Two Sussex girls among winners of #HeathersPride competition

Today, England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the nine First Class Counties hosting England Women’s fixtures this summer have announced the 11 winners of the nationwide #HeathersPride competition. Two girls from Sussex, Ruby Sowerby and Hope Mullins are among the winners.

The competition – launched by England Women’s Captain Heather Knight on International Women’s Day in March this year – invited young female cricket players and fans from across the country to win a training session with the England Women’s team.

The regional #HeathersPride winners were chosen by each of the nine counties hosting England Women’s fixtures this summer with two winners chosen by Heather Knight herself.

Earlier this week, Heather was filmed at Lord’s choosing the lucky winners, check out video of Heather choosing her picks here. 

The nine winners selected by the counties from their respective regions are:

• Flora Davies
• Matilda Hirst
• Katie Fiddler
• Zahra Ashraf
• Rosie Reynolds
• Ruby Sowerby
• Anika Verma
• Maiya Charlesworth
• Poppy Camplin

These winners are joined by two lucky entrants selected by Heather Knight. The two captain’s picks are:

• Hope Mullins
• Malisha Tennakoon

Hope Mullins aged 10 @SussexCCC #HeathersPride pic.twitter.com/w0yMFlVCx6

— Melanie Mullins (@Melanie260403) April 26, 2019

Hope's winning entry!

The competition was open to girls between the ages of 7-11 across the country who each had the opportunity to tell their county or ECB, why they deserved the chance to be a part of #HeathersPride. Entries were made via social media or through email.

Commenting after helping pick the winners, Heather Knight said: “I absolutely loved looking through all the entries. There were so many girls who had tried really hard to show us why they should come and train with us.

“It really filled me with confidence about the future of women’s cricket in England and Wales and it was genuinely inspiring to see how much it means to all of them.

“My only disappointment was not being able to choose more winners, but I hope that those entrants who didn’t win will still come and see us this summer.

“I can’t wait to meet the winners and train with them - from some of the cricket on show in the videos they might be able to help us out in the nets!”

Clare Connor, ECB’s Managing Director of Women’s Cricket, added: “It inspired us all to see the response to this opportunity from so many girls who shared their passion for cricket through their wonderful videos on social media.

“We will give these winners a very special day when they come to join Heather and the England women’s team. They represent the huge number of girls up and down the country who are coming in to the game, hopefully having been inspired by Heather and her team in recent years. It’s very humbling for us all and I’m sure it’ll be a memorable day for everyone involved.”

Catch Heather Knight and her England team in action when they take on Australia in a IT20 right here at The 1st Central County Ground.