Glamorgan Women Go Two for Two in Pursuit of Blast Success

The home side were put into bat with captain Lauren Parfitt and Daisy Jeanes opening the innings. The top order got the home side off to a fast start with a the powerplay yielding ten runs an over for the loss of one. Jeanes began to stamp her authority on the Falcons attack, finding the boundary with ease as she reached her half-century in just twenty-five balls.

With wickets falling around her Jeanes continued to go through her full arsenal of shots, finding the boundary in all corners of the ground. She was finally dismissed in the final over for 86, finishing with fourteen boundaries. Gemma Porter played an important cameo role with Jeanes. She finished unbeaten on 21 as Glamorgan set Derbyshire 168 to win at the end of twenty overs.

Prisha Bedi, perhaps the pick of the Falcons bowlers. She finished with figures of 2 for 19 for her four overs. Rhiannon Knowling-Davies took a hat-trick in the final over, finishing 3 for 25 off three overs.

Into the chase and Jess Couser looked to make an equally fast start to the Falcons chase, with a string of boundaries in the first over. But wickets began to fall in every over as the Glamorgan spinners, in particular put a stranglehold on the Derbyshire batters. Amy Wheeler, on loan from the Blaze dismissed Tash Allen before a brilliant direct hit off her own bowling sent the dangerous Couser back to the shed.

The spin trio of Porter, Katy Cobb and Nicole Reid combined to decimate the middle order and made the total look even more insurmountable by the minute. The Derbyshire innings never really got going as they were bowled out for 75 with Adrianna Darlow not coming out to bat. Porter, Cobb and Reid took 7/31 between them with Wheeler picking up the other as well as the run out.

Jeanes’ knock was a continuation of her impressive form this season backing up her 110 against Kent a few weeks ago and a handy 38 in the victory at Bristol yesterday. Speaking after the game Jeanes reflected on her innings, “I trust what we’re going in with so it’s nice I can set off with a goal in mind and start the game from an attacking point of view and it’s paid off for me today.”

“I always find it easier at the start in the powerplay with the harder ball, it did slow up but I think it’s about adapting to that. Then when we were bowling, they do such a great job, it’s so nice to be able to trust that.”

Glamorgan got a sniff at success in this competition last season, reaching the semi-final, losing out to Yorkshire. With Yorkshire having moved up to Tier 1, Jeanes has her eye on silverware in this competition. “That is the end goal, it always will be. We want to take it game by game but that is the goal.”

“It’s easy to get carried away and we’re keen to enjoy the wins but then refocus and go again.”

This the first of three double-headers at Sophia Gardens this season with the home of Welsh Cricket attracting more and more fans to the women’s game. “I absolutely love it. It’s a whole day out, so it’s nice they’ve come out and you really hear it when you’re out there.”