Following on from the exciting changes to our Performance Pathway, including parity between the Boys' and Girls' County Age Group Pathways from September 2024, we are delighted to announce further exciting updates for Devon Women.
With some major changes looming to the future of the women's county game, the Devon Cricket Foundation is keen to continue our county's long and proud female cricketing tradition which, under the two-decades-long guidance of Warren Carr and Gavin Lane, regularly saw Devon Women competing at the top end of the Women's County Championship Division Two against several first-class counties.
This proud history is underpinned by a solid and well-established county-wide hardball competition in the form of the Tolchards Devon Women's Cricket League, which boasts a phenomenal 15 teams across two divisions and has been running for over two decades. This is further supplemented by a 34-team-strong hardball Devon Women's Indoor Cricket League and a growing softball offering which is changing the face of cricket across the county and bringing diversity to local cricket clubs.
This solid foundation has resulted in a strong female Performance Pathway, which saw the Under 18 Girls crowned national County Cup champions in 2022 and national runners-up in 2023. The Girls' County Age Group Pathway is set to grow even stronger, with two new age groups set to start from September 2024 that will achieve parity with the Boys' Pathway.
OUR AMBITION
Under the ECB's recently proposed new structure for the women's game, our ambition is to compete at the highest possible level. At this time, the highest level we can aspire to is Tier 2, which will see between 10 and 14 counties compete beneath a professional, 8-team Tier 1.
Making further progress towards complete parity throughout our Performance Pathway, our female programme would take another step towards mirroring the male programme by extending our existing link with Somerset CCC, which currently provides boys in Devon with a clear progression route to First-Class County Cricket. This will also see us back Somerset CCC's region-wide bid for Tier 1 status.
Aligning the Devon Women's programme with the Devon Cricket Foundation's Performance Pathway in 2023 marks a significant step towards our aspiration to secure Tier 2 status.
This strategic move underscores our commitment to nurturing talent and fostering growth opportunities for female cricketers in Devon. By leveraging the resources and expertise of the Devon Cricket Foundation's Performance Pathway, our programme can offer enhanced support and development pathways, ultimately empowering female players to realise their full potential.
Integrating the Devon Women into our pathway creates a more seamless transition for players aiming to develop, progress and realise their dreams, giving female players in the county the best opportunity to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Emma Corney, Amara Carr, Jodie Dibble and England captain Heather Knight.
The move to align the Devon Women was followed up this pre-season with the team's most comprehensive winter training programme ever ahead of what is set to be the busiest summer of women's cricket this decade.
We are immensely proud to be joined on this journey by our partners Her Game Too Cricket, with the award-winning national campaign's logo set to feature on this year's bespoke Devon Women's kit.
See who will be playing for Devon Women this season.
