Team Brunt stormed to victory in cricket’s second-ever School Games, as 39 of the best young female cricketers in the country came together for three days of competition.
A partnership of 116 between Lucia Kendall (70) and Ellie Mitchell (62*) took Team Brunt to 164-3 from their 20 overs, a target that Team Sciver weren’t able to reach – bowled out for 136 with Mitchell (3-12) again the standout performer.
Yaaaaaasssssss! 💪🏻🥇🏆
— Katherine Brunt (@KBrunt26) 2 September 2018
The two teams had progressed to the final after a group stage which also involved Team Knight, but the side named after England’s captain were unable to reach the final.
The three days also offered off-field education, with anti-doping, athlete workshops and programmes on how to balance education and life all featuring.
Di Lewis, National Talent Manager for Women’s Cricket, said: “It was fantastic to see three days of good cricket, played out by such an exciting group of young cricketers.
“We’ve extended the pathway programme for this season and the 39 players on show here were picked off the back of impressing at the Regional Development Centres and on their performances in county cricket.
“It's a fantastic learning environment for the girls: to play against the best in their age-group and to educate each other. We're always trying to develop an environment in which the players can be challenged.
“Our aim is to identify, develop and prepare players for the next level of the Pathway and we’ve seen enough evidence from this weekend of cricket of the great amount of potential in the game.”
School Games teams
Team Brunt
Gemma Marriot
Ella Wadey
Robyn Edge
Alex Travers
Milly Home
Arianna Dowse
Lucia Kendall
Grace Ballinger
Katie Wolfe
Alice Monaghan
Emily Dibble
Ellie Mitchell
Ilenia Sims
Coach: Charlotte Edwards, Assistant Coach: Arran Brindle
Team Knight
Rebecca Duckworth
Leah Dobson
Adrianna Darlow
Ella Chandler
Amelia Gardner
Rhianna Southby
Amy Gordon
Francesca Goldthorpe
Lauren Filer
Grace Potts
Sophie Florides
Georgia Draper
Sophie Munro
Coach: Caroline Foster, Assistant Coach: Paul Lawrence
Team Sciver
Ria Fackrell
Ella McCaughan
Bess Heath
Ellie Mason
Danielle Collins
Nat Wraith
Alex Griffiths
Chelsey Rowson
Issy Wong
Katie Green
Danni Gibson
Kalea Moore
Olivia Bentley
Coach: Danielle Hazell, Assistant Coach: Eve Jones