In their first match of the season, at home in the ECB Women’s Club Plate T20 Cup against Lightcliffe CC, Chads won the toss and elected to field first. It was an even start, as Lightcliffe’s top-order got off to a solid start but wickets to captain Sophie Jacobson and Alex Roberts kept the score in check. After that, Lightcliffe put on a bit of a partnership but a run out by Jacobson was quickly followed by a wicket to Hannah Keys as the hosts restricted Lightcliffe to 150 off their 20 overs. With the wickets and overs spread out between the bowlers, it was exciting to see everyone finally out on the field after a long pre-season.

Opening the batting, Sarah Carmody (14 runs) stood strong at the top of the order. However, the Lightcliffe bowling was a strong line-up, and Chads struggled to get going with the bat. Jacobson was impressive with the bat, hitting a fantastic 65, but Chads were bowled out for 115 with 13 deliveries left as Lightcliffe won by 35 runs. Despite the result, it’s a big step in the right direction as this team hasn’t played together before and will have gained plenty as a squad before their league starts in a couple of weeks.

Angus Boyle