Ma THE Marple, Upton and Nantwich CCs were elected to membership of the league … DAZZLER 168 Appleton to field second team, and Stockport Georgians promoted to division two … Proposals invited ahead of League’s Rules meeting … Didsbury and Stockport Georgians enter the National KO … New Laws of Cricket announced – umpires alerted to the need for refresher training … Cheshire land two home T20 matchdays in 2018 … Last chance to enter the 2018 indoor competitions … Sophie Ecclestone makes Test debut in Australia … Lancashire Thunder fixtures announced CHESHIRE WOMEN’S LEAGUE At the League’s AGM in November, Marple, Upton and Nantwich CCs were elected to membership of the league. These clubs will all field teams in division 3 of the league in 2018. Appleton will also field a second team in this division next year. Stockport Georgians have been promoted to the 40 over divisions. There are no significant changes to the League Officers list for 2017/18. Karen Prince has returned to her former role of Results Secretary, and she will once again receive completed results sheets for League and T20 competition matches next season. However, as clubs were asked to input their own results via Play Cricket for much of last season, it is hoped that they will continue to do so next year. The League will hold its Rules meeting on Wednesday January 10 at 1930, provisionally at Lymm Oughtrington Park CC. Proposals for changes to the regulations and competition structures of any competition run by the League should be submitted to the Secretary, Caroline Sheridan, via [email protected] no later than one week prior to the meeting, i.e. by January 3. Each club representative and league officer that attends will have one vote on each of the proposals, once these have been debated. Clubs are urged to send at least one representative to the meeting, as there is no procedure for proxy voting or similar. Eac h club and league officer that attends will have one vote on each of the proposals, once these have been debated. Clubs are urged to send at least one representative to the meeting, as there is no procedure for proxy voting or similar. The 2018 League season is likely to commence on Sunday April 22 and end on Sunday September 9. April 15 can be used for pre-season matches and activities and September 16 as a reserve day for the T20 Finals and/or a final opportunity for Division 3 to re-arrange outstanding matches. The ECB are to re-launch the National T20 Knockout Cup and Plate competitions for women’s club teams, and Didsbury and Stockport Georgians have duly entered and will fly the flag for the league on the national scene. October 2017 saw the most far-reaching changes to the Laws of Cricket for a decade. Hence anyone who umpires in the CWCL - whichever division’s matches they umpire, and whether they are a qualified umpire or not - will need to attend an official refresher course during the winter. The remaining locations and dates for these courses are: • Sale CC on Tuesday January 9 • Oakmere CC on Monday January 15 • Nantwich CC on Thursday February 8 • Toft CC on Tuesday February 13 • Didsbury CC on Wednesday February 21 Please ask your umpire(s) to advise Geoff Young on [email protected] of which date and location they wish to attend, if they have not done so already. Any new or aspiring umpires can attend the umpires’ courses to be held at Toft in January and March, or at Oakmere in February. The Association of Cricket Officials has launched an Online Scorers Course, suitable for complete beginners who want to score on a regular basis, or for existing scorers who want to improve their skills. Any aspiring scorers who wish to attend a formal taught course can book for the course at Toft CC on March 10 and 18. CHESHIRE SENIORS Cheshire will once again concentrate on T20 cricket for the 2018 season. Following promotion to division two, Cheshire undoubtedly face a tough season, especially with three teams to be relegated from the division. However, with Cheshire having landed two home matchdays, the travelling schedule is not as tough as it might have been. The campaign opens with winnable matches against Wales and Durham at home – possibly an ideal chance to start on a positive note. The full fixture list is: June 10 Durham & Wales H 1030 & 1630 17 Somerset & Hampshire Somerset venue 1030 & 1330 24 Northamptonshire & Gloucestershire Northamptonshire venue 1030 & 1330 July 1 Scotland & Berkshire H 1030 & 1630 JUNIOR GIRLS CLUB CRICKET & SENIOR WOMEN’S DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES Entries are required by December 18 for the 2018 Cheshire Women’s Indoor Softball competition. Clubs can choose to enter the competitions to be staged at any of the following venues: • Manchester Enterprise Academy on Mondays January 22, February 19 and March 19 from 1830 to 2030 • Chester Catholic High School on Wednesdays January 17, February 14 and March 14 from 1930 to 2100 • Sir William Stanier Community School, Crewe on Thursdays February 1, March 1 and March 29 from 2000 to 2200 • Broomfield's Leisure Centre, Warrington on Fridays January 26, February 23 and March 23 from 1900 to 2200 Matches will be six-a-side contests, played as 12 overs per side. All junior players who feature in the competition must be in school year 8 or above. Entry fee is £12 per team per match. There will be a finals day in April where the winners of the competitions at each venue can play against each other. For more information please contact Jessica Lewis via [email protected] / 07429164870. ENGLAND WOMEN England missed out on regaining the Women’s Ashes, but Australia retained the crown simply because they were the holders. After a 2-1 series win for the Aussies in the ODI matches, the Test was drawn and England then won the T20 series 2-1, leaving both teams with eight points. The best performance as far as England were concerned came in the final match, when Danielle Wyatt’s maiden international century led the way to a record women’s T20 run chase. Sophie Ecclestone played all matches bar the first ODI, and made her Test debut. She took 3-107 during England’s marathon stint in the field during the Tests, and was more economical than many of her senior colleagues in the limited overs internationals. For the second year in succession, Sophie made the longlist for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award, but not the final shortlist of three. The Sports Personality of the Year ceremony takes place this Sunday, December 17, with World Cup final hero Anya Shrubsole shortlisted for the main award, and the team sure to be amongst the leading contenders for Team of the Year One-Day Internationals – October 22: England 228-9 (50; Lauren Winfield 48, Natalie Sciver 36, Sarah Taylor 34, Fran Wilson 26, Tammy Beaumont 24, Ashleigh Gardner 3-47, Megan Schutt 2-44, Ellyse Perry 2-50) Australia 231-8 (49.1; Alex Blackwell 67*, Elyse Villani 38, Rachael Haynes 30, Gardner 27, Perry 20, Alex Hartley 2-40, Katherine Brunt 2-47) October 26: Australia 296-6 (50; Haynes 89*, Perry 67, Nicole Bolton 66, Alyssa Healy 56, Jenny Gunn 4-55) England 209 (42.2; Brunt 52, Wilson 37, Heather Knight 36, Taylor 26, Schutt 4-26, Kristen Beams 2-38, Jess Jonassen 2- 50) (England chasing revised target of 284 under DLS) October 29: England 284-8 (50; Knight 88*, Beaumont 74, Taylor 69, Schutt 4-44, Perry 2-51) Australia 257-9 (48; Healy 71, Bolton 62, Blackwell 37, Perry 23, Hartley 3-45, Sciver 2-24, Gunn 2-59) (Australia chasing revised target of 277 under DLS) October 29: England 284-8 (50; Knight 88*, Beaumont 74, Taylor 69, Schutt 4-44, Perry 2-51) Australia 257-9 (48; Healy 71, Bolton 62, Blackwell 37, Perry 23, Hartley 3-45, Sciver 2-24, Gunn 2-59) (Australia chasing revised target of 277 under DLS) Test Match – November 9-12: England 280 (Beaumont 70, Knight 62, Taylor 29, Georgia Elwiss 27, Anya Shrubsole 20, Perry 3-59, Tahlia McGrath 2-45, Schutt 2-52, Jonassen 2-52) & 206-2 (Knight 79*, Elwiss 41*, Beaumont 37, Winfield 34) Australia 448-9dec (Perry 213, McGrath 47, Healy 45, Haynes 33, Beth Mooney 27, Bolton 24, Jonassen 24, Sophie Ecclestone 3-107, Laura Marsh 3-109) T20 Internationals – November 17: England 132-9 (20; Danielle Wyatt 50, Sciver 26, Wilson 23*, Schutt 4-22, Perry 2-26) Australia 134-4 (15.5; Mooney 86*) November 19: England 152-6 (20; Sciver 40, Brunt 32*, Taylor 30, Schutt 2-16) Australia 112 (18; Healy 24, Gunn 4-13, Brunt 2-10, Ecclestone 2-24) November 21: Australia 178-2 (20; Mooney 117*, Perry 22*) England 181-6 (19; Wyatt 100, Knight 51, Jonassen 2-25, Delissa Kimmince 2-30) England face South Africa and New Zealand in limited overs internationals during the 2018 domestic season. The programme includes the chance to see the team in action in Leeds and Derby. ODIs v South Africa June 9 at Worcester (1100), June 12 at Hove (1300) and June 15 at Canterbury (1400) T20 Tri-Series – England, South Africa and New Zealand June 20 at Taunton - South Africa v New Zealand (1300), England v South Africa (1740) June 23 at Taunton - England v South Africa (1300), England v New Zealand (1740) June 28 at Bristol - South Africa v New Zealand (1300), England v New Zealand (1740) July 1 at Chelmsford – Series Final (1500) ODIs v New Zealand July 7 at Headingley (1100), July 10 at Derby (1300), July 13 at Leicester (1400) LANCASHIRE THUNDER The Kia Super League expands in 2018, and the six teams will now play all of the others both home and away.