Pretty in Pink - Jane Cable joins the Ladies Lunch

Mrs Glynis Osborne

Quite honestly I have never seen the Hampshire Suite look so gorgeous; pink ribbons on the seats, glasses of pink champagne everywhere, and filled to the brim with glamorous ladies dressed up to the nines. No wonder I felt out of place!

The occasion was a Ladies’ Lunch organised by Hampshire Cricket and Hampshire Members’ Committee stalwart, Glynis Osborne. As with everything she does for the club, Glynis had thrown her heart and soul into the event, and her dedication to introducing more women to cricket certainly paid off. 104 ladies attended, and for many of them it was their first visit to The Rose Bowl.

As well as a fashion show by Foxy Lady of Shamrock Quay, Southampton, and exhibitors including Hallmark Jewellers of Titchfield, Sohstars recycled designer handbags and Panache Beauty Salon, Glynis made sure the ladies had a sound introduction to cricket. She gave a talk on cricketing basics, including modes of dismissal and field placings, and had thoughtfully littered the tables with cricketing quotes and photographs.

The event was supported by Hampshire’s Billy Taylor, who was there to promote his fundraising walk later this year in aid of local children’s charity, Honeypot (www.honeypot.co.uk). “I was really happy with the lunch,” Billy told me. “Everyone was so nice and supportive, and the ladies raised £900 through the raffle, which is fantastic. Hopefully they’ll mention Honeypot to their friends and we can raise the charity’s profile more.”

If the idea of the lunch was to introduce more women to cricket, then it certainly seemed to work, judging by the number of ladies who were still watching the game at five o’clock in the afternoon. But obviously no one event can cater for all tastes and budgets, and Glynis and I fell to discussing what else could be done to attract more women to the game.

Although we shared a common objective, we found it hard to agree. I liked the idea of women being able to meet for a coffee and introductory chat before certain games during the season; Glynis has held cricket oriented coffee mornings and suffered very low attendances. I thought it would be good if there was somewhere women going to the game alone, or with children, could sit if they wanted company; Glynis thought this would be creating a ghetto. 104 women wanted to attend a lunchtime fashion show; half dozen or so I have spoken to around the ground wanted something completely cricket oriented held outside working hours.

One thing we did agree on was that this debate should be thrown open. There’s a feedback facility on this website, so please use it. Or if you are a Hampshire Member, then make your views known to Glynis in the normal manner.

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