Paige Scholfield says that she is so happy at the Stars that she “didn’t even bother looking” elsewhere, after Surrey announced her as one of their second group of signings for the 2025 season.

Scholfield, who moved to South East Stars from the Southern Vipers two years ago, was likely to be in high demand among the counties – especially after scoring three half-centuries in the first five rounds of the Charlotte Edwards Cup.

But in an exclusive interview with CRICKETher in the wake of Stars’ 6-wicket win against Sunrisers at Lord’s, she said that she had refused to even countenance a move elsewhere.

“I’ve found my home,” she said. “I’ve really enjoyed the environment – Mybs [Coach Johann Myburgh], Stevo [Assistant Coach Darren Stevens], the whole lot.”

“I’ve had such a great time here with the Stars and I want to stay a part of that. I couldn’t be prouder to call Surrey my home.”

Scholfield declined to confirm the exact terms of her deal, but CRICKETher understands that Surrey have offered multi-year contracts to a number of Stars players, including captain Bryony Smith, who was unveiled at the weekend as the county’s first signing.

Scholfield added: “This is my family now and I’ll be staying here for a long time.”

On Thursday at Lord’s, Scholfield fully justified the faith of the powers-that-be at Surrey, striking a 35-ball half-century as Stars beat Sunrisers to go top of the table in the Charlotte Edwards Cup.

Scholfield personally sealed the deal by smashing back-to-back boundaries down the ground off the final two balls of the run-chase, to ensure she simultaneously reached her personal milestone and secured the win.

In another coup for Surrey, Alexa Stonehouse – who had also been announced as a Surrey signing on the morning of the match – took two wickets in her opening three overs, including the huge scalp of Grace Scrivens, as Sunrisers were reduced to 27 for four by the end of the powerplay and never quite recovered.

As Stars slowly but steadily morph seamlessly into Surrey – with more signings from the current squad expected to be announced over the coming days – the county will be well-pleased with their day’s work.

Bryony Smith has described her decision to sign as Surrey’s first ever women’s professional as a “no-brainer”, after she was announced on Sunday as the first player to sign a contract for any of the eight new Tier One teams.

Smith will become Surrey’s first ever female professional and will also captain the Surrey Women’s side, continuing in the role which she has performed for the Stars since 2021.

The news was announced by Surrey ahead of the Stars-Surrey double-header at The Oval, which saw Stars storm to a six-wicket win against reigning champions Southern Vipers in the first leg.

“I always knew I was going to stay, unless something miraculous happened,” Smith said, speaking exclusively to CRICKETher after the match.

“I’ve been here since I was 9, and I can’t see myself playing for any other club.”

Smith refused to confirm whether any of the other Tier One sides had approached her, but CRICKETher understands that at least one other team had expressed interest in signing the 26-year-old.

She described her conversations with Surrey as “very casual”, involving a chat over coffee with Surrey Director of Women’s Cricket Emma Calvert.

“She said: ‘we want you here, and we want you to lead this team – here’s the offer!’,” Smith told CRICKETher. “I went away and thought about it, but it was a no-brainer.”

Calvert labelled Smith “one of the outstanding leaders on the domestic circuit and a fantastic leader”.

Surrey will now look to assemble the remainder of their 2025 squad. Smith said she would not be involved in selection decisions, but hoped that the Surrey team would look similar to the one she currently leads in regionals.

“I’ve got nothing to do with contracts, which I think is the right way to do it,” she said. “We’re a super-tight group here, and hopefully we keep a pretty similar group [next year].”