Driffield Town lead YPLN Women’s Premier League

Clifton Park hosted Clifton Alliance CC Women v Driffield Town Women in a Yorkshire Premier League North clash on Sunday 29 June 2025, with the sound of County Championship action between Yorkshire and Essex just over the fence – the perfect backdrop for another cricketing tale from Mark Doherty.

🍻 Beer, sun and a bumper crowd

A well-timed shot left the bat of Alice Dilley racing past the fielder standing a few yards away, the ball heading inexorably to the boundary. A rumble of approval and applause from the packed stand seemingly enjoying the shot and four runs.

The crowd may well have applauded the shot…after all, it was beautifully played…however, this Women’s Premier League game was taking place next to York Cricket Club’s ground where Yorkshire were taking on Essex in a Rothsay County Championship Division One game, and Essex had just managed to hit a boundary at the same moment.

Maybe I’m getting a little ahead of myself…so let’s take a quick step back and set the scene a little better.

🔥 Hottest day of the year

As the weekend approached, a few different sporting governing bodies had issued advice about how to deal with the heatwave that was currently engulfing the country; providing advice about ensuring players had sunscreen on, wore hats, and took on plenty of fluids – so that they didn’t become dehydrated.

All great advice…and one that even spectators shouldn’t ignore!

🐭 Look for the Dormouse

I’d had a trawl through the various leagues and games taking place on Sunday, and the one between Clifton Alliance and Driffield Town caught my eye. I haven’t been to Clifton Alliance’s ground in a little while, so thought it was about time that I reacquainted myself with it.

Heading into the outskirts of York, I knew where the ground was…as it is next to York Cricket Club…but somehow, I always manage to miss the turning for it. I was determined not to make the same mistake this time, and as soon as I saw the signpost for The Dormouse Pub, I put my right indicator on and headed down the road towards the ground.

Pulling up under the shade of the trees to help try and keep the car cool, I turned the engine off rather pleased with myself for getting there at the first time of asking [you’ve got to celebrate the small things in life].

I’d allowed a little extra time this week, getting to the cricket club over and hour and a half early, so that I could explore. Connor, my son, had accompanied me and we opened the small gate at one side of the pavilion, strolling around the corner of the building to take in the sights.

Over the fence on our left was a field full of cars that told us something was going on at York’s ground. Looking across the rugby pitch, we could see a huge stand filled with people, and in the foreground, a number of food vans.

A quick conversation between us and it suddenly dawned on me that Yorkshire were playing Essex this weekend! How had that slipped my mind?

The cricket club has ‘Victorian’ vibes, as the houses next to the pavilion have that quaint look about them. The pavilion is modern and in keeping with the ground aesthetics, the fences are all well maintained, as are the bowling lanes.

There is a large white open sided marquee emblazoned with the sponsor Vincent & Partners near the trees that sit between the two cricket clubs, and on a day like Sunday, many of the spectators would be more than happy to sit inside it in the shade.

I introduced myself to David Heartshorne, the longstanding chairman of the club, just after he turned up and started to open the pavilion, and we were made to feel very welcome.

Out of the sun

Connor had somehow forgotten his hat, and with little shade available, this could prove problematic. However, just over the fence was a pop-up clothing stall and he headed across to see if they had any headwear available.

A few minutes later he returned rather happy with himself having purchased a reversable large, brimmed cricket hat. As an Irishman, I was rather taken aback to see it had England on it…rather than Yorkshire! But it was a good sturdy one and stifling any complaints, I knew it would keep his ears from getting burned in the intense sunshine.

The home team won the toss and decided to head out to bat first. Alice Dilley and Madison Lawrence took to the field, and I was immediately impressed by the way in which they played their initial shots, guiding the ball deliberately one way or the other to start putting runs on the board.

This was a thirty over game, and the first drinks break came in the tenth…allowing the players to get a little respite from the overly hot conditions.

In the background, we could hear the tannoy announce a break in the men’s fixture, and as our Premier League game got back underway, a number of spectators from the other game wandered towards us and stood by the fence watching.

I don’t know about the players, but I loved the fact that they had come across specifically to take in a different game, albeit briefly. I’d also had a chance to interact with another spectator who was enjoying both games…asking me as he walked past: ‘Beer, sun and cricket… what more could you want?’

Clifton Alliance were finding it tough to get runs due to Driffield’s superb fielding. The visitors were eager to get to any balls hit and return them quickly.

By the time Niamh Wilkinson had picked up the final wicket of Scarlett Wright, Clifton Alliance had reached 71 runs, in just shy of the allotted thirty overs. It may have seemed a low score, but given the oppressive heat, I had a lot of respect for the batters who had fought for every single run.

Openers Alice and Madison had top scored with 13 and 15 runs respectively, but the likes of captain Kim Sykes had played her part, spending nearly an hour at the crease, trying to frustrate the Driffield attack.

Emily Whitehouse (three wickets for 15 runs), L Oliver (three wickets for seven runs), and Niamh Wilkinson with three wickets for just six runs, were the pick of the bowlers.

I don’t usually like to single out players, but I have to say that Emily Whitehouse’s bowling was superb…from her quick, efficient run up…to the fast and accurate deliveries that would scare the heck out of me if I were facing them!

I had the good fortune to speak to her dad as he wandered around the ground, and I found out that she had now progressed from the Yorkshire County Performance Pathway Under 13 team to the Under 15s.

Could Emily bat as well as she bowled?

Captain Laura Conner and Emily were Driffield’s opening batters…and well, to cut a long story short…they both could! The pair went about hitting the ball past the fielders almost immediately to find boundaries.

Laura hit four fours and Emily nine fours, eating quickly into the total they needed; and just shy of the tenth over, Laura Conner hit the final four runs…the visitors winning the game by ten wickets.

Final thoughts

I don’t want the reader to think that the scoreline suggests that Clifton Alliance had played badly, not at all! It’s just that they had come up against a team that featured some very talented players.

I would say that the breadth of ability in both squads is a real testament as to how far women and girls’ cricket has come in the last few years. I can foresee many of these players on both teams having a very bright future in the game.

Our day at Clifton Alliance had come to an end, and I’ve got to say, it is a lovely ground and one that certainly would normally isolate you from the outside world. However, the addition of a four-day county match taking place within a well hit six of the boundary added something a little extra special on Sunday.

For my part…I would’ve loved to have had a beer [but I had the car]. The summer sun was indeed spectacular. And there were two games of cricket taking place! Indeed…what more could you ever want?

📸 PHOTOS

Want 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.

I also highly recommend his blog called Leica Moments which includes days out at grounds around Yorkshire.