Having had cancellations in weeks previous, the Carlton women were raring to get back on the Grange Loan turf and put in some solid performances.

With a captain back from her Eastern European wanderings, losing the toss was inevitable and the home side were made to bat first. The women got off to a shaky start with Wildcat White taking the wicket of Hiley in the first ball of the game. In came Blair (6) to join Willis (13) but was soon sent back to the pavilion making way for batsman number 4, Jenny Nobes. All rounder Nobes saw off the St Boswells bowling with ease. Nobes was supported by Evans (7), Jenner (7) and Cartwright (12) who all chipped in with crucial runs. Nobes looked relaxed at the crease, and it was her attacking cricket that knocked Hiley off the Carlton women’s batting top spot scoring an impressive 79*. The women finished on a respectable 146-5 off their allotted 30 overs

Having posted a solid total, the women then sought to restrict a weakened St Boswells side. Economical bowling from Willis at one end put pressure on the openers while Blair claimed 2 early wickets from the other end leaving St Boswells 9-2. Tight off side sweeping from Beattie and Nicolson ensured that Boswells had to work for their runs.

A brief torrential downpour meant play was stopped allowing a confident Carlton side to regroup. Having already posted 79* on the board, all-rounder Nobes was brought on to bowl which put the final nail in the coffin for Boswells. Her playful spin posed a threat to the batsmen, claiming the crucial wicket of White with a nick taken by keeper Evans. Nobes further confirmed her place as man of the match by taking another 3 wickets in her final 2 overs.

A wicket clean bowled by Jenner secured victory for Carlton women, who bowled St Boswells out for 45.

Willis 6-1-15-1

Blair 4-2-7-2

Hiley 4-2-9-0

Nobes 3-1-9-4

Jenner 1-0-4-1

Scorecard

Photos

Drawn against a strong St Boswells in the semi-final was always going to be a difficult first match. Losing the toss, the Carlton side were put into bat first with Evans and McGill taking to the crease. The opening pair set out with vigour in the first few overs seeing off the opening attack with ease. With such limited overs (15 over games), the women had no choice but to ‘hit out or get out’ which was unfortunately the case for Evans (3) when she was caught behind. This however paved the way for Willis who brought a certain gung-ho approach to the crease, hitting 4’s aplenty. Despite the strong start, McGill fell victim to another caught behind by Jack. With runs on the board and the overs quickly ticking by the women needed to up the run rate to secure a strong total to defend. The partnership between Willis and incoming batter Gardiner became a crucial one for the team with the pair working the gaps and really challenging the St Boswells' field. The pair’s 40 run partnership was broken with Willis being run out on 30. It was then Blair’s turn to take the crease and it appeared she took her own advice of ‘hit out or get out’ a bit too literally. Golden duck. In came Gibbon to see off the remaining overs with the team finishing on a defendable 74-5 off their 15 overs.

The women then took to the field with Blair and Thomson opening the bowling. A strong start from the bowling attack, with some impressive bowling from youngster Thomson, forced the St Boswells openers to play outside their comfort zone in order to chase the total down. On came McGill and Willis in search of a break through. And McGill, hungry for wickets, ran out White on 32 providing Carlton with a game changing break through. Some tight bowling from Willis at the other end applied the necessary pressure Carlton needed. With St Boswells on track and only 2 wickets down, duo Steindl and Heathcote were brought on to work their magic. Some unbelievable bowling from the pair at such a crucial point in the game left the St Boswells batters unable to score off them in the remaining overs resulting in a Carlton win by 16 runs. And with Glasgow Accies ladies beating Galloway in the other semi-final it meant Carlton women were to play a strong Glasgow team in the final.

SCORECARD

Innings of Carlton

Innings of St Boswells