Gloucestershire Under 15 Girls v Wales Under 15 Girls (at Dumbleton CC)
ECB Women’s U15 County Championship – A Division, Group 4
Wales 130 all out (32.1 overs)
Gloucestershire 61-3 (10 overs)
Gloucestershire won by 7 wickets (Revised Target)
Scorecard

Gloucestershire Under 15 Girls moved to the top of their ECB group with an impressive victory over Wales in a rain-affected game at Dumbleton CC.

Legspinner Bea Ellis (Charlton Kings) ripped through the visitors’ middle order, taking 4-22 in eight overs as they collapsed from 78-2 to 130 all out.

She was assisted by Phoebe Bradford (Frenchay) who picked up 2-24 to help keep Wales in check.

Other bowlers to impress included Frenchay pair Lily Knox (1-7 from 5 overs ) who kept things tight at the start and Isobel Carey (1-10 from 5 overs) who did the same job towards the end of the innings.

Following a rain delay Gloucestershire needed a revised 61 to win. They duly chased down their target in just 10 overs with the loss of three wickets thanks to Carey who led the way with a breezy 31 from 36 balls.

The win over Wales built on a strong start to 2019 for the Under 15s. They beat Somerset in their County Championship opener and began their T20 campaign with victories over Wiltshire and Dorset.

Against Wiltshire opener Carey struck a superb 65 from 66 balls to help Gloucestershire to a competitive 122-from their 20 overs.

In response Knox started with a maiden before Alexandra Taylor (Marshfield) struck with her very first ball to make it 0-1 in the second over.

Wiltshire fought back and stayed in the game thanks to a counter-attacking 20 from 11 balls by Abby Rucker. But they were hampered by the loss of regular wickets – including three run outs – as they eventually finished 14 runs shy of their target on 109-6.

In the match versus Dorset, Gloucestershire recovered from 18-3 to post 104-6 thanks to a fourth wicket stand of 72 from Isobel Patel (38) (Frenchay) and Tosca Knight (29) (Lechlade).

The Dorset run chase went right down to the wire but Gloucestershire held their nerve to win by five runs. Knox (2-21) and Olivia Brock (2-9) (Cheltenham) both took two wickets apiece as the girls secured a 100% start to the T20 competition.


Gloucestershire Under 13 Girls v Somerset Under 13 Girls (at Dean Close School)
Friendly
Gloucestershire 159 all out (35 overs)
Somerset 127-8 (35 overs)
Gloucestershire won by 32 runs
Scorecard

Gloucestershire Under 13 girls continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 32-run win over Somerset.

Batting first, Gloucestershire made 159 from their 35 overs with telling contributions from captain Katie Jones (40) (Dumbleton), Liv Daniels (21) (Stoke Bishop) and Bethan Manning (21) (Poulton).

In reply Fiona Plenty was the pick of the bowlers with 4-12 from five overs while Manning capped an excellent all-round performance with 2-10 as Somerset finished on 127-8.

Gloucestershire came into the Somerset match off the back of an eye-catching 96 run win over Oxfordshire in a rain-affected encounter. Gloucestershire amassed 204-8 from their 35 overs as Greer Barnes (27) (Old Bristolians Westbury), Manning (35), Jones (27) and Isabel Richards (26) (Frenchay) all made their scores at better than a run a ball.

Rain delays meant that Oxon needed 141 from 20 overs to win the match but they were blown away by the visitors who managed an incredible six run outs as they bowled their opponents out for just 44 in the ninth over.

The Under 13s, who have also beaten Wales, enjoyed T20 victories over both Somerset and Oxon during their run of six wins from six completed games in 2019 so far.


Gloucestershire Women v Wiltshire Women (at King’s School, Gloucester)
ECB Women’s T20 County Championship, Division 3, Group A
Gloucestershire 102-8 (20 overs)
Wiltshire 98-4 (20 overs)
Gloucestershire won by 4 runs
Scorecard

And

Gloucestershire Women v Oxfordshire Women (at King’s School, Gloucester)
ECB Women’s T20 County Championship, Division 3, Group A
Gloucestershire 71-7 (20 overs)
Oxfordshire 73-3 (14.2 overs)
Oxfordshire won by 7 wickets
Scorecard

Gloucestershire Women were denied the chance to challenge for top spot in their T20 Division after the latest round of matches were washed out.

In the competition-opening double-header the previous weekend Gloucestershire beat Wiltshire but lost to Oxfordshire.

Against Oxon, Gloucestershire batted first but struggled to get going. After reaching 15 without loss the top order collapsed to 37-5 in the face of disciplined bowling from the visiting attack.

Only three players reached double figures including opener Chloe Skelton (18) and Molly Robbins who hit 11* off 10 balls to give the bowlers something to defend. In reply Oxon made a positive start, reaching 32-0.

But they slipped to 48-2 thanks to a wicket each for Helen Cutler (2-12) and Isabel Carey (1-12). Cutler struck again before the end but it was a case of too little too late as the visitors cruised to a seven wicket win in the 15th over.

In the match with Wiltshire, Gloucestershire found themselves in trouble again at 32-5. But this time they found a way out as Robbins (47) and stand-in skipper Sidra Khan (14) added 63 for the sixth wicket.

Robbins led the way with a combative innings that saw her make 47 from 40 balls including eight fours as the home side posted 102-8. In response Wiltshire lost an early wicket but recovered through a 67-run partnership between Rosie Pembroke (48*) and Isla Thomson (16).

Cerys King (1-16) broke the partnership by removing Thomson before Carey had the new batsman Emily Otton stumped by Abigail Whybrow to hand Gloucestershire the momentum.

Wilts weren’t done yet and a cameo from Lily Day (14 from 11 balls) threatened to snatch them the victory before Carey (2-14) picked up another stumping to help her side hold on for the win.