I was lucky enough that I always felt able to play cricket as a young girl, but that isn’t always the case for everyone.
It’s horrible to think of someone playing cricket as a young person and feeling put off, not wanting to go back.
The statistics demonstrate that an overly high percentage of LGBTQ+ people feel less welcome in sport, whether that be as participants or supporters, and we need to help change that. We have the platform and the opportunity to say to the LGBTQ+ community – we want you to feel at home in cricket!
I know from personal experience that it can be all too easy to hide your true self in sport, even in women’s sport which is generally far more accepting of difference than men’s sport. While I was out to my teammates, I wasn’t publicly out until I married my wife, Courtney, and it’s been so nice for me to be able to share my true self with everyone.
I have felt liberated, and I’ve really enjoyed the opportunity to be a role-model and speak up for what I believe in. I’m working with Stonewall on becoming a Sport Champion to spread the message more widely.
And that’s where something like Rainbow Laces comes in. It’s the opportunity for the sport to demonstrate that it cares. To demonstrate that cricket is for you, regardless of who you are or where you come from.
They might just be a pair of laces or some stickers on the stumps but it’s the symbolism of the game lending its backing to inclusion for the LGBTQ+ community. I can tell you that can mean an awful lot to a young person who doesn’t fancy heading back to the cricket club because they once heard some unkind comments.
Sport is coming along all the time. We’re always facing challenges of how to become more inclusive but if you think of the conversations we’re having in 2022 about LGBTQ+ people in sport, they’re in a much better place than we were five years ago, and five years before that.
We have to keep moving forward, keep challenging each other on how we behave and the environment that we help to create. It’s the same for all marginalised members of society – we all have to use our privilege to make others feel more welcome and accepted.
It’s great to see that a group of supporters have set up an LGBTQ+ supporters group for English cricket. If you don’t already follow Pride In Cricket then you should, you can join up and become part of their group, all work to help make LGBTQ+ people in cricket feel more at home.
This is the fifth year that cricket has supported Rainbow Laces and in that time we’ve marched at London Pride, we’ve seen Graces CC play Unicorns CC, and now we’re seeing a group of fans set up a nationwide supporters group. It’s all progress, and that comes from visibility and awareness.
So do pop your laces in this weekend and let people know that you too want to encourage more LGBTQ+ people to get involved in cricket, our game is for everyone.
To access the Rainbow Laces toolkit, follow this link.