Evolution of the White Ferns uniform
Imagine, that you’ve been selected for the New Zealand cricket team. Then two weeks later, a pattern arrives, along with a bolt of fabric, and you are expected to sew your own uniform.
While that’s unimaginable for men of any era, and the modern White Ferns, it was the reality for women who represented New Zealand from the mid-1930s until the 1970s.
But that is just part of the story that has helped shaped not only women in cricket, but the sport itself. Corsets, cloches and culottes The first documentation of women playing cricket in New Zealand is from the late 1800s, adorned in wide-brimmed hats, ‘‘well padded’’ corsets and full length skirts. Historians, including those behind The Warm Sun on My Face – the Story of Women’s Cricket in New Zealand (due out in January), believe it was this uniform that led to the invention of the overarm bowling style, as the voluminous skirts impeded the ability to bowl underarm – the standard style of bowling at the time.
Corsets were slowly phased out amongst New Zealand society through the early part of the 20th century, and by the 1920s – when sporting pursuits of women increased – women were wearing knee-length skirts and cloche hats while on the field.
The first discussion of trousers for women came in the early 1930s, but it would be another 50 years before trousers were introduced. During this time ‘‘divided skirts’’ were commonly worn, so were long woollen socks or nylon stockings. The latter was phased out in the 1950s.
During the latter era, the players were encouraged not to wear hats, as it was deemed too ‘‘masculine’’.
Fashion historian Doris Du Pont from the New Zealand Fashion Museum said the uniforms ‘‘absolutely’’ reflected the fashion of the day, however she found the inclusion of stockings slightly odd.
’’The wearing of stockings is completely bizarre ... because with cricket you’ve got to dive for the ball, and you know how expensive stockings are,’’ she said.
’’Trousers for women... were acceptable during the war years when women were doing men’s work. It’s interesting that it wasn’t acceptable for sport.
’’But there was still a stigma about women taking part in sport ... being too physical.’’
The uniforms were ‘‘social restriction’’ rather than fashion or function – with men often dictating what women wore and how they engaged in sport, Du Pont said.
‘‘It’s not an easy uniform to be active in,’’ she said.
Sew it yourself
Test cricketer Trish McKelvey first toured the United Kingdom in 1966/67. She remembers the New Zealand Women’s Cricket Council sending her a pattern, a bolt of fabric – just like her predecessors – and a voucher to buy heeled formal shoes.
‘‘[Formal] hats were supplied … we had to have gloves because we were going to the garden party at Buckingham Palace, and we went to Hannahs for a specific style of shoe. And we had to get our dress uniform made by someone, at our expense,’’ she said.
The side were also given matching handbags, which were often discarded amongst playing equipment on the sidelines during the games.
There was no ‘‘official playing gear’’, she said, so players wore what they already owned – usually long socks, culottes and a buttoned down shirt – resulting in a ‘‘variety of whites’’, but they still looked ‘‘quite good out on the field’’.
During this time, the players also had to kneel on the ground to have their culottes measured. Culottes had to be just above the knee.
But during the late 1960s and into the 70s – as the second-wave of feminism kicked in – the culottes got shorter and shorter; a reflection of modern society where mini-skirts became a symbol of women’s empowerment.
Du Pont said the ‘‘era’’ of the mini echoes the 1920s, with the shift away from ‘‘constraints’’ of traditional societal norms. The 1970s was also the era that trousers started to become a main-stay in women’s wardrobes. ‘‘The mini was youthful and energetic,’’ she said.
’’Women’s dress code has always been quite deliberately restricting. Those periods where you get that youthful rebellion in the 1920s and [late] 1960s where the skirts get shorter ... so young women can be active and engage. They’re breaking out of those male-dictated constraints.’’
Power blazers and men’s hand-me-downs
Women wore blazers from the mid-1930s, but it was the late 1980s to mid-90s where the power blazers took pride of place, featuring power shoulders.
‘‘It was a classic,’’ said former White Fern Maia Lewis, who was the first Ma¯ori woman (Nga¯ti Wha¯tua, Nga¯ti Maniapoto) to be inducted into the MCC Lord’s Cricket Club in 2017.
‘‘I thought I was pretty trendy at the time to be fair ... it gave me big, bulky shoulders like a gridiron player.’’
On the field she played in both the coloured uniform, and whites. Her first was the test uniform of box pleated culottes and long white socks which resulted in the ‘‘good old tan mark’’ across her knees.
She also remembers her ‘‘initiation’’ into the team and the introduction to the international uniform.
‘‘I had to white [paint] the shoes and pads, and iron the culottes ... I had to get the crinkles correct when I was ironing. It was very detailed,’’ she said. ‘‘I was stoked when that went out because I hate ironing. I very much doubt [the male players] had to [iron]. Maybe they got their wives or partners to do it.’’
The introduction of trousers came during the 90s, around the time New Zealand Cricket merged with the New Zealand Women’s Cricket Council.
The women received men’s hand-me-down uniforms. Out came the sewing machines to adapt the ‘‘rather large’’ and heavy uniforms designed for men.
But not all in the cricket community were happy that women were wearing trousers.
‘‘There were grumblings from the older generation about women not playing in culottes and moving to pants, and how it was too masculine. Those attitudes were never going to change. But over time, they’ve phased out. It takes time for people to adjust,’’ she said.
‘‘[But] I was stoked when [trousers] came in, not to have the tan, but also to dive and not graze your legs, and have more confidence.’’
In the later part of Lewis’ career the fabric changed – it was lightweight and slick – and along with it came a different style of play.
‘‘The fabric made a huge difference. It always felt slippery and shiny, so the ability to dive and slide came as well,’’ she said.
‘‘Look at the [Women’s Big Bash League] and the great athletes playing these days. Imagine them trying to play in culottes. It wouldn’t happen, and they wouldn’t be able to perform the skills they do these days.’’
The era of magenta
Test matches for women, just like culottes and whites, were relegated to the past, but the uniform continued to evolve as cricket moved into shorter formats.
There were the teal and black uniforms for one day internationals, in similar design to the men’s, but cut for women. Then in 2015, the White Ferns introduced magenta to their Twenty20 uniform, which the players designed themselves, with help of uniform maker Canterbury of New Zealand.
Du Pont describes the accentuated upper area of the magenta uniform as ‘‘exaggerated corset’’ and almost an acknowledgement to the early days of women in cricket, although current White Fern Katey Martin can’t imagine wearing a corset.
‘‘I don’t know how you would breathe in it. You wouldn’t be able to run that fast between the wickets. You would have been very restricted!’’ she laughed. Martin would like to see blazers return to the mix to recognise the past and continue the legacy into the future.
‘Images kindly supplied by the NZ Cricket Museum.