Fenton and Tavernspite to represent county at Welsh girls' kwik cricket finals

PHOTOS:
?South county winners Tavernspite CP School and runners-up Stepaside CP School, with Valero’s Public Affairs Manager Stephen Thornton

Fenton CP School, which won the north county finals

Cleddau Reach VC School were runners-up in the north county finals

The popularity of girls’ cricket in Pembrokeshire is continuing to grow – with a record 24 schools fielding teams in this year’s Girls Kwik Cricket Finals.

The finals were held at Haverfordwest and Carew cricket clubs, with eleven schools from North Pembrokeshire competing at Haverfordwest and thirteen schools from the south of the county competing at Carew.

At the end of the competitive and enjoyable events, Fenton CP School and Tavernspite CP School were declared winners and will go forward to the regional Welsh finals at Sophia Gardens on 8^th July.

Superb organisation from Sport Pembrokeshire

The festivals were organised by Sport Pembrokeshire – the sports development team at Pembrokeshire County Council -  and Martin Jones, cricket development officer at Sport Pembrokeshire, praised the quality and spirit of play at both events, which were sponsored by Valero.

The festival at Haverfordwest saw Fenton CP School, Roch Community School, Neyland Community School and Cleddau Reach VC School reaching the semi-finals, where Fenton defeated Roch and Cleddau Reach beat Neyland, before Fenton defeated Cleddau Reach due to some sensible batting and solid bowling, backed up with some good catches. 

The south county festival at Carew saw Tavernspite CP School, St Oswalds VA School, Stepaside CP School and Golden Grove Community School reaching the semi-finals, where Tavernspite beat St Oswalds and Stepaside beat Golden Grove. Both schools were undefeated at this stage with Tavernspite running out as winners in the end.

High praise from Martin

“It was a great team effort,” said Martin Jones. “A special mention goes to the captain, Caitlin Lewis, who had an excellent festival and also celebrated her birthday.”

He said it was also good to see key figures from women’s cricket attending the Carew festival: Laura Charles Price, the South West Wales Women’s and Girls Co-ordinator, and Rachel Priest, a Kiwi who plays for Thunder in the Ladies Big Bash League.

Martin added “It’s excellent to see the growth of girls’ cricket, not only at primary school level but also in the Lady Taverners’ competition (U13’s and U15’s). All of this has helped the growth of the Ladies cricket league in Pembrokeshire, which now has nine teams.” 

Valero’s Public Affairs Manager Stephen Thornton presented the medals to the finalists.

The Fenton squad was made up of: Chloe Dewstowe (captain), Ami Louise Richards, Kiera Ribbon, Bethan Stobbs, Beatrix Nicklin, Jenny Frayling, and Shanice Clarke.

The Tavernspite Squad was made up of: Caitlin Lewis (captain), Phyllis Davies, Cara Merriman, Sophie Jones, Amelie Brown, Mia King-Allum, Sofia Dunlop, Ophelia Jenkins and Megan Morris.