cricket

"It starts with belief and need to keep motivating the players to play positive cricket and change around our downfall."

Netball England trumpets participation numbers, but football, rugby and cricket are also appealing to women and girls.

"I learned quite quickly in cricket that I really need to focus to get the best out of myself - I can get distracted and I can drift quite quickly," Bell told BBC Sport.

The council said the restriction only referred to adult hardball cricket and argued the decision was based on "advice received from professional and legal advisors".

Perhaps more importantly, Knight led English women's cricket into the professional era and was never anything less than a superb role model in the growth of the game.