News

A new national campaign has been launched to promote women’s cricket and to challenge numerous undeserved stereotypes about the sport in Ireland, including the perception that it is too exclusive, too complicated and too boring.

The ground-breaking campaign is fronted by the stars of the game, and it leaves viewers in no doubt that the old-fashioned stereotypes of picnics, sipping tea and sweater vests have been replaced by a new culture of high performance and unstinting ambition.

Watch all 3 adverts!

The campaign

Women’s cricket is now one of the fastest growing sports amongst young women in Ireland. The trailblazing Ireland Women’s cricket team recently turned professional and are now ranked amongst the top 10 teams in the world.

Certa, Ireland’s largest fuel supplier, are helping to promote and develop the sport as its new title sponsor and have worked closely with Cricket Ireland to create the new ‘#BreakingBoundaries’ campaign which is disruptive, memorable, and strikingly different to traditional Irish sports adverts.

The campaign launches this week across video, digital and social media. Certa will also promote it across its network of 39 unmanned, pay@pump forecourts and 22 home heating depots.

The series of three 30 second adverts certainly hit it for six when it comes to challenging misconceptions and promoting the new era of professionalism in Irish women’s cricket, with star players unleashing their skills to smash their way through China tea sets, afternoon tea stands and Victoria sponge cakes.

“People think cricket is just a picnic in the park, but it’s certainly no picnic. Our games are not just 90 minutes, they go on all day. That’s why we train for power, speed and endurance, but the hard work makes winning even more sweet,” explains batter Gaby Lewis as she blasts a Victoria sponge cake into smithereens.

“Cricket is sometimes seen as a little old fashioned, but it is actually one of the fastest growing sports amongst young women in Ireland. The days of sipping tea and sweater vests are long gone. Our team is athletic, ambitious and professional,” says bowler Leah Paul, as she rockets a cricket ball through a China tea set.

“Nobody thinks of Ireland as a top tier cricket team, but we are one of the best ten teams in the world. We competed in the last World Cup. Not throwing shade or anything, but not every team can say that,” says Team Captain, Laura Delany, before she fast bowls an afternoon tea stand to pieces.

Andrew Graham, Managing Director, Certa Ireland said:

“Certa is excited to launch this campaign. It provides a fresh insight into what women’s cricket has to offer and we hope that it inspires more young women to play cricket. We are proud to support the Ireland Women’s cricket team as the rising stars of Irish sport. Their culture of high performance, breaking boundaries and challenging the status quo is shared by everyone at Certa”.

The Ireland Women’s cricket team will travel to the Caribbean next week for a six-match tour against the West Indies. The team are then set to face World Champions Australia in a three-match ODI series in Clontarf in July, followed by a three-match tour to the Netherlands.

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