Cricket in the 60's According to Dawn Newman

Dawn Newman was recently awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for her outstanding service to the community through Zonta International and her contributions to cricket.

Her dedication to her community and her love of cricket is truly inspiring, and she recently caught up with the ACA to share part of her story.

Dawn’s love for cricket began like many other Australians – playing with her family in the backyard.

After learning the game at a very young age, Dawn and her twin sister Elaine would soon follow their big sister Betty around every Saturday afternoon, watching her play and even sometimes fielding when they were short.

A few years later, Dawn joined the Willows club, and at one stage playing alongside Elaine and Betty. The three of them all going on to represent Western Australia. (Dawn’s other sister, Barbara, is the mother of former Test and ODI cricketer Bruce Reid).

In 1968, Dawn Newman became the 63^rd woman to represent Australia in cricket, playing three test matches that summer, all against England.

The three-match series in 1968/69 looked very different to what it does now. For one, Dawn did not have the opportunity to train with the team prior to the Test series, but before each game they had a brief batting session in the nets and did a few different fielding activities.

Dawn had to get herself from Perth to Adelaide, receiving “a sum equivalent to the 2^nd class return train fare” in return. Uniform expenses were covered by the players themselves. While Dawn’s father paid for her blazer, she received a bill to cover her culottes and shirt for $16.50, more than a third of her weekly wage as a full-time office administrator. She was also required to arrange her annual leave to coincide with her cricket commitments.

“It almost came down to if you could arrange annual leave and afford to finance yourself, you might be selected,” says Dawn of both state and national selection.

“For one state carnival in Goulburn, it took me five-and-a-half days by train to get there, which was great for team bonding, but rather tiring.”

Getting funds together for gear and travel was also difficult as the players weren’t earning any match fees, and there was no sponsorship.

“Playing in the 60’s was tough with no adequate facilities or financial support. It was a struggle. We shared a kit bag as not many of us could afford pads but most of us had bats and gloves.”

Despite travelling five-and-a-half days on a train (one way) to barely win a match during the state carnival, Dawn still has fond memories of those trips. The love she had for the game then sustains her to this day. She says the gratefulness they felt for the opportunities to play cricket at a prominent level speaks volumes of the people that were around the women’s sides.

Dawn says it’s amazing to see how far the women’s game has come now.

Our Australian women’s side has just toured India in a multi-format series. The pathways for the women’s game have never been clearer, with strong competitions from grassroots level all the way up. And once they reach the top, they can play the game as a full-time career.

The women’s game will only continue to grow – and that’s thanks in part to the foundation that cricketers like Dawn Newman laid, by doing the hard yards in the early days, which now has cricket so accessible and enjoyable for all.