Sun-splashed Chance to Compete Yorkshire Finals at Ampleforth

The Chance to Compete Yorkshire finals took place at Ampleforth College over two-sun-soaked days recently.

Here’s a snapshot of the girls schools cricket extravaganza, with our website partner Yorkshire Tea, who are a long-term supporter of Chance to Shine.

National competitions for secondary state school children are run across the year, both indoors and outside, with focus turning to Chance to Shine’s flagship regional contest in the summer for U13 & U15 girls teams.

The cricket charity’s ethos is to offer opportunities to play competitively, in partnership with local county boards, while aiming to remove the barriers that state schools might have such as facilities and opponents locally.

The end result is a popular competition, organised by the Yorkshire Cricket Board (YCB) in our region, that began with 72 teams all playing regional matches.

The culmination was this showstopper of an event with Yorkshire Tea’s Little Urn van in attendance for thirsty pupils and teachers. Thursday saw eight U13 girls’ teams play softball matches across two groups in the morning, with knockout rounds in the afternoon.

Day One was all about the U13 girls with short and sharp 40-ball innings, batters in pairs and any dismissals awarding five runs to the fielding side.

The girls received advice and support from Yorkshire trio Ria Fackrell, Grace Hall and Beth Langston across the two-dayer. Grace, who I interviewed for Cricket Yorkshire in the past, is perhaps a particular inspiration whose journey began with a Chance to Shine session at school.

Meanwhile, there was even musical accompaniment from Finchy, the Barmy Army’s trumpeter, so players enjoyed that bit of Test match theatre as they bowled, fielded and batted for their school.

For some extra sporting drama, there was a challenge for bowlers to win a box of Yorkshire Tea if they could dislodge a teabag from off stump. A brisk wind on the Friday meant Yorkshire seamer Grace Hall was apparently on teabag-balancing duty!

After the dust had settled on an enthralling day out on the middle, an all-South Yorkshire final pitted Penistone Grammar School against King Ecgbert School; the latter once being where Joe Root attended.

Penistone Grammar School triumphed in the Sheffield showdown and both U13 teams will go to the regional final in July at Durham County Cricket Club.

To add to the sense of occasion, event sponsor Yorkshire Tea had arranged for goodie bags for all players and the finalists to walk out to bouncing beats with T20 Blast-style pyrotechnics.

Friday switched attention to the U15 girls category with eight new teams and the chance to represent Yorkshire at the regional finals.

Another Sheffield side in Mercia School went on to win the afternoon final by defeating Acklam Grange of Middlesbrough.

According to the Yorkshire Cricket Board (YCB), the positive feedback from schools illustrates that this showpiece for girls state school cricket continues to be a highlight. Best of luck to those girls representing Yorkshire later this summer.

Rob Withers, Coach of Trinity Academy Leeds said: “The girls love playing cricket. it’s an opportunity for them to showcase their skills…and play against other schools.”