Sunday 27th V Lullington

We travelled to Lullington expecting a strong side as we had faced earlier on the season, however, they used this game to give others a chance, although still half the team were experienced, we could not have got off to a better start when S Eccleston took the openers wicket with the first ball of the game, this tight bowling continued from both ends and some good fielding to begin with only allowed an experienced player to score off the bad balls but restrict the batter at the other end. The fourth over saw the fall of the second wicket and pretty much a trend was set… with wickets falling steadily included the prized wicket of their experienced opener who posed the threat of a big score superbly frustrated by M.Hughes who caught and bowled her. Some good batting by numbers 4 and 5 aided by some loose bowling helped push their score along, wickets continued to fall, and their final two batters added to their total with some quick scoring, I think the offer of money or lager proved a good incentive for the bowlers to take wickets…! Ashfield bowled Lullington out for 144 in 20 overs. Unfortunately unlike men’s cricket we don’t get their overs although making them field for 60 overs could have been interesting! With 40 overs to reach 145 seemed realistic and we had the potential to do it. We started off positively thanks to some lose bowling from their openers, being 36 off 4 overs this was the start we needed. First wicket fell, but the next 3 partnerships worked hard with each other and kept the scoring ticking along. After a steady loss of wickets V.Arch showed determination to occupy the crease for as long as possible and did this very well. Ashfield ended up 97 AO of 30.1 overs. Every one worked extremely hard on what was a very hot day and again we continue to improve, bowling a side out in 20 overs and our totals continue to increase every game. Mention must go to three newcomers to the side Lorraine Stone, Becky Diddierserre and Jemma Greenway both of the latter playing their first 40 over game.

M.Hughes 4-0-27-3
L.Richardson 2.2-0-30-3
L. Stone 2-0-13-2
M.Cole 4-2-13-1

22nd July V Four Oak Saints

This was to be our game, with FOS only entering the league this season we had the opportunity to win and get some confidence from this game. Bowling first we kept the bowling fairly tight but again leaking too many extras, but managing to take some wickets and restrict the scoring when the bowling was accurate. We achieved something we haven’t done all season and restricted the opposition to under 100 runs. We looked with optimism to our batting and believed we could win the game. We got off to a good steady start taking the runs when possible putting the bad balls away increasing the pressure on the fielders and bowlers. After M.Cole had to retire and a couple of wickets had gone the scoring dried up and the FOS were beginning to get back on top even with them also leaking runs through extras. With the equation of 18 to win of 7 overs the game appeared to be ours, however, some very good bowling from their opener and ably supported at the other end, bowled two maidens in a row something rare in a 2020 game, this heaped the pressure back on the lower order batters, with wickets falling and FOS trying their best to restrict scoring whilst not taking the penultimate wicket bowled superbly and left us requiring 10 of the final over they took the 6th wicket on the penultimate ball allowing M.Cole to return to the crease requiring 9 of the last ball to win, which wasn’t achieved. Credit must go to FOS who fielded and bowled tremendously to grab victory from what surely looked like a loss. Ashfield girls must now learn from this with the most important lesson to play attacking cricket in 2020 games we cannot afford to block, we need to play some shots and look to work the ball for singles, we need to start adapting our batting for different formats of the game. Also ensuring we bowl straight and field sharply to ensure we don’t gift the opposition extra runs and make our life harder when chasing.

M.Cole 33*

Sun 20th V Derby

Selecting to bowl first again we had derby 82-4 after 20 overs and were looking to keep the runs down and get the remaining wickets. With some good bowling, players again reaping the rewards for bowling straight we took a couple of more wickets. However one of their senior players a regular 1st teamer came to the wicket and gave us all a lesson in intelligent batting, playing shots and working the ball around to keep the scoreboard ticking over. We must learn that when this is happening we need to think about how deep we are in the field and ensure we are attacking the ball to cut out the singles. Set the target of 178 we got off to a slow and steady start facing some tight bowling. With determination from a number of players we batted for 33.4 overs the longest we have lasted although scoring only 51. With only 8 players this was a commendable effort all round, finished off with a drink in the pub!

M.Cole 21
M. Hughes 7-1-29-2

Tuesday 15th July V Five Ways

We won the toss and fielded, bowling in general is gradually getting better however, there are still too many extras being given away, with 2 runs for each wide and no ball teams are not under any pressure to be scoring runs. The two openers punished the bad ball and played very well, with them both reaching 30 and 33 respectively and having to retire, the subsequent batters were not scoring as freely but still under no pressure to score runs and boosted the total up to 143 runs 53 being extras. Our batting was not great and were all out after 16.2 overs for 35. Lessons must be learnt from games like these, we must tidy up our bowling and start to be much more attacking with our batting.

Tuesday 24th June V Birmingham Women

Birmingham Women returned to the Graveyard with 5 experienced players and a couple inexperienced, although one a U11 county player in the 7. Again having won the toss, I learnt and listened from Sunday and decided to field first, with some tight bowling to begin with saw the dismissal of the one opener bowled. However, the number 1 batsman was punishing the bad ball, as were the following batsman coming in, with runs freely coming from extras the batters had it easy and were not put under pressure to score runs, Manjit then reaped the rewards for bowling straight with the important wicket of number 3. The runs from the bat soon dried up with two inexperienced batters at the crease although they were still putting the bad ball away and always taking singles, Birmingham finished with 114, although only 58 of these runs came off the bat, with 22 wides being bowled all worth two runs and 12 byes totalling 56 extras almost doubling their score, we need to learn the importance of bowling accurately consistently. 114 was a realistic target to get, we knew they would not give away as many extras and would be tight with their bowling, the two openers were out without any runs off the bat. Some good supportive work from 4,5,6 allowed myself to reach 33 when I had to retire with the lower order seeing off a few overs taking some singles when available, with 3 overs left and 6 down I returned to the crease and again some excellent supportive work and running by Manjit allowed a further 20ish to be added for no loss meaning Ashfield finished on 89-6, although 63 came off the bat and only 26 extras bowled it is clear to see the difference of bowling accurately consistently. Hopefully this has been another lesson learnt and with a couple of bowlers back next game we can improve upon this.

The game was finished off with a great curry provided by the Anson’s which was enjoyed by all home team and away team, thanks once again. And for Chris umpiring the whole game, both ends on his own.

Sara Eccleston 4-0-14-0
Michelle Cole 4-0-6-2

Michelle Cole 51*

Sunday 22nd June V Lullington Park CC

Lullington Park were the visitors to Britannic in a rearranged game from the beginning of the season, although it was their first season in the Midlands league, they were clearly experience with half the team playing for Derbyshire, and the other half having played many games before. After winning the toss and deciding to bat first for a change, to give Ashfield girls the experience of setting a target, we were bowled out extremely cheaply for 19 after 21 overs. With heads down and an almighty task ahead Lullington knocked this off with 4.2 overs. Two mentions must go to Laura R who came and supported us, even though she could not play and got roped into scoring. Aslo Laura B who came to watch, having never picked up a cricket bat before played as our 10th.

Sunday 15th June V Walmley 2XI

Sunday 15th June brought Walmley 2nds to Britannic, their team consisted of one senior member a few Warwickshire age group players and some very young players playing in their first 40 over game. We won the toss and chose to field first. Their two openers made a good positive start showing patience and experience putting the bad balls away, until Manjit expertly ran out the batter whilst she was backing up! Some tight fielding and accurate throwing again by Manjit got another run out with a direct hit. After the top three batters were out they struggled to score, mainly due to the tight bowling of Chelle Hughes on her comeback game for Ashfield and Vicky Sears on her return to the side for this season. Once again Sara Eccleston struck in her second spell finishing with 3 wickets. The fielding again was tight and bowling is becoming more accurate, although two improvements in the field for the next game are needed; more urgency in retrieving the ball and getting through overs and secondly more noise, it was far too quiet on Sunday! Walmley finished their innings on a gettable score of 117. Batting again was a disappointment, although we scored more than previous games. With only 4 people scoring and the top score being 14 (Sara) vast improvements are needed from everyone, so everyone is contributing. In terms of batting, the result points out the importance of playing straight as they bowled very accurately on the stumps and people got bowled playing across the line. With some more intense work on batting in training this shall come with time.

Notable performances

Michelle Cole 8-2-12-1
Sara Eccleston 8-4-22-3 and 14
Michelle Hughes 8-2-15-0
Vicky Sears 8-3-12-1

We now look to the next match which is a rearranged game V Lullington @ Britannic 2pm on Sunday 22nd June.

Followed by 2020 game V BIRMINGHAM WOMEN Tuesday 24th June @ Graveyard 6pm. Lets please give Lullington and Birmingham an Ashfield welcome…

Tuesday 13th May v Moseley

Tuesday 13th brought Moseley to the Graveyard for the start of the 2020 season, as usual they had a mixed side of a couple of senior players and the rest youngsters. Again I lost the toss but again we were asked to field first, which once again we did with great ability, with the girls soon adapting to having less players in the field and having to do much more chasing, the bowling was again a little inconsistent, however, the shorter spells seemed to benefit. Again the score was helped along with the extras we all gave away, Moseley got off to a good start and the openers got themselves in punishing the bad balls. Until there was some great sharp fielding that dismissed both the openers through run outs. Cue Ashfield girls going mental. Sara then came on for her second spell and reaped the benefits of straight bowling, with Moseley also looking to up their run rate, Sara bowled straight and took 4 wickets cue Ashfield girls going mental x 4, an excellent effort after also being given the responsibility of bowling the last over. Our batting was again our downfall, however, it again provided us with more experience of match situations. There was a vast improvement from Sunday’s game and if we can keep up the effort everyone continues to put in and attends training regularly we can look forward to our next games with confidence.

Moseley’s nominated Man of the Match Award Goes to Sara 4-17 & good batting

Ashfield’s Man of the Match Award also goes to Sara

And to Zoe Smith from Moseley who as an under 11 making her first XI debut bowled v.well 2-4

Our next 2020 fixture is at home again against Five Ways OE Tuesday 27th May 6pm all support is appreciated.

Leicester (A) Sun 11th May

After a long wait to get the 2008 season underway Moseley Ashfield Ladies travelled to Leicester on Sunday 11th May, this was to be a new experience for all but one of the squad, with 9/10 players making their debut in cricket. After loosing the toss but being asked to field we started positively with the fielding being very tight, the bowling was slightly inconsistent but bearing in mind players had only bowled a few in the nets was an achievement. On came Laura Mason (ballerina) who bowled one wide decided to appologise and then next ball bowl the opening bat and go absolutely crazy! The subsequent bowling and fielding was a great positive to take from the game. Although there were far too many extras with bolstered Leicester's score with practice and match experience I am positive these will be reduced. After tea we prepared to bat, which after the succes in the field came as a disappointment to many of the players, however, both I and Chris saw potential and again with more practice and experience of facing bowling out of a net situation will improve significantly. Overall, against a experinced and established Leicester team the girls can be proud of their first game. We now need to work hard at training and get as much match practice as possible and no doubt we will improve upon that performance at the next game. Well done girls a positive satart with a great deal learn't.

Next Midlands League fixture is away at Walmely Sunday 25th May

New era for womens cricket @ MACC

Welcome to a new era for womens cricket at MACC, a successful winter recruitment campaign has resulted in a promising new squad for 2008 and beyond. With our first two games Sun 27th Apr V Lullington and Sun 4th May V Derby being cancelled we look with excitement to our next (first!) game Sun 11th V Leicester, and the start of our 2020 campaign Tues 13th V Moseley HOME. We always welcome any new players regardless of ability, and are always looking for supporters and sponsors.


Keep up to date with results, fixtures and table position on www.wml.play-cricket.com easy to navigate, we are in OSWML North.

Article on Birmingham Mail Website

Please follow the links to the Birmingham Mail Website where details of recruitment have been published.

http://www.birminghammail.net/news/your-news/

http://www.birminghammail.net/birmingham-sport/cricket/club-cricket/

Players Wanted

Moseley Ashfield Ladies are currently recruiting for the 2008 season, if you are interested please contact michelle_cole55@hotmail.com

Winter nets take place on Tuesdays at Swanshurst Girls' School 7 - 8pm.

Statistics for 2007 Season

Midlands League

Played 6
Won 3
Lost 3
Opposition Conceded 2
Cancelled 3
Abandoned 1

Best batting avg (Min 3 inns) 36.25 Kate Barton
Highest score 203* Sarah Aley
Leading run scorer 290 Kate Barton

Best bowling avg (Min 25 ov) 6.47 Michelle Cole
Best performance 3-6 Michelle Cole
Leading wicket taker 17 Michelle Cole

2007 Season Review

The 2007 season for Moseley Ashfield Ladies was a little disappointing, in terms of league position, finishing 3rd, however, if the squad numbers are taken into account it was fairly successful. With many games being played with less than 11 players, or with two or three complete newcomers to the game this included Bridget Anson turning out in whites for her debut against Anston, the league position was something to be encouraged by. The team was uplifted by the arrival of Sarah Aley the Warwickshire overseas player, as an Australian international she was undoubtedly talented and a leap above any of us, the desire to win she brought to the side, resulted in the rest of the team increasing their performance, many games she dominated the opposition but the game that stands out the most must be the game where she scored 203* against Old Grammarians. A mention also must go to Leanne Haines who as the youngest member of the squad has made a significant improvement in both effort and performance, she was also selected to captain the boys under 13 in a game which she did with great ease and easily outshone them all. The game that stood out from the season was indicative of the 2007 summer, rain. With the square sodden and not having played for a couple of weeks we were keen to keep our promotion hopes alive and play against Derby who were also in high contention for the league title, cue bed sheets, Chris Bourne and a number of our team walking up an down the wicket, with a delayed start we played this game but narrowly lost. We finished the season in a respectable third place.

The 2020 league was a successful campaign, not only on the field whereby we finished second by only 0. 31 points!! but off the field much due to the huge support shown by the Anson family making curry for the team and opposition but also travelling to away games to show support. The title decider as ever came down to the last game against Walmley, they were ultimately far too strong for us and generally a poor performance gifted them the title.

Again thanks must go to Chris for his invaluable contribution throughout the season, coaching and advising, similarly for himself and Tommo for the work put in to get games played in a very difficult season. Overall the season was generally a success, however, there is still promotion and league titles to win, with a few players leaving, the squad numbers will need to increase so the same few players are not being relied upon game after game to perform as the stats suggest.

2008 sees a new beginning for Moseley Ashfield Ladies, with one remaining member we hope to encourage more ladies to participate and to enjoy the game, by competing in the Northern section of the Midlands 2nd division.