In 1874 at the Sandhurst Easter Fair, (Bendigo, Victoria) two teams of women cricketers assembled to play a cricket match in front of a rather large and enthusiastic crowd. It was a charity match raising funds for the Bendigo hospital and asylum. Bowl the Maidens Over: Our First Women Cricketers tells the story of these first competitive women’s cricket matches. The book follows the women players – and the members of the Rae family, pivotal in the establishment and organisation of the matches – from the first advertisement in the paper to the media storm that ensued post-game, linking to a present-day connection to an Australian sportswoman.
Bowl the Maidens Over: Our First Women Cricketers is a factual account of the first Australian women’s cricket matches commencing in 1874. Foreword by Dr Megan Ponsford.