Vitality U13 & U15 Club T20 Finals
Lord’s played host for the first time to the junior club T20 finals with the Nursery Ground being used for the Under 13 Finals and the Main Ground for the Under 15 Finals.
The Under 13 Final saw the closest match of the day as Ealing CC (Middlesex) beat Didsbury CC (Lancashire) by 1 wicket. Batting first, Didsbury had Tanmay Seth top score with 20 while Oscar Hickman (2-17) and Abhishek Amratlal (2-19) helped Ealing take regular wickets as Didsbury were bowled out for 99. In reply, Ealing openers Veer Patel (29) and Ved Dangar (17) scored 42 before Nikash Hinduja (3-11) and Milan Majithia (3-14) tore through the Ealing batting line up to reduce them to 67-6. Yash Dhasmana (12 not out) held his nerve and helped see his team home.
In the Girls Under 13 Final, Berkswell CC (Warwickshire) won the toss and elected to bowl but they were soon under pressure from the Tunbridge Wells CC (Kent) opening pair of Georgia Moran (90 not out) and Ruby Marriage (71) who batted superbly in a first wicket partnership of 158. Berkswell stuck to their task well with Iman Akbar (2-36) being the pick of the bowling attack but despite this Tunbridge finished on 193-2. In reply Berkswell battled hard, in particular the excellent second wicket partnership of 78 between Cerys Tipping (76 not out) and Freddie Stokes (24) however once this was broken the required rate increased with Berkswell finishing on 142-4.
The Under 15 Final welcomed the furthest travelers Carlton CC (Scotland) as they took on Banstead CC (Surrey). Choosing to bat first, Carlton saw Oliver Stones (28) and Hamish Turner (20 not out) help the Scottish side to a total of 107-7 from their 20 overs with Vaibhav Vaidyanath, Isaac Rusbridge and Barnaby Campbell all taking two wickets. Banstead’s Isaac Rusbridge (36) and Bertie Morgan (32) scored the majority of the runs but some tight bowling saw Carlton keep the pressure on with Fergus Foley (2-16 from 4 overs) the pick of the bowlers. Rusbridge was run out in the 19th over and Morgan with 3 balls to go as Carlton held on to win by 8 runs.
Porthill Park Northern Stars CC (Staffordshire) won the toss and elected to bowl against Slough CC (Berkshire) in the Girls Under 15 Final. Led by captain Fiza Iqbal (25) and opening partner Shristi Patil (19), Slough started well with a partnership of 47. However, Porthill Park bowled and fielded tightly with Amy Connelly (1-13), Peyton Hulme (1-14) and Malisha Tennakoon (1-15) ensuring that the final score of 99-6 was a manageable total for their batters. Opener Matilda Atherton-Gater (55), including 8 boundaries, was joined by captain Lauren Kenvyn (22) in the second wicket partnership and they easily reached the target in the 13th over to become National Champions.
Vitality Girls U19 Club T20
In a match reduced to 18 overs, Porthill Park Northern Stars CC (Staffordshire) took on Bishop’s Stortford CC (Hertfordshire) having beaten Hursley Park CC (Hampshire) and Leyland CC (Lancashire) respectively earlier in the day. Porthill Park batted first with all round contributions from Matilda Atherton-Gator (19), Malisha Tennakoon (20) and Tilly Kesteven (39) in a total of 119-6, Mabel Reid with 2-24 being the pick of the bowlers. Bishop’s Stortford CC (Hertfordshire) started their reply strongly with an opening partnership of 58 between captain Bella Howarth (24) and Hollie Dring-Richardson (26) however no one else was able to back this up and left them with 10 to score off the last over. This was going to be a little too far with Porthill Park winning and being crowned National Champions by 5 runs, Amy Scerri with 3-23 proving the match winner.
Vitality Club T20 Finals
Wimbledon CC (Surrey) won their third Club T20 Cup title although their first since 2014 as they beat local side Sandiacre Town CC (Derbyshire) at the Incora County Ground, home of Derbyshire CCC. Both clubs lost in their last appearance in these finals, coincidentally both also at Derby (Sandiacre Town in 2016, Wimbledon in 2017) and have been the standout performers in the competition this season. Sandiacre Town chose to bowl first and Wimbledon opener Nicholas Welch top scored with 38 from 24 balls. Welch was supported by captain Jonathan Webb (29) and after they were both dismissed, David Scott (25) and Tim Lloyd (24 not out) pushed Wimbledon to 140-4 from their 20 overs. Sandiacre Town started their chase well but the run out of David Torr for 15 followed by a first ball dismissal of Scott McNeill saw their reply stutter. Muhammad Bin Naeem hit 35 with Connor Marshall getting 28 but three quick wickets from Scott Conway plus two late dismissals by Jonathan Speller had Sandiacre Town all out for 125.
The Plate Final, which is for clubs that play in non-ECB Premier Leagues, saw two West Midlands clubs do battle. Old Elizabethans CC (Worcestershire) batted first but were bogged down by some excellent bowling throughout with Wellington CC (Shropshire) restricting them to just 6 boundaries during their innings. Captain Daniel Lloyd was the standout performer taking 4-15 from his 4 overs with Dinesh Perera (2-12 from 4 overs) in support, Jack Taylor top scored for Old Elizabethans with 23. Lloyd opened the batting with Daniel Vaughan and this pair added 29 before Lloyd was caught off the bowling of Amar Jawanda. Daniel Colburn took 2-12 from his 4 overs, including bowling Vaughan who top scored with 38 from 33 balls, and Jawanda 2-22, but James Flynn saw his team home as Wellington won by 5 wickets with 6 balls to spare.
Vitality Women’s Club T20 Finals
St Cross Symondians CC (Hampshire) won the toss and elected to bat in the Cup Final against Dorridge CC (Warwickshire). Abbie Whybrow scored an outstanding 106 off 64 balls with 82 runs in boundaries alone which was the inaugural century scored in the National Finals, the competition being in its 6th season, and it needed a spectacular one-handed catch on the boundary from Sophie Grayson to end Whybrow’s innings. Captain Finty Trussler also scored an impressive 60 not out in a daunting total of 201/4, Isabelle Watson taking 2-35. Dorridge started their reply well with Mariam Khan (46) and Sophie Grayson (43) but inevitably risks had to be taken and this resulted in 5 run outs in the latter overs with captain Trussler also taking 3-13, the final total of 111 all out meant that St Cross Symondians were worthy winners by 90 runs.
In the Plate Final, Moreton CC (Oxfordshire) won the toss and elected to bowl against last season’s winners Porthill Park Northern Stars CC (Staffordshire). Matilda Gator opened the batting and scored 52 before having to retire due to illness, Tilly Kesteven contributed 41 to the final score of 142-5 with Alex Knight the most successful Moreton bowler returning figures of 3-31. In Moreton’s reply Ellie Ingram scored 33 and towards the end of the innings there was a fine contribution of 21 from Niamh Rogan. Moreton finished on 123-7 meaning that the Northern Stars retained the trophy with a 19 run victory.
National Club Championship Final
A thriller of a final in the National Club Championship for a second year in a row as Kent side Bexley CC, who won by 1 run in 2022, fell to an agonising defeat to Cuckney CC from Nottinghamshire with the scores tied and Cuckney winning by virtue of losing fewer wickets. Cuckney chose to chase as they asked Bexley to bat first and opener Calum Basey (78 from 82 balls) gave the Kent side a good start. After Basey was dismissed, Matthew Stiddard took over (finishing with an unbeaten 59) but Cuckney continued to take wickets, including 4 in the last 3 overs, to keep Bexley in check, Joseph Worrall the pick of the bowling attack taking 3-30. Cuckney lost Tom Rowe in the first over of their reply but Nicholas Keast attacked the Bexley openers to score 36 from 26 balls. His dismissal saw Nick Langford (59) join William Butler (69) in the middle and this pair added 105 as Butler was bowled by Adam Riley. Langford was later run out but following Adam Tillcock being caught behind, Thomas Ullyott kept his nerve to score two off the final ball of the Cuckney innings to tie the scores and the Nottinghamshire side were champions by losing less wickets for the first time in their history.