Kent Women v Essex Women
ECB Women’s County 50-Over
Sutton Valence School
Saturday 13 July, 11:00am
Team News
Kent: Ella Darlington, Sam Wright, Genevieve Jeer, Darcey Carter, Coco Streets, Charlotte Pape*, Jodie Hobson, Emily Thompson+, Kaya Clark, Olivia Barnes, Zeena Bilal, Imogen Sheriyar
Essex: Tilly Callaghan, Jasmine Westley, Bella Johnson, Jess Olorenshaw, Kelly Castle*, Scarlett Hughes+, Grace Poole, Sophia Mitchell, Hannah Davis, Sally Chapman, Cara Castleman
Match Details
Umpires: John McBride & Mel Juniper
Scorers: Lin Martin & Joanna Johnson
Toss: Essex won the toss and elected to bowl first
Result: Essex won by nine wickets
Scorecard: View here
Match Report
Hannah Davis ripped through Kent with 5/19 as Essex sealed a crushing Battle of the Bridge win away at Sutton Valence School in the Women’s County 50-Over competition.
Davis returned her figures from 10 overs, with Sally Chapman and Cara Castleman also taking two wickets apiece, as the hosts were bundled out for 134 at the venue on the outskirts of Maidstone.
In response, half-centuries for Tilly Callaghan and Jasmine Westley, the former unbeaten, saw the Eagles race to their target in just 23.5 overs.
Having elected to insert Kent after winning the toss, the visiting attack was heavily restrictive early on, with Grace Poole and Sophia Mitchell keeping the score down to just 33 in the opening 12 overs.
With that pressure having built up, the introduction of Davis saw Essex score the first wicket, with Ella Darlington bowled for 19.
From there, Davis also saw off Genevieve Jeer, caught and bowled for two, and Darlington’s fellow opener Sam Wright, caught by Poole for 15.
That was before Callaghan got in on the act with the ball too, having Darcey Carter caught by Kelly Castle for five to leave Kent 54-4.
The hosts’ situation, although stabilised a little around the halfway point by Coco Streets and captain Charlotte Pape, then got even worse when Davis bowled a double-wicket maiden.
Streets was the first victim of that over, bowled for seven, before Davis rounded it out by pinning Jodie Hobson lbw for a four-ball duck.
Almost immediately afterwards, Emily Thompson hit Chapman to Davis for the first of her two wickets, and she took her second a short while after when top-scorer Pape was finally removed for 26.
Castleman then wrapped up the tail in successive overs by having Kaya Clark held by Castle for 17 and then seeing Olivia Barnes caught behind by Scarlett Hughes for three.
The Eagles began the chase in supremely confident fashion, and openers Callaghan and Westley almost got the job done themselves with an opening partnership of 122.
That included both hitting fifty, with Callaghan the first to do so in 60 balls in the 17th over, before Westley followed in even faster fashion, reaching the milestone from 47 deliveries.
It took the duo just an hour, and 17.5 overs, to bring up three figures, with the belligerent nature of Westley’s innings underlined by the fact she went to fifty with a six.
She was not able to be there at the end, falling to Pape via a Carter catch for 55 off 50 balls, but Callaghan and replacement Bella Johnson knocked off what remained in just 3.5 further overs.
The in-form Johnson supported Callaghan, who ended unbeaten on 66, with five not out, but four of those were the match’s most crucial runs, as she hit Jeer to the fence to confirm a sizeable Essex win.
School’s out, cricket’s in: 50-over cricket in Chelmsford this summer
White-ball action at The Cloud County Ground continues into July and August as the Metro Bank One-Day Cup gets underway.
The competition has not only recently proven itself to be wide open and highly competitive, but also a breeding ground for the next generation of elite cricketers.
With all four matches set to take place during the school summer holidays, each fixture makes a perfect family day out in the heart of Chelmsford.
Wednesday 24 July, 11:00am: Essex v Warwickshire – buy here
Wednesday 31 July, 11:00am: Essex v Leicestershire Foxes – buy here
Sunday 04 August, 11:00am: Essex v Glamorgan – buy here
Friday 09 August, 2:00pm: Essex v Surrey – buy here
Alongside the offering of men’s Metro Bank One Day Cup action, The Cloud County Ground will also host two Women’s London Championship matches during the summer holidays.
Friday 26 July, 11:00am: Essex Women v Kent – buy here
Wednesday 14 August, 11:00am: Essex Women v Sussex – buy here
