Jane Powell – President of Yorkshire CCC; ECB Performance Manager Disability Cricket; former captain, Yorkshire Women; and former captain and coach of England Women – talks as she lives – con brio.
Fast, funny, gritty, warm and enthusiastic, Jane arrived in Beverley fresh from Ahmedabad and the first international t20 series between the England and India Men’s Physical Disability teams (England lost 3-2 to the hosts) and about to embark on a trip to Perth, Western Australia to stay with her identical twin sister, Jill.
When Jane says 'turning up is important', she means it.
As only our third female speaker, it was particularly interesting to hear how this self-described 'just a girl from Sheffield' went about achieving so much in the cricket world.
And not just in the cricket world.
A busy – indeed hectic – sporting life has seen her excel in cricket, hockey, badminton and lacrosse, as player and as coach, and has clearly required a deep well of skill, resilience and determination.
She and Jill began playing in a local team with their father and brother – more interesting than making the sandwiches!
From there Jane's cricket took her to the England captaincy; to Eden Gardens, the MCG and many of the great Test grounds; and to meeting figures of world renown like Indira Gandhi and Robert Mugabe.
She believes wholeheartedly in the spirit of cricket and considers that some of the extra challenges faced by women cricketers of her generation helped to build mental and physical robustness.
Her own physical robustness is evident also in her hockey prowess. An England international, she missed out on the 1980 Moscow Olympics, boycotted by the GB hockey teams following Russia's invasion of Afghanistan.
The British athletes, however, took part and her Sheffield classmate Sebastian Coe won gold.
Jane's current work as Performance Manager for four England Men's Disability Teams – Physical, Learning, Visual and Hearing – brings her great satisfaction and enjoyment.
Her nickname is 'Boss', spelled out for us with bold gestures in sign language.
And as if all this were not enough, Jane is also the current President of Yorkshire CCC – the first woman appointee in 160 years.
In this role she's tried to say yes to everything asked of her, on top of her full-time job.
I felt exhausted just listening and welcomed the break and raffle!
After the break, Chairman Michael offered his services if Jane wishes to write her life story.
Maybe?
We learned that her best Test match score was an undefeated 115 against India at Blackpool, and her highest 1-day score, 98 not out.
More unusually, she and Jill were once given a joint score of 70+ when the scorers couldn't tell them apart, both twins claiming to have scored a half-century. I wonder what our president, Yorkshire scorer John Potter (away in Australia), would have to say about that!
As Yorkshire President, Jane is looking forward to meeting Colin Graves and learning how he views the Yorkshire cricket world and his part in it. She also sympathises with former Director of Cricket Darren Gough, so hampered in his role by lack of money.
This does, however, give opportunity to talented young players – like Revis, Hill, Bean and Fisher – who are the future of the club. Indeed, she rates her most positive cricketing experiences in 2023 as Finlay Bean’s early century and watching the younger players, men and women.
She loves all forms of cricket and praised the Hundred for its positive impact on the game.
Jane has no formal job description as president. It is an ambassadorial role, not an executive one, so she can adapt it as she sees fit. She defines leadership as an action – showing up, standing back, pushing others forward and having integrity. And she draws a clear distinction between simply making contact with a group or an individual and making a true connection – something she amply achieved with us.
Another excellent audience of 55 members and guests offered a very warm thank you to Jane.
The raffle raised £152 pounds, for which grateful thanks to all who contributed.
And as a personal aside, taking notes for a speaker who goes at 110 miles an hour without drawing breath is exciting but tiring!
Cathy Rennison
Read more about Jane here: