Martin Saxon reports

With one week of its most closely fought season to go, the Cheshire Women’s League has crowned Appleton as its 2015 champions. The Warrington-based club had previously won the league on three successive occasions between 2010 and 2012, and had finished runners-up in the last two seasons.

Appleton now have an unassailable lead after a day when all matches started but were eventually abandoned due to rain. They did however have time to produce another miserly bowling display to demonstrate what worthy champions they are. 2014 champions Oakmere will finish as runners-up.

Appleton’s fourth title success was a genuine team effort, but it has been a superb season for opening bowler Annie Rashid, with more than 20 wickets at just two runs per over. Sami Fowler has made major contributions with bat and ball, Kathryn Jackson has made huge strides as a bowler this year and the ever-dependable captain Emma Barlow has again averaged over 30 in her opening bat position.

The other sides have not made life easy for Appleton this year. Any match between the top eight can genuinely go either way on the day, illustrated by one of Appleton’s defeats against second division champions Didsbury. The League has an innovative format where in the top two divisions, each team plays the others in their division at home and away, plus one fixture against each of the teams in the other division, making 13 matches in total. One up one down promotion and relegation will apply between the two divisions.

With all of the League’s showpiece occasions so far this year having been affected by rain, the League is genuinely hoping for better luck this coming Sunday when the Cup and Plate Finals of the T20 Divisional Competition are scheduled to be played at Alderley Edge CC, widely regarded as one of Cheshire’s very best grounds.

Oakmere Kats will play Trafford MV in the Plate Final at 11.30, a repeat of the 2010 Plate Final when Oakmere won. A victory would be Oakmere’s third Plate success, while Trafford are seeking to win the trophy for the second time.

Laura Newton and her Wistaston Swans team mates defend their crown in the Cup Final at 15.00, and once again face Chester Boughton Hall Deemons, after Wistaston’s resounding victory in last year’s final. Chester have won this competition on four previous occasions though.

Sadly, the League’s recent annual fixture versus MCC was also cancelled due to rain. Newton was due to captain the Cheshire Women’s League XI, with Claire Taylor in the MCC team.

Beth Smith reports from Netherfield CC.

The Imps were on the road again on Sunday, travelling up to Cumbria with an extremely young side: the average age of the travelling team was just 18! The first game for Lincs was against the hosts, Cumbria – the first time the teams had met this season. The hosts won the toss and elected to bat first.

Two of the four senior players for Lincs, Amy Halloran (1-17) and Sarah McDowell (0-19), took the new ball and Cumbria got off to a quick start reaching 30-1 off the first 4 overs; the wicket coming from Halloran when the first junior got into the action with Ellie Stanley (U15) taking a sharp catch.

More experience came with the first change as Beth Smith took over from Halloran, opening her spell with a wicket maiden as U17 keeper India Freeman used quick hands to get Montgomery stumped, leaving the hosts 30-2 off 5. The mini Imps – Sammy-Jo Boothright (U15), Olivia Clark (U15), Becki Brooker (U17) and Amelia Gardner (U15) – then had their chance to shine, bowling in tandem with Smith before taking over completely to bowl the remaining overs.

Smith ended her overs with 2-17, her second wicket coming when Cowper skied a ball towards the youngest player in the squad, Clark (13), who took the challenging catch off her manager’s bowling which left the hosts 62-3. The mini Imps bowled their lines and length with Brooker (1-29) and Gardner (1-16) each gaining a deserved wicket. But the strength and experience of the more senior Cumbria batsmen came through as they more than doubled their halfway score ending on 145-5 with Sykes finishing on 48*.

Opening U17 pair, Freeman and Brooker, opened for the Ladies in reply and got off to a solid start with a partnership of 47 before Freeman was run out looking to increase the run rate. Halloran joined an in-form Brooker at the crease and the two stayed there for the remaining overs; both batted elegantly with prominent U17 captain Brooker showing her talent and reaching her 50.

However, tight bowling leading to a slow start meant the Imps required 26 off the last over. 2 dot balls and 3 singles were taken before Brooker, looking to end the innings in style, mistimed her shot and ended up caught and bowled on the last ball for 56.

A loss in the first game and the second being abandoned due to rain meant a dull day for the Imps, but spirits were kept high and the ladies will return to Cumbria on 30th August to face the same team in the 50-over format and will look to seek revenge. The mini Imps all held their own and their performances bode well for the rest of their respective Junior seasons: two 40-over games and the annual Malvern Tour for the U15s to look forward to, with the U17s having a T20 round left, along with five 45-over games.

A full scorecard can be found here.

Steve Dent reports from Bedminster CC

Gloucestershire maintained their 100% record in the 50-over county championship with a comprehensive 178-run win against Wiltshire at Bedminster CC.

After winning the toss and batting, openers Abby Evans and Charlie Walker started positively with quick running and positive stroke play. With the total on 41, Walker was unluckily run out backing up for a bright 19 off 31 balls. Bethan Moorcraft joined Evans and the pair proceeded to put together a large partnership. Every time the Wiltshire bowlers erred in line or length, both players took advantage and the scoring rate accelerated.

Evans reached her fifty first with Moorcraft following not far behind as the pair put on 141. Moorcraft was run out for 50 from 76 balls with 4 boundaries, but Evans then proceeded to dominate the rest of the innings; she reached a superb hundred from 137 balls as she shared in partnerships of 42 with Naomi Forecast (14) and Amelia Andrew (24* from 14 balls). She was run out on the last ball of the innings for a high class 132, including 20 boundaries, as Gloucestershire finished on 284-4 from their 50 overs.

In reply, Wiltshire never really showed any intent to chase the target down and set out to frustrate the Gloucestershire bowlers. It took until the 10th over before the breakthrough was made by Eve Alder and the bowlers had to remain patient. The introduction of spinners Abby Evans and Chloe Davis saw more wicket-taking opportunities emerge and Evans trapped Wakeling and Morgan lbw in her spell of 2-20 off 10 overs. Davis took the wicket of Amore with another lbw decision before a series of run outs set Wiltshire further back. Naomi Forecast pounced at backward point to run out More and this was followed by direct hit runs outs from Amelia Andrew and Evans as Wiltshire fell to 79-7.

The reintroduction of Alder saw her trap Farrant lbw before a superb catch diving forward at short extra cover by Chloe Davis gave Charlie Walker her first wicket. A last wicket partnership of 20 frustrated Gloucestershire. but with the total on 106, Davis took a return catch off her own bowling to end the Wiltshire innings. Davis finished with 2-20 from 7.3 overs, Eve Alder ended with 2-23 and Walker 1-25.

Coach Steve Dent said afterwards: “Abby’s high class century was a real highlight today and continues her excellent form this season. She batted all the way through the 50 overs and gave us the platform for a significant score. We kept the pressure on the Wiltshire batters with some disciplined bowling and fielding and the win consolidates our position at the top of Division Four.”

Gloucestershire are next in action in the County T20 competition against Scotland and Devon on 2nd August at Frocester CC.

Beth Smith reports from Ellesmere College

On Sunday in the latest round of county T20s, the Imps travelled across to Shropshire with their youngest side of the season so far – 5 U15 players making their Ladies’ debut. The first game for Lincolnshire was against Northumberland who they had previously lost to in the 50-over format. Captain Hayley Butts won the toss and put Northumberland in to bat.

With Sarah McDowell playing behind the stumps for the day and the regular opening bowlers not playing, Beth Smith was handed the ball for the first over. Lincs were alert in the field from the start, gaining a run-out with the first ball of the day! The second over went to one of the debutants, Sammy-Jo Boothright (1-21), who combined with another debutant, Charlotte Moore, to pick up her first senior wicket, leaving Northumberland 5-2.

The scoreboard ticked over slowly and there were some chances put down in the field by Lincs, but this altered with a catch at gully by the captain, giving Smith her first wicket of the day. A small partnership formed before quick hands by McDowell removed Sergeant off Smith’s bowling. Two more quick wickets by Smith (4-22) left the batting side 46-6 inside 10 overs.

Rachael Dyer came on and bowled very economically for no wickets (0-6), followed by U15 debutant Olivia Clark (0-5). At the other end opening U15 bowler Megan Quinlan (1-11), also making her debut, took the only other wicket to fall in Northumberland’s innings, combining with U17 Alexia Page-Graves. Northumberland ended at 93-7 so Lincs required 94 for victory.

There was a sense of de-ja-vu as Smith was caught out to only the second ball of the Imps reply. This brought Page-Graves to the middle to join U17 captain Becki Brooker. The duo had built a platform for a partnership before a ball popped, clipping the shoulder of Page-Graves’ (14) bat, giving a simple catch for the fielder at slip. McDowell (4) came to the middle and managed a boundary before being caught in front of the bat bringing Butts to the middle.

Brooker (15) looked to be in good form until she went to play across a ball that kept very low off the pitch, bringing Dyer to join Butts at the crease. The two batted well together getting ever closer to the target, but Butts was then bowled, leaving Dyer to take on the senior role, as four of the U15’s joined her one after the other in the middle. In the end it was Dyer (20*) and Boothright (7*) who saw the Imps over the line, in a game that the Imps felt was much closer than it should have been.

The parallel first game saw the hosts post 99-8 off their 20 overs. Cumbria were 46-8 after 14 overs before the heavens opened, and the rain-affected game meant Shropshire won on run rate. Lunch was taken as the rain continued to fall; this resulted in a 3hr delay before the second games could get started, and saw each match reduced to 10 overs.

In Lincolnshire’s second game, against Shropshire, Butts won the toss and elected to bat. Lincs struggled to set a target of 47-5 from their 10 overs on a pitch that could do anything at any moment, as Brooker found out when bowled first ball. Page-Graves came to join Smith at the crease with the aim to score quickly, with the game only being 10 overs. However, she swung and skied her second ball straight to a fielder leaving Lincs 3-2.

Butts (4), Smith (11) and McDowell (5) were the last three wickets to fall, leaving Dyer and debutant Hermione Baxter-Chinery to push the score as high as they could – Baxter-Chinery showing her pace to get 3 off the last ball.

Shropshire were strong in reply. The Imps managed to take 1 wicket when two of the young guns combined with Baxter-Chinery taking a high catch off Quinlan’s bowling, but Shropshire reached the target within 5 overs.

The game between Northumberland and Cumbria ended with Cumbria reaching their target of 52 in 9.1 overs for the loss of 3 wickets.

Although there was only one result going the Imps way, it is a very good sign of the talent coming through the Lincs set-up, and it will not be the last time these girls get a call-up for the Ladies. It was a very proud moment for this reporter to play alongside 5 of the girls from the junior team she manages, and she could not have been happier with the performances they each put in.

Scorecards for the above matches can be found here.

Beth Smith reports from Fulbeck CC

Sunday saw two Lincs v Norfolk games, with the ladies’ teams and U15 teams both facing each other. The Mini Imps set the visitors a target of 147, with prominent bat Ellie Stanley gaining 78 of Lincolnshire’s runs. The strength of the U15 bowling attack shone through as Norfolk were bowled out for 50 inside 22 overs. The Mini Imps were fortunate as three of the regular Norfolk U15 players had been called up to the ladies squad to face the Lincs Ladies.

Imps captain, Hayley Butts, lost the toss and the hosts were put into field with only 10 players present. With one less player on the field the Imps needed to bowl and field tightly to restrict a strong Norfolk bating team. They did just that. At drinks the Imps had managed to get Norfolk 80-4, a score board which pleased Lincs coach/ manager Alan Ward, and showed promise for the rest of the game if the Imps could continue to be as tight in the field.

For this to be plausible the Imps needed to get rid of opening bat, Tirimanna, which was skilfully done shortly after drinks when India Freeman got her stumped off Amy Halloran. Norfolk ended up all out for 182 with wickets coming for Rachael Dyer (3-38), Becki Brooker (2-24), Beth Smith (2-28), Sarah McDowell (2-27) and Amy Halloran (1-36).

Lincs began not worrying too much about the run rate, just looking to keep wickets in hand. Unfortunately Smith (17) was run-out early on, and McDowell (8) got caught out to a ball that popped widely off the pitch shortly afterwards. India Freeman and Halloran looked to steady the ship and were in the process of building a partnership when Freeman (27) attempted to go over the top and got caught leaving Lincs 73-3. Halloran (13) fell caught behind 8 runs later, and Butts and Brooker added a small partnership of 19 before a direct hit from Hemp dismissed Brooker (13) and left the Imps 102-5.

Wickets fell steadily after that with Butts, Dyer, Coggan, debutant Knapton and Barnes all failing to reach double figures. The extras score kept the Imps total ticking over but it was a landslide away from what they needed, and they were eventually all out for 126. The pick of Norfolk’s bowling and fielding came from Hogg (3-9), Reay (2-8), Cornelius (2-29), and Hemp (1-23), who also ran out Smith and Brooker.

So ended a glorious day for the Mini imps, but a disappointing one for the ladies, who for the team to succeed need one of their top 6 to achieve a big score, like the one that Tirimanna got for the travelling team. The Imps have two months to learn from the game before their next county champs fixture; in the meantime, they head to Ellesmere in a fortnight, where they will open their T20 campaign after last week’s scheduled game ended in a washout.

A full scorecard can be found here.

Steve Dent reports from Bridgnorth CC

Gloucestershire maintained their winning record in the county championship this weekend, with a hard-fought 36-run win against Shropshire at Bridgnorth CC.

After winning the toss and batting, openers Abby Evans and Charlie Walker built a large opening stand based on positive strokeplay and determination to lead from the front. Both were quick to despatch anything loose and their stand of 92 provided a great platform for the rest of the innings. Abby reached 50 from 64 balls with 6 boundaries before she was bowled by Lara Jones. With the score on 108 Charlie was given out LBW sweeping for a measured 36 from 66 balls.

Abby Evans Celebrates Her 50

Gloucestershire then lost two quick wickets before Bethan Moorcraft and Eve Alder produced a positive partnership to give the innings impetus. Bethan played with a clear purpose, ran positively and hit 7 boundaries in her innings of 50 from 62 balls. Eve played a valuable supporting role and the pair put on 55 in 13 overs before Eve was run out for 17 and, shortly after reaching her 50, Bethan was bowled, with the score on 174.

Bethan Moorcraft Celebrates Her 50

However, Laura Marshall (10*), Danika Dyer and Chloe Davis ensured that the score passed 200, and Gloucestershire finished on 205 – 9 from their 50 overs.

Things didn’t go to plan for Gloucestershire once Shropshire’s innings got underway, as Robyn Mathews played very positively right from the start. She shared in partnerships of 41 with Lara Jones and 62 with Millie Home to give Shropshire a real chance of chasing down their target.

The introduction of Danika Dyer brought about the change Gloucestershire were after, and she took the wickets of Jones and Home, both LBW. Her mid-innings spell of 2 – 22 from 10 overs was crucial. While Mathews carried on, passing 50, Dyer and Mollie Robbins started to turn the screw with some tight bowling.

The game looked to be heading for a tight finish with 8 overs to go and Shropshire wanting 51 with 6 wickets left, but a brilliant stumping by Laura Marshall off Mollie Robbins dismissed Mathews for a superb 80 and from that point onwards Gloucestershire dominated.

Robbins picked up two further wickets to finish with 3 – 27 from her 10 overs. A late wicket from Sidra Khan put the seal on the victory as Shropshire ended their 50 overs on 169 – 8.

Afterwards, coach Steve Dent described the win as “hard-fought”. “Shropshire looked likely winners at more than one stage. However the team stayed patient and positive and got their just rewards in the end, to record our 2nd win in the competition. There were excellent contributions all round, and it’s good to see confidence and belief high.”

Gloucestershire are next in action in the County T20 competition against Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire on 5th July.

Georgia Isaac reports from Harrogate CC

Yorkshire’s tight bowling and aggressive batting at Harrogate CC put an end to Middlesex’s unbeaten run this season, as the Meatballs suffered a 9-wicket defeat.

Yorkshire won the toss and, in overcast conditions, it was a good one to win. There was rain around, but it was good to see no overs were lost.

Middlesex were once again without Cath Dalton, who remains injured after hurting her ankle on the eve of the T20s last weekend. Sophia Dunkley and Natasha Miles opened for the visitors, but there was no repeat of last week’s heroics. With Katherine Brunt and Laura Spragg opening the bowling, Spragg took the first wicket in the 4th over as Dunkley was bowled for 7, unable to add many to her unbeaten tally of 91 runs from the previous two games.

Spragg and Brunt bowled six and seven overs respectively in their opening spells, with Brunt’s penultimate over being a wicket-maiden which saw the end of Tash Miles for l4.

Fran Wilson, who was in good form following her 55 in the recent EWA game against Loughborough MCCU, played fluently, sharing a partnership of 29 with Beth Morgan. Morgan also shared a solid stand of 39 runs with Izzy Westbury (33).

But wickets fell regularly, with Katie Levick (3-21) and Brunt (3-23) finishing with three wickets apiece, and Middlesex were all out for 176 after 40 overs – 10 short of the allotted number. On a good deck, this was some way short of a competitive total.

If Middlesex were to even entertain an away win they had to take early wickets. Danni Warren and Ria Raval opened the attack against the threatening right-hand/left-hand combination of Winfield and wicketkeeper Beth Mooney. After 10 overs Yorkshire were a sound 46-0, and Westbury was ringing the bowling changes in an attempt to find that elusive wicket.

Yorkshire gave no chances as both Winfield and Mooney reached half-centuries. They found the boundary with ease, including one six from Mooney, and continued to attack the bowling as they closed in on their target of 177. This resulted in the one positive for Middlesex from the innings: Alex Hartley’s dismissal of Mooney for 69, as she tried to secure another boundary but was caught on the fence by Anna Nicholls.

Winfield continued her fine form as she finished on 99 not out, having been unable to hit the required six to reach her century. This saw Yorkshire to a convincing 9-wicket win after just 30.4 overs.

After the match, Winfield – who averages well over 50 this season – said that she felt her innings was significant in the lead-up to the Ashes next month. “Today was important for me to go on past fifty and spend as much time at the crease as I can, and turn those starts into big scores. It’s important building up to the Ashes that we’re feeling confident.”

However, she stressed that “winning games for Yorkshire is very much what is important for me right now”.

From Middlesex’s perspective, it was a disappointing loss, made worse by the fact that Ria Raval had to leave the field after tearing her hamstring as she leaped for the ball. She is expected to be out for several weeks.

Georgia blogs about cricket regularly at https://georgiacricket.wordpress.com.

Georgia Isaac reports from Edmonton CC

Edmonton CC in London provided the setting for three exciting games of T20 cricket, and considering play began in misty rain it was good that the teams lost only eight overs in the day. For Middlesex, it was an excellent all-round performance as they beat reigning champions Nottinghamshire by 9 wickets, then followed this up with a 10-wicket win over Somerset.

Middlesex captain Izzy Westbury was clearly thrilled with the team’s winning performances. “Our squad of 15 is all pushing for places in the first eleven, and that’s the beauty of Middlesex. There are no superstars, but we’ve got a very good team.”

The first match was between Middlesex and Nottinghamshire. As Notts won the T20 competition last year and have three England internationals in their side, they were always going to be tough opponents. Danni Wyatt was in an explosive mood and hit 89 off only 54 deliveries including eight 4s and two 6s. She gave chances, but the ball was damp, fielders struggled to hold it, and there is always extra pressure when attempting to take the wicket of an international.

Wyatt dominated an opening stand of 86 with captain Sonia Odedra, who was bowled by Izzy Westbury for 25 off 22, including four 4s. Soon afterwards, the persistent drizzle became rain and the players were taken off. Although there was only a short delay, with three fixtures needing to be completed in a day, overs are quickly lost. Each innings was reduced to 16 overs, which meant Notts had just five overs to build on the Wyatt platform.

A second wicket soon fell as Sophia Dunkley had Georgie Boyce stumped for eight, with the score on 132. Ria Raval then took the wickets of England pair Wyatt (89) and Jenny Gunn (0), and with one run added by Abbey Hawkins, Nottinghamshire ended their 16 overs on 136-4.

It was going to be a challenging chase for Middlesex as 136 is a good score after 20 overs and even more impressive after just 16, particularly when the overs were lost not from the start, but midway through the innings. The hosts also lacked one of their top-order batsmen – Cath Dalton – who had injured her ankle at training on Friday night.

Dunkley and Tash Miles opened the batting against Odedra’s pace and Wyatt’s spin. Middlesex attacked from the start, with crisp square drives a feature of Dunkley’s unbeaten 66 off only 46 balls. Miles also batted well, but fell short of a half-century when caught by Zoe Richards off the bowling of Rebecca Widdowson for 42, including five 4s and a 6. Miles fell at 94; Fran Wilson joined Dunkley and they saw Middlesex to an impressive nine-wicket win in 14 overs.

After the game, Sophia Dunkley said that Middlesex had approached the run chase positively throughout. “Tash [Miles] and I normally go out and play quite freely anyway, so it was a good chance to play our natural game, and we pulled it off.”

The second match saw Nottinghamshire face Somerset. Notts again batted first and Wyatt continued her superb form, scoring a boundary-filled 103. Her ability to score all round the wicket again highlighted her quality, and showed she is pushing for a spot in the Ashes squad. Although dropped eight times across the two games, she refused to change her aggressive style of batting. Nottinghamshire completed their innings on 142.

South African-batsman Lizelle Lee and Gwenan Davies opened for Somerset. Lee made a century in her previous county game and is in good form for Bath CC, so hers was the key wicket. She played an entertaining innings, striking the ball powerfully and forming a solid partnership with Anya Shrubsole worth 61 before the England fast bowler was caught by Jenny Gunn off Amy Gauvrit for 27.

This left Somerset on 89-3 after 15 overs, almost completely reliant on Lee if they were to stand a chance of victory. But she was dismissed by Rebecca Widowson for 77, having scored nearly two-thirds of her runs in boundaries, as she took a big swing and was caught by Gauvrit. Somerset fell short by 17 runs, finishing on 125-5.

The final match of the day was between Middlesex and Somerset. Westbury won the toss for the second time and decided to stick with the team’s winning formula by fielding first. Unlike the first match, bowling proved decisive. As number three Fran Wilson is on loan from Somerset, she was not able to play this match, and Danni Warren was brought into the side.

Having watched some of the second match, the team was aware that Lee remained in good form, and that she and captain Anya Shrubsole would probably hold the key to Somerset’s ability to post a challenging total. Middlesex got the wicket they desired as Dattani had Lee caught behind by India Whitty, after a strangled shot down the leg-side, for 2.

Generally Middlesex’s bowling and fielding was of a much higher standard in this match, and wickets fell fairly steadily, with Warren (3-6) picking up three including England Academy’s Sophie Luff, fresh from her 109* in the last round of county matches. Somerset fought until the 16th over when Westbury took the final wicket, and they were all out for just 48.

Once again Sophia Dunkley and Tash Miles proved a successful opening partnership for the hosts. Although Somerset’s opening bowlers Shrubsole and Lee attacked until the end, they simply did not have a high enough total to defend, and found themselves congratulating Middlesex on their 10-wicket win after only 7.5 overs.

Georgia blogs about cricket regularly at https://georgiacricket.wordpress.com.