Cricket now "part of culture" at St Swithun’s School

Focus on sport in Hampshire school's 140th year

There will be a glorious sight for cricket fans at St Swithun’s School next summer.

As parents and visitors travel up the Winchester school's magnificent drive, they will see cricket being played by girls on all sides.

This uplifting scene will serve as testimony to the great work done by the Hampshire school's head of cricket, Sara Heffernan.

Although cricket was first played in the 1910s, it gradually disappeared from the curriculum to be replaced by activities like tennis and athletics.

Heffernan, who plays for Alton CC, led the renaissance, however, and she says: "Cricket is part of our culture now. The girls come up to me during the lunchbreak and tell me the latest scores. They say, 'did you see the England result at the weekend?' They also practise and play matches through their lunch breaks. There has been a cultural change at St Swithun's, and it started from scratch.

"This summer was amazing. We had a fantastic array of fixtures against the local schools. We entered various cups, and our under-13 and under-15 sides both reached the county finals, playing alongside each other in the finals. It was an amazing sight."

The school team went into the summer in great spirits, after reaching the under-15 indoor national finals at Lord's.

"It was such an amazing experience for the girls," said Heffernan. "It gave us real momentum going into the season."

The school were also defeated indoor finalists at Lord's in 2019.

St Swithun's has an artificial pitch on the front field, with another one being installed on the other side next Easter. There are two indoor nets, with outdoor nets on their way.

"Parents will come in and see cricket everywhere, on the left and right pitches and in the nets… it will be a stunning sight!" said Heffernan.

The school has matches every Saturday through the term, and the dedicated girls practise through the winter.

Tradition says that if it rains on St Swithun's Day – July 15 – it will rain every day for the rest of the summer. Heffernan confirms that alas it did rain in 2023, and it went on to be a wet summer. But as long as it stays dry in 2024, the school's 140th year, St Swithun's cricketers are seemingly poised to achieve great things again.