Ballan women cricketers debut with a win

BALLAN Cricket Club’s first ever women’s team has started its career with a bang, defeating VRI Delacombe by 82 runs in a T20 match at Ballan Recreation Reserve last Friday night.

The senior women, in the Ballarat Cricket Association second division, had to wait an extra week after the first round of fixtures was washed out, but made the most of its opportunity.

It finished with 1/139 and restricted VRI Delacombe – also playing its first match – to 6/57.

Club president David Leach said the team’s success was a great achievement, particularly as the club had been trying to organise a women’s team for several years.

“They had a very good win on Friday night,” he said. “They get along so well, all of them.”

Leach said numbers at training were at least as good as the men’s teams, and players ranged in age from teenagers up to about 40.

And there were reportedly as many as 60 spectators at the game, he said.

The women have also designed their own variation on the club uniform, with pink collars the main difference.

Leach said the club was starting to “really click things along” now, with two junior teams in action as well.

Coach Summer Dehnert said everyone performed beyond expectations and most importantly enjoyed the game, which was the first for some.

“It was excellent to see all the things we’ve been working on at training translating into our game,” she said.

“All the work that has gone in to getting this team up has really paid off, creating opportunities for local women to play and a pathway for our incredible junior girls to continue playing locally.”

Dehnert was a non-starter, suffering a hamstring injury in the leadup to the match, but she will be in action soon.

Captain Sav Singh elected to bat first, with Erin Phillips and Sarah Burton opening and starting strongly before Burton retired on 32, bringing Sami Munari to the crease.

She and Phillips clocked up some quick runs before Phillips fell to a run out.

Singh then took guard and paired with Munari to keep the scoreboard ticking over before Munari retired, followed by the appearance of Nadene Shugg in the final over.

There were plenty of nerves as the team prepared to field, but they were quickly shaken off as Cass Dehnert and Emma Anderson opened the bowling with tidy spells.

Dehnert picked up a direct-hit run out, dismissing VRI Delacombe’s most experienced player for a diamond duck, while Burton collected 2/2.