Ma THE Regulations & Laws changes summarised … MCC match venue sought … Sarah DAZZLER 170 McCann and Jennie Kitzinger to play for MCC at Lord’s …. Two four-wicket hauls for Sophie Ecclestone in India … All representative fixtures listed CHESHIRE WOMEN’S LEAGUE The annual Captains’ meeting was held on March 21, and covered issues such as: • Regulation changes in League competitions • The new Laws of Cricket • The need for all team managers, coaches, captains, regular umpires and regular scorers to obtain DBS clearance as soon as possible • The need to ensure that al players are old enough to play senior cricket according to ECB rules • The need to inform the League in advance of the match if a player represents a second club during a season (e.g. via the loan system, a dual T20 registration or a permanent transfer) • The need to send results sheets to Karen Prince for all matches in all League senior competitions. Clubs are encouraged to input their own results via Play Cricket, however they should still send the signed and completed sheet to Karen for audit purposes. Results sheets should record the names of all players who participated in the match, even if they did not bat. The names of fielders effecting catches and run outs, and wicketkeepers effecting catches and stumpings should also be recorded, as there are fielding and wicketkeeping awards based on these criteria. For a run out, the fielder credited should be the player who makes the final throw in the fielding sequence, and not the player who removes the bails • The need to communicate summary result details to myself by 1900 on the day following the match. This is compulsory in division 1/2, the senior Knockout Cup and the T20 divisional competition, and is encouraged for division 3 and the Development Knockout Cup. This can be done via a live phone call, or by emailing the official Results Summary Form, or by completing the full scorecard on Play Cricket • Fixtures in division 3 or any of the T20 competitions can be re-arranged by mutual consent of the two clubs involved at any time up until the scheduled date of the match. Division 1/2 fixtures can be re-arranged by mutual consent up until Sunday April 15, which is one week before the start of the season, and after this time can only be re-arranged if the home team has no ground available to stage the fixture The latest master fixture list, including all re-arrangements of which I have been notified, can be viewed here. The latest list of main contacts at each League club can be viewed here. Any club interested in staging the prestigious annual fixture between the League XI and the MCC is asked to contact Sarah McCann and Carol Ingham to discuss. This year the match takes place on Thursday August 30. Hours of play are likely to be approximately 1100 to 1800. There is likely to be just the one meal interval. The host club will need to provide lunch for the 30 or so players and officials and open the bar throughout the day for spectators. The next meeting of the League Committee will be on Wednesday June 6 at 1930, venue to be confirmed. The Association of Cricket Officials (ACO) 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. This Online Occasional Umpires Resource from the ACO is for those who may find themselves asked to umpire all or part of a match on an occasional basis, and is not aimed at regular umpires. As Oakmere seek to become the first club since 2012 to retain the League Championship, the League’s clubs are not only seeking to ensure that there will be a new title winner in 2018, also face the task of ending Chester Boughton Hall’s 11- match winning run in T20 competitions, which dates back to their Knockout Cup loss to Wistaston in May 2016. Wistaston themselves recorded a similar 11-match winning run in T20 in 2014-15. These are certainly the best T20 winning runs in recent years, although Chester won 19 straight matches in the shorter format between August 2007 and August 2009, with the run being ‘book-ended’ by two losses to Poynton. Chester were in fact unbeaten in the 33 matches they played in all competitions between a T20 loss to Poynton in August 2007 and a League defeat to Oakmere in August 2009. NATIONAL KNOCKOUT The second round on May 20 sees Didsbury drawn away to Norden of Lancashire, while Stockport Georgians travel to Derbyshire to play Whitwell. Were both clubs to win these matches, they would meet in the regional quarter-final at Didsbury on May 27. 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: NatWest Women’s County T20 Division Two June 10 Durham & Wales H (Ashton-on-Mersey) 1030 & 1630 17 Somerset & Hampshire Taunton Deane, Somerset 1030 & 1330 24 Northamptonshire & Gloucestershire Finedon Dolben, 1030 & 1330 Northamptonshire July 1 Scotland & Berkshire H (Chester Boughton Hall) 1030 & 1630 Like last year, Cheshire will stage a ‘BigClash’ T20 double header involving some of the county’s elite players. This will take place on Bank Holiday Monday May 28 at Oakmere, just 13 days before the county team’s first match. The two matches will allow: • The established members of the county squad to gain quality T20 match practice • Aspiring members of the county squad to stake a claim for selection • Leading CWCL players, whether or not they currently aspire to play county cricket, to gain additional representative experience OTHER NEWS April 24 is MCC’s Women’s Cricket Day, when two all-star women’s matches will be staged on the hallowed turf of Lord’s. The first match at 1000 will be an intra-MCC match that will feature Cheshire’s Jennie Kitzinger and Sarah McCann. Jennie Kitzinger will then also play for MCC – alongside Charlotte Edwards, Sarah Taylor and Georgia Elwiss - in the day’s second match against Middlesex Women at 1330, which will mark the first occasion on which the Middlesex team have played on the main ground at Lord’s. Admission is £5, payable on the day. The matches will also be streamed live on the Middlesex CCC website. The matches are expected to break the record for the highest attendance for a domestic women’s cricket match (excluding those played as double-headers with men’s cricket) which stands at 3,413 for last year’s Super League Finals Day. Laura MacLeod and her son George Newton travelled to Kenya recently to support the work of charity Cricket Without Boundaries. JUNIOR GIRLS CLUB CRICKET & SENIOR WOMEN’S DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES Jess Lewis at the Cheshire Cricket Board would like to hear from any club interested in hosting a Women’s Softball Festival. It is hoped to run a formal softball league in Cheshire during June and July this year. LANCASHIRE THUNDER Alex Hartley joins Lancashire Thunder for 2018, with Sarah Taylor now allocated to Surrey Stars. Wistaston Village and Cheshire wicketkeeper Katie Bennett has been selected to attend Lancashire Thunder’s Regional Development Centre. These Development Centres, run by each of the Super League franchises, have replaced the ECB’s Under 19 Development Programme. ENGLAND WOMEN With the one-day matches on England’s tour of India not counting towards the ICC Women’s Championship, it was something of an experimental England squad that made the trip to India, where they took part in a T20 series with Australia as well as playing an ODI series against the hosts. Sarah Taylor did not make the trip as England continue to manage her recovery from a stress-related condition, Katherine Brunt was injured and other established names such as Lauren Winfield and Laura Marsh were rested. Katie George, Alice Davidson-Richards and Bryony Smith made their international debuts. The best moments for England largely came early on in the tour, firstly beating Australia in the T20 opener with all of three overs in hand, and then pulling off a record run chase for a women’s T20 international, spearheaded by an incredible 124 from 64 deliveries from Danielle Wyatt. Sophie Ecclestone was amongst the most economical England bowlers in the T20 matches, but it was in the ODI series – won 2-1 by India – that she really came into her own. Her 4-37 in the first match so nearly brought about a win for England, but her 4-14 from 10 overs in the second match was undoubtedly her first major match-winning contribution in an England shirt. Of course, many followers of the women’s game expressed their disappointment that there was very little media coverage of the tour back in the UK, with no TV coverage and no radio commentary. Supporters were left to follow the matches via live internet scorecards, and the occasional reports from the ground on BBC Radio 5. Coach Mark Robinson echoed these concerns in his post-match interview following the spectacular T20 win over India.