The City of Greater Bendigo is excited to be shortlisted in the Victorian Women’s Public Art Program to commemorate Barbara Rae, who was the winning captain and top scorer of Australia’s first women’s cricket match.
The entry proposes state funding for a permanent public artwork of cricketer Barbara Rae outside the Queen Elizabeth Oval to acknowledge her significant role as a trailblazer for women’s cricket and sport.
The Victorian Women’s Public Art Program aims to address the under-representation of women and their achievements by funding six public artworks in Victoria.
Bendigo is the birthplace of women’s cricket in Australia and the first match occurred as part of the Easter Fair in 1874. At that time, women required permission to play in ‘male-only’ sports.
Nineteen year old cricketer and primary school teacher Barbara Rae was pivotal in the staging of Australia’s first ever cricket match here in Bendigo. She helped to organise the inaugural match by recruiting other women to play and held coaching sessions at the local cricket grounds.
Barbara captained the winning Blues team and was judged to be the player of the match.
Director Healthy Communities and Environments Stacy Williams said the public artwork needed strong backing from the community for a chance to be considered.
“The City is very excited the proposal to commemorate Barbara Rae has been shortlisted on the Victorian Women’s Public Art Program website, Ms Williams said.
“I encourage you to show your support by voting for Barbara Rae so we can see this important piece of Bendigo history placed on the map permanently. Voting is quick and easy.
“Bendigo’s proposal is one of 13 new public artworks in Victoria seeking to attract the most public votes.
“The Minister for Women will consider the results of the public engagement in December and six of the proposed artworks will be selected for funding.
“With public support, a funded permanent public artwork of Barbara Rae outside the entrance of the Queen Elizabeth Oval would be a fantastic way to honour this extraordinary player and celebrate Bendigo where women’s cricket was born.
“The strength and determination of Barbara and her teammates played an important role in the evolution of women’s cricket.”
The inaugural match in 1874 during the Easter Fair was attended by thousands and the match was initially deemed a success. However, in the following days, players faced hostility in many Victorian newspapers for what was considered ‘deplorable’ and ‘unseemly’ behaviour for women to play public sport.
As the match top scorer, Barbara Rae was due to be presented with an honorary bat in the evening following the match. Due to the mixed reaction in the community to the women’s match and fear of further backlash, Barbara did not attend the ceremony, and as a result, never received the prized bat.
Last March, Greater Bendigo celebrated the 150th anniversary of the first women’s cricket match with a commemorative T20 match between Bendigo V Ballarat on Good Friday. Diane Robertson, great granddaughter of Barbara Rae, attended the match and was presented with an honorary bat donated by Cricket Australia in recognition of her great grandmother’s sporting achievements.