Ladies' Indoor Cricket - Sunday, 9th January 2022
History made as ladies’ cricket is played indoors for the first time
A little piece of Pembrokeshire Cricket was played out at the Neyland Hub Community Centre on Sunday morning as the newly-formed Pembrokeshire Ladies’ Indoor Cricket League played its first games.
Participating clubs from the nine-team entry were Pembroke Dock, Pembroke and St Ishmaels and the umpires for this special occasion were Martin Jones (Sport Pembrokeshire’s cricketing officer), Jonathan Lewis (St Ishmaels) and Peter Kingdom (Pembroke Dock), who also helped with the scoring alongside Clarissa Lewis (St Ishmaels) and the Pembroke duo of Jack Harries and Luke Butler.
The Dock Ladies were worthy winners of both their matches and Tish beat Pembroke in the other game and it was evident that a number of participants were making their debut in any form of cricket so there were understandably plenty of extras – but this will improve during the season as players gain in experience and confidence.
What was evident was the sporting way the morning was played out and the enjoyment that was also clear – and so indoor cricket for ladies in our county is finally under way!
Match One – St Ishmaels (113 for 3) beat Pembroke (48 all out)
St Ishmaels got their season off to a great start as they beat a novice Pembroke side that have excellent coaches and will grow in confidence in the coming weeks.
Rachel Wilson led the Tish batting with 26 before she retired and was well supported by Lauren Sutton (18), Leah Mitchell (14), Leanne John (14 not out) and Layla Maguire 16 not out.
Their innings included the only six hit, six fours and three fives as they ran extremely well between the wickets and also had 26 extras in their total, despite some excellent bowling by Zoe Jones (1 for 19) and Bobby Neale (2 for 19) for Pembroke.
But Pembroke struggled when they went in to bat against the splendid bowling of Leanne Johnston (2 for 6) and Rachel Wilson (2 for 2), ably assisted by Layla Maguire (1 for 15) and only Chloe Jones (12) managed double figures as there were also 26 extras in their final tally.
Match Two – Pembroke Dock (125 for 4) beat St Ishmaels (63 for 5)
Pembroke Dock showed that they will be a force to be reckoned with in this competition as they batted first against St Ishmaels and rattled up a challenging tally as Ava Midgeley led the way with an excellent 33 before being run out in the late search for runs after returning to the crease.
Co-opener Rachel Sander chipped in with 13 and Katie Griffiths batted well to contribute 24 not out and Louise Kitts scored 12 alongside 28 extras.
For Tish, the strike bowlers were Leanne John (2 for 22) and Layla Maguire (1 for 17) and their bowlers conceded just a single boundary but The Dock Ladies ran well between the wickets.
The Dock have an experienced bowling attack led by Lana Jones, who took a miserly 1 for 3 in two overs, including a wicket maiden, and she received support from Louise Kitts (1 for 13) and Katie Griffiths (2 for 8) as only Sabrina Sweeney (10) managed double figures for Tish, although they had 31 extras to boost their final tally to 63 for 5.
Mention should also be made of 14 year old Layla Maguire, who batted last and defied being hit on the shoulder to stay unbeaten through the final over with 7 not out – and mum Rachel, who was also playing, must have been justifiably proud!
Match Three – Pembroke Dock (143 for 0) beat Pembroke (73 for 5)
Pembroke Dock made it two wins from two starts as they were comfortable winners of their local derby with Pembroke, who showed an improvement in their batting after The Dock had piled up the runs through undefeated innings from Rachel Sander (28), Ava Midgeley (26), Kelly Midgeley (25) and Katie Griffiths (26) alongside 38 extras.
It was a formidable total but Pembroke battled hard via Nivanna Jones (10) and Tracey White, whose 18 before she was run out included the only six, and a late unbeaten 10 from Bobby Neale, as well as 26 extras.
Lana Jones bowled one over and it proved to be a maiden, whilst Ava Midgeley completed an excellent performance with 1 for 5 in two overs and Louise Kitts grabbed 2 for 13 to ease The Dock through.