Page 26 - West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Cricket Club Yearbook 2017-18

GIRLS’ REPORT
It’s been another exciting year for girls’ cricket at WPHCCC.
Sadly we were not able to get enough interest in registrations for us to run our T20 Blast this year which was very disappointing when lots of work was done trying to promote it. Further efforts will be made to get this wonderful format back up and running next season.
Our Saturday teams were boosted by a number of last seasons T20 Blast girls and we ended up with 34 girls playing Saturday cricket in our Under 13, 15 and 17 teams. This season we opted for larger squads and just three teams rather than push towards a fourth which in most instances worked well, and was useful when we needed to rebalance the teams in the mid-season break.
Our Under 13’s were a mixture of experience and new players and we also welcomed back Christina Phillip who has played all age groups from Kanga with WPHCCC and who offered to Coach. It is always daunting for a new Coach but Christina gave it everything and the girls responded well to her and the team spirit was excellent.
Ant Hale and Mal Hall coached the older teams and strong performances were seen across the board although no winning teams this season but many players achieved personal bests with bat and or ball.
Mal Hall – U 17 Coach
The U17 Girls had great Spring and Summer seasons of cricket. During the Spring season the team won all but two games and was unfortunate to be rained out during the final against Castle Hill. As usual each game against Castle Hill comes down to a handful of runs with the games played in great spirit. The Summer season was not as successful, points wise, but true to form the Castle Hill games were very close again.
When training commenced the girls were asked to set goals for themselves whether it be improving bowling or facing their full quota of deliveries and retire when batting. It was very pleasing to see several personal improvements through the season with all girls returning some fantastic personal performances. We have
a very potent bowling line-up, which is not just led by a couple of bowlers. The entire team returned some very impressive bowling figures with the vast majority of dismissals being LBW or bowled – accuracy and consistency has been brilliant! Others knuckled down and batted out their quota to then realise they “can do this”. This is now a habit with several girls compiling some good innings. It is quite remarkable that the team bowling or batting order can be shuffled around, as much as it is sometimes, such is the confidence of all the players, not just in themselves but also in each other – go TEAM!
A team of good players is just a team of good players unless led on the field by good leadership - then it becomes a good cricket TEAM. This season the team was led by two extraordinary young women. Anushka and Lily brought a great sense of calmness and confidence to the team. Their ability to communicate, organise and inspire their team was wonderful to witness.
Gaining in skill and confidence some girls have now tried out for and competed in representative cricket, the U17 Brewers competition and Women’s Grade cricket. Playing on turf has not only improved their game but also their interest in the game. There seems a great buzz around that several want to keep playing past the U17 age group.
A huge thank-you to all parents for getting everyone to training and games as well as helping out.
Ant Hale – U15 Coach
This season Under 15s had a good Spring season and a very good Summer season. The Spring season saw us finish in sixth place, the Summer season we finished fourth.
Everyone clearly enjoyed working on their personal improvement while contributing to an impressive team attitude and unity. I’m sure the girls will remember, especially, the last game for some time. It was a good
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