The Keynote from #CRN2026 has now been released on the
@sportinhistorypod.bsky.social #podcast! Happy listening!
@sportinhistory.bsky.social @bssh.bsky.social @icshc.bsky.social @rafnicholson.bsky.social @tjaldred.bsky.social @crickether.com
๐ linktr.ee/sportinhisto...
Global ๐
In an op-ed, writer Suzanne Wrack has argued that womenโs football should adopt a global summer calendar to avoid clashes with the menโs game, improve broadcast access and boost commercial growth.
buff.ly/wIEQlaC
@bssh.bsky.social @camsell59.bsky.social @wgrumblepants.bsky.social @peakfan.bsky.social @rickeyrecricket.com @elizabethammon.bsky.social @anniechave.bsky.social @bias.org.uk
The Q&A was recorded and will be made available as a podcast via the @bssh.bsky.social podcast, so keep an eye out for that in the coming days! #CRN2026
Gold Plaques for Lily Parr + Lizzy Ashcroft @bssh.bsky.social @playingpasts.bsky.social @whuhistorian.bsky.social
HOCKEY and CANADA (if you look closely you can see my tears)
Fab Article in Daily Mirror @playingpasts.bsky.social @bssh.bsky.social @jurryt.bsky.social @tfhbs.bsky.social
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news...
This really is a great picture:
Well the new BSSH website is now live and is carrying this years conference info... www.sportinhistory.com/events/2026-...
Applications for the BSSH annual conference in Edinburgh this summer are now open. Abstracts of 200 words on any aspect of sport are welcome; the deadline for submissions is 31st March 2026.
The recent joint SPORTING HERITAGE and BSSH event at University of Huddersfield's Heritage Quay in which BSSH Chair Katie Taylor was a panel member discussing research and practice challenges, against the backdrop of the Women's Rugby League Exhibition.
THURSDAY 26 February 9.00am - REGISTRATION / TEA & COFFEE ON ARRIVAL (included) Venue: Hughes Hall, Cambridge, CB1 2EW 9.30am to 10.30am - Panel 1: Gender Chair: Philippa Velija Akanksha Kohli, Dominic Malcolm (Loughborough University) & Philippa Velija (University of Roehampton) - โI think I could see the turning pointโฆpeople just came for good cricketโ: Female Cricketers' Experiences of Professionalization Georgia Norman (Durham University) - How Has The Hundred Impacted the Lived Experience of Women Cricketers in England? Max He (Xiโan Jiaotong University) - State-feminism, Olympic status and gender relations in Chinese cricket 10:30am to 11.30am - Panel 2: History Chair: Jeremy Lonsdale Anand Rampersad (University of the West Indies) - Issues and Challenges to the Development of West Indies Womenโs Cricket Tony Watts (St Catharineโs College, Cambridge) - Town v Gown, City v Village: A History of Cricket in Cambridge Fiona Reid (Bayfirth Research CIC), Susan Warren (SKS Scotland CIC) and Raf Nicholson (Bournemouth University) - The Unexpected Role of Fenners in Scotland Women's Cricket 11.30am to 11.45am - BREAK 11.45am to 12.45pm - Q&A: โCatching the Spirit?โ The ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026
12.45pm - LUNCH (included) 1.45pm to 2.45pm - Panel 3: Inclusion Chair: Shubham Jain / Thomas Fletcher Ross Ensor (Leeds Beckett University) - Volunteering among ethnically diverse communities Adeela Shafi (University of Gloucestershire) - Future-Proofing Cricket: How AI-Driven, Bias-Resistant Talent Intelligence Can Transform the Game Kieran Holly (University of Huddersfield) - Why Cricket Fandom Matters: Using Irish cricket to demonstrate the need for a new research agenda in sport fan studies 2.45pm to 3.45pm - Panel 4: Representations of cricket Chair: Dominic Malcolm Rod Edmond (University of Kent) - Cricket and its Stories Richard Jones (University of Salford) - Cricketโs place in the sports news agenda Hannah Thompson-Radford (Swansea University) - โStop dressing everything in pinkโ: Hyperfeminisation of the 2020 T20 World Cup Final 3.45pm - TEA & COFFEE (included) 4.00pm to 5.00pm - Panel 5: Governance & Sustainability Chair: Raf Nicholson Steve Menary - Cricketโs obsession with illegal betting sponsorship Shubham Jain (University of Cambridge) - Scorched Pitches: Climate Justice and Cricket's South Asian Paradox Stephen Ross (Pennsylvania State University) - Cricket in the Public Interest: The Need for Governance Reform 5.00pm - END
We are so excited about our conference, at Hughes Hall, Cambridge on 26 February - see full programme below.
There are still a few tickets remaining - grab one while you can:
www.cricketsociety.org.uk/events/crick...
And thank you to @bssh.bsky.social for your support ๐
John Virgo, former snooker player and broadcaster, dies aged 79
Front cover of The Women in Whites: A History of Women's Cricket in England, by Raf Nicholson. The cover has photos of Enid Bakewell, Myrtle Maclagan, Charlotte Edwards, Rachael Heyhoe Flint and Sarah Taylor.
A major milestone yesterday: I submitted the manuscript of The Women in Whites ๐พ๐ฅณ
This book has been years in the making - I started writing it during lockdown - so it feels surreal to actually have it off my desk!
Due out in May. Publisher: Pitch Publishing.
Beyond Tonya Harding: 8 Olympic Figure-Skating Scandals Served Cold
Yui Hasegawa ๐คฃ
#WSL #MCFC
The UAE will participate in the Winter Olympics for the first time when the Games begin on February 6, 2026, in Italy. One of the two UAE athletes learned to ski at the indoor skiing facility Ski Dubai, while the other athlete has been naturalized.
www.thenationalnews.com/sport/2026/0...
Anya Shrubsole always speaks so wisely. In this case, her points about player use of social media and (near the end) about what makes a good coach are spot on.
Hopefully we do manage to keep her in the game in some form or another.
(The Anya portion of the podcast starts at 18.44)
#sportshistory "A most unsuitable game: Reflections on a community celebration of the womenโs game in Scotland", @ihr.bsky.social @bssh.bsky.social webinar, 26 Jan featuring @fionaskillen.bsky.social @juliemcneillwrites.bsky.social & Karen Fraser. Booking now open: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
Katie Taylor on Cheyenne Hollis' The Touchback YouTube channel, talking about her research into women's American football and her forthcoming book. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hqyb...
Interesting podcast with Hugh Macdonald podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/h...
A photo of fireworks over Edinburgh Castle. The lights coming out of the castle are rainbow coloured.
Happy New Year, especially whoever did the gay lighting at Edinburgh Hogmanay โจ๏ธ๐
If youโre a fellow hammer in the doldrums over West Hamโs performance against City yesterday (expected, but still absolutely shocking from us), perhaps a couple of hours listening to Martin Godleman, the voice of #WestHam will lift your spirits.
We talk books, narratives & everything in between!
My Christmas present to you all - itโs my annual Womenโs Team of the Year for @theguardian.com!
What do you reckon - did I get it right?
My book Bidding for the 1968 Olympic Games is still on sale (40% off!) with the code HOLIDAY until January 4 in case you still want to buy more books #skystorians ๐๏ธ #sporthistory
www.umasspress.com/978162534595...
#OnThisDay 27 Dec 1920 ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ
The Dick, Kerr Ladies and St Helen's Ladies drew a crowd of 53,000 at Goodison Park.
The growing popularity of women's football spooked the FA into banning affiliated grounds from hosting women.
The ban lasted 50 years.
#OnThisDay 26 Dec 1860 ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ
In this leafy corner of Sheffield, the world's oldest derby first took place as @hallamfc1860.bsky.social hosted @sheffieldfc.bsky.social
Both clubs were playing 'Sheffield rules', and the visitors won 2-0.
More in my book ๐๐ผ www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/shop/origin-...
Sorry to hear of the passing of John Robertson today...Capped 28 times, Robertson was also a double European Cup winner with Nottingham Forest. www.youtube.com/shorts/P1jsG...
#OnThisDay 25 Dec 1871 ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ
Reading Football Club was founded at a public meeting.
Christmas was more of a community affair in those days, and Christmas matches were a regular fixture until 1965
The 2026 men's League of Ireland fixtures are now out ๐ฎ๐ช
Most matches are played on a Friday night, but on the West Coast, you can knock off two in two days.
Read on... #groundhopping
outsidewrite.substack.com/p/groundhopp...
