Bradford Park Avenue Ladies (BPAL) is coming to an end as a cricket club in a familiar tale of volunteer shortages. I reached out to BPAL’s Chair Kirsty Gavillet (below) about the reasons why. It speaks to changing circumstances, some realities in women’s cricket and the balancing act that exists. Even in a city where […]
Women and Girls Cricket
Sessay lift the County Cup at Saxton with all-round performance
By the end of Sunday at Saxton Cricket Club, the sun was bright enough to make the morning’s grey skies seem like a distant memory. Sessay had won the County Cup with an emphatic performance, and there was plenty to celebrate as players gathered for the presentations. The Yorkshire Premier League North Women & Girls […]
Neale spell sets up four-run win for Colton over Menston
Colton’s ground features a large, gently sloping oval tucked into a residential corner of east Leeds, screened from most of the city noise despite there being shops and busy roads nearby. The clubhouse is compact, practical and features a well-stocked bar, with seats arranged in front, while the bowls green, junior football pitch and old […]
North Halifax clinch Prem 2 title in last-ball thriller
Four teams, three matches and a cup ultimately decided by just one run on the last ball. The West Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League’s Premier 2 Finals Day from Low Moor Holy Trinity delivered plenty of drama. As Mark Doherty reports, it was the kind of showpiece that makes cricket the game we all […]
Rawdon lift Archer Cup in a day and night showpiece
Selene, the Greek goddess of the moon, is known for her beauty and usually depicted wearing a crescent moon in her crown while riding a chariot drawn by stallions across the night sky. Selene was the daughter of Hyperion and Theia, her brother was Helios – the sun god, and her sister was Eos – […]
Ella Claridge interview: A Blaze with a Bear
In the third of our series of interviews with cricketers who are Bear Cricket ambassadors, I spoke with USA & Blaze wicketkeeper-batter Ella Claridge. From Buckingham to Bear Ella’s association with Bear Cricket began with a recommendation as these things often do. She’s been with the brand some five years since the journey into the […]
West Yorkshire women’s softball: Pink balls, power and pooches
The West Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League Softball Finals Day promised fast-paced fixtures for ten clubs across three pitches – spoiler alert – it did not disappoint. Pink balls were launched up, up and away on a breezy Sunday at Bradford & Bingley’s Wagon Lane ground. Non-stop, blink-and-you-miss-it action, an inflatable pub, cute dogs, […]
Sizzling summer solstice as Yapham host Beverley Town
The Longest Day. Sounds like a good title for a movie…oh wait, it was! A glance at the fixtures list over breakfast suggested a busy Sunday across Yorkshire. A second glance, after a succession of cancellations filtered through social media and club channels, painted a different picture. Two of the games I had planned as […]
Bradford Park Avenue Ladies edge past Crossflatts at Windhill
Spoilt for choice on a Sunday that promised not to be chilly or wet for a change, I headed for women’s Premier League cricket in Shipley. Deposited on Platform 1 of the rail station, the lights opposite McDonalds were out so traffic had backed up into other postcodes. An electronic sign advertised ‘Clean Air Day’ […]
ItsOKToTalkT20: Women & girls’ fixture at Whiston Parish Church
At Whiston Parish Church Cricket Club on Friday 5 June, the first-ever #ItsOKToTalkT20 women and girls’ fixture brings together talented players and an important message about mental health. Adrianna Darlow will lead the Blue Team against the Purple Team in a match with representation from a host of South Yorkshire clubs. I caught up with […]