrote a book titled "Cricket on Everest" after helping to arrange a game of cricket on the slopes of Mount Everest!.
Links:
Cricket Without Borders website -
A fascinating discussion with Benafsha Hashimi who is a young Afghani woman who fled her home country of Afghanistan along with other members of the Afghani women's cricket team in 2021 when the Taliban took control of the country.
Benafsha has now settled in Canberra with other members of her family who also fled Afghanistan with her and is now pursuing her new life with much enthusiasm which also includes playing cricket.
Benafsha was also a highly valued member of our CWOB team that toured Fiji in September 2022.
Links:
Cricket Without Borders website -
Sophie McIIwain is an accredited player agent and is believed to be the first female accredited player agent in Australian cricket.
Sophie works ethically to support her clients in achieving their personal goals and strongly feels that an agent's job is to assist in every way possible. Sophie works with players, coaches and media personalities around the world.
Links:
Cricket Without Borders website - Show more
