ENGLAND women’s cricketer of the Year, Lydia Greenway, has visited the region to pass on tips to budding youngsters.

ENGLAND women’s cricketer of the Year, Lydia Greenway, has visited the region to pass on tips to budding youngsters.

Lydia, who on Tuesday was named as the ECB Women’s Cricketer of the Year, came to Essex through the Chance to Shine scheme which was launched by The Cricket Foundation in 2005 to bring competitive cricket – and its educational benefits – back to at least one third of the country’s state schools initially over a ten-year period.

Ron Parkes, who is girls’ cricket co-ordinator at Mistley Cricket club, and also assistant coach to the North Essex Under-15s side, approached Dave Letch, the women’s and girls’ cricket development officer at Essex Cricket, to see if he could arrange the visit.

Ron ran coaching sessions at Highfields Primary School in Lawford and Harwich High School in the afternoon before taking a third session at Mistley CC in the evening. A total of 80 girls, aged between eight and 16, took part in the three sessions.

He said: “Lydia was brilliant and very good with the kids. The Chance to Shine project is all about getting kids from the schools into the clubs, and hopefully the sessions we put on will encourage some of those who took part to get involved.”

Lydia, who is widely recognised as the best fielder in the women’s game, was voted England Women’s Player of the Year after she enjoyed an excellent year of international cricket. Her consistency with the bat saw her named the player of the series on two occasions in the last 12 months, firstly during the NatWest Women’s ODI Series against New Zealand last summer and then again in the T20I Series against Australia this winter, as England beat the current ICC world champions 4-1.