Old Leos Women’s 1st XI claim points at The Crag

Mark Doherty travels to Old Leos Cricket Club for the visit of Adwalton in this Division One match of the West Yorkshire Women & Girls Cricket League.

Oh boy, I felt tired! Saturday had seen my usual coverage of cricket pivot to something different for me, a work trip to Manchester and what would turn out to be a late night, ending in a 3am finish. So, as I crawled out of bed at half past six, my first thoughts were to simply get back in, pull the duvet over my head and pretend that Sunday didn’t exist.

The morning after the night before

Three coffees later, and being honest, I was having an out of body experience. With my head still complaining about my life choices, my mind was just about capable of rationally thinking about the day ahead. I’d been invited to nine different games over the weekend – Sunday had four possibilities.

Opening Play-Cricket, I immediately saw that one of the games I’d pinned had been marked complete…it appeared that the opposition hadn’t been able to raise a team.

Out of the remaining three, I struggled to make my mind up with any real conviction. With the help of another three coffees, I made my choice!

Driving towards Leeds, I remembered that the Leeds Half Marathon was taking place that morning, and being honest, I wasn’t overly sure how that would affect my journey to the ground.

Sharing at Adel Woods

In the end, as I turned down Crag Lane and headed deep into Adel Woods…I hadn’t been delayed or detoured at all, and as I parked the car in the rather empty car park, I started to wonder if the game I had come to see had also been postponed

Anyone who knows Adel Woods will now be wondering which cricket club I was visiting as there are two nestled within the tall trees.

I’d been to Alwoodley Cricket Club at the end last summer to cover the Aire-Wharfe League’s Chappell Cup Final but I was visiting the other club on Sunday.

Old Leodiensians Cricket Club pretty much shares a rope boundary with its neighbour, with both protected from the outside world by a wonderful cocoon of established trees, muffling out the sounds of a large city almost completely. 

This West Yorkshire Women and Girls Cricket League Division One meeting was between Old Leodiensians CC Women’s First XI and Adwalton CC Women’s First XI. 

The match may have featured two sides sitting towards the lower reaches of the table (it is still early days – so I take any league positions with a bit of a pinch of salt), but there was enthusiasm, personality and skill from the two teams.

The start of the game was slightly delayed allowing the squads to complete their warm-up routines and the pre-match umpire briefing was refreshingly down to earth. I even managed to grab another cup of coffee to keep my head in the game.

As the first ball was sent down the 22, the conditions couldn’t have been better for the day’s play…with a slight caveat. We had a mixture of blue sky with large fluffy clouds and when the sun wasn’t hidden by the clouds, it was almost perfect.

However, when one of those pesky, white fluffy things decided to block the sun, it became rather chilly. Maybe I was feeling it a little more due to still being quite tired?

Old Leodiensians won the toss and decided to field. Adwalton batted first and gradually pieced together a competitive innings of 104 for 4 from their 20 overs.

Adwalton lost their first wicket having scored 23, then batted steadily through the middle overs. 

Old Leos’ accurate throws from the outfield threatened a few run-outs, with one of those throws rattling into the stumps with impressive precision at an acute angle thrown from just inside the boundary.

By the closing overs, Adwalton had battled their way towards a good 20-over score. A fourth wicket lost at 84 briefly slowed momentum, but sensible batting carried them through to 104 for 4 at the interval break – a total that felt competitive without being dominant.

Natasha Bibby’s innings was a real highlight, with her scoring a rapid 44 from just 38 deliveries. Sasha McLoughlin’s three wickets for just 17 runs was the pick of the bowlers for the home side. At the break, the club’s shop was open and I headed in to buy a cold drink and a packet of crisps.

Old Leos’ chase began shakily with an early wicket in the opening over and another dismissal soon after as Adwalton attempted to seize control of the game. At 33 for three, I had a feeling that the game might drift firmly towards the visitors, if any more wickets fell quickly.

Instead, the innings settled, and the home side started to play some lovely strokes to score singles and fours. Boundaries began arriving more regularly.

A few edges flew past the wicketkeeper and a full toss timed beautifully got dispatched to the rope for four. 

Adwalton weren’t going to let this game slip out of their hands without a fight and there were some moments of real quality in the field, including an excellent boundary stop when a four looked certain, and a throw right over the top of the stumps to dissuade a second run from being taken.

However, it felt like the momentum had started to swing.

The drinks break arrived an over or two after it was planned, with Old Leos at 71 for four and the match delicately poised. Yet what followed was perhaps the most impressive phase of play that afternoon.

Refreshed, the batters calmly set to their task. Gone were the risky singles, as they looked for the right deliveries to punish.

Needing around four or five an over, Matharu and McLoughlin methodically went about playing the shots that allowed them to run a single or send the ball to the boundary. In doing so, started to see the ball better and time their shots to perfection.

As they reached the 14th over, the home team were scoring well ahead of the required run rate and victory seemed inevitable. By the 17th, the game was done as Sasha McLoughlin sent the last ball of the six to the boundary for four. The home team had scored 105 for four, winning by three wickets.

Nimrat Matharu’s unbeaten 41 from just 32 deliveries had been a real driving force in the home team’s chase…her seven fours helping them to victory.

Sriranjani Vaidhyanathan’s two wickets for 23 were probably the best figures for the visitors. However, captain Ash Hallas’ bowling always looked dangerous and bowling the final over, she only conceded four runs…sometimes the stats don’t tell the full story!

Waking Up

The game was completed by 5pm and I was just about fully awake! It had been a great afternoon of competitive cricket which I enjoyed immensely.

Both teams had put on a good display of batting and fielding, with the difference between them coming after the final drinks break when Old Leos’ run rate accelerated a little quicker than their opponents’ had at the same point in their innings.

Old Leodiensians took the two points on offer, but I think Adwalton will pick up plenty of points this season, if they continue to play like they did on Sunday.

What to read more?

Here are all of Mark’s articles and photos on Cricket Yorkshire.

To see more of his photography, you can visit caughtlight.com or he’s @caughtlight on Twitter/X. There’s also the Caught Light Photography Facebook page.

Mark’s excellent blog called Leica Moments includes observations and imagery from days out at grounds around Yorkshire.

Here on Cricket Yorkshire, check out our latest opinion articles from club cricket. Our cricket grounds section features travelogues, as well as other related adventures.

Cricket Yorkshire’s women and girls cricket hub has interviews, news and match coverage.

While cricket clubs seeking trusted cricket suppliers can see everything from teamwear to insurance and outdoor nets in our Suppliers Guide.

There’s also our Partner Content with interviews, products and services reviewed, as well as discounts and competitions across the year.