A successful week for the year 10 girls rounders team. First they beat Waterhead in the cup with a batting innings to spare, to secure themselves a place in the semi-final and then went on to win the annual rounders rally unbeaten.
The girls were drawn into group A along with Newman, Hulme and Royton & Crompton.
The first game was against Royton & Crompton. Crompton House won the toss and opted to field first. The game got off to a ropey start with Royton and Crompton scoring two rounders off their first two good balls. Fielding didn’t appear to be at the usual high standard, with throws being too long or inaccurate. Our opponents ended the innings with the score of five. Crompton House’s batting also didn’t appear to be the best, with Megan O’Brien slicing the first good ball only to be caught out. The batting score remained at zero until Abbie Radcliffe broke the drought, scoring a rounder. The girls quickly followed suit with noticable big hits from Hannah Williams, Emily Kay and Lauren Wilson. The final score was Crompton House seven and a half to five.
The next group game was against Hulme. This was the time for Crompton House to regain pride as it was Hulme who beat them in the final last year. Hulme won the toss and fielded first. Batting was a lot better than in the first game with good positional hits from most. Megan O’Brien was again unlucky to be out on the first ball. Crompton House ended the innings with a score of six. The girls knew changes had to be made with the fielding side. Hannah Williams took position as second deep with Lucy Thomas first deep. Lauren Wilson replaced Emily Kay as bowler to allow for Emily to join the field. Megan O’Brien came in as an inner with Emma Oldfield covering fourth. Hannah Williams made a great catch as did Emily Kay and Lauren Wilson. Excellent fielding from backstop Ellie McWiggin and first base Abbie Radcliffe, saw several Hulme batters get out at first. Crompton house made few mistakes and won the game. The final score was five to two and a half.
The last group game was that against the hosts Newman, and Crompton House seemed to still be in second gear. Crompton House won the toss and as always, opted to field. Fielding had improved massively with throws being direct and catches being held. Hannah Williams and Lauren Wilson caught two deep in the field and Newman didn’t pose a threat. They ended the innings with a score of two and a half. Crompton house went into bat, confident that they would be able to score at least three. Megan O’Brien was praying to at least stay in for more than one bat, which she did, comfortably scoring a rounder straight off. Hannah Williams doubled the score, hitting the furthest ball of the day. Emily Kay, Lucy Thomas and Abbie Radcliffe were also those amongst the big hitters with Lauren Wilson hitting tactically into open space. Emma Oldfield and Lizzie Wilson also played exceptionally well gaining at least half on every bat. Crompton House were on fire and Newman made silly mistakes resulting in a score of twelve and a half to two and a half.
Unbeaten Crompton House topped the group with nine points, Hulme were second on six. Saddleworth and Oasis both qualified in group B with six points but Saddleworth claimed top spot based on rounder difference.
Crompton House played Oasis in the semi-final fielding first. Oasis seemed to have trouble connecting with Emily Kay’s bowls. This was great for Crompton House who got several batters out at first or stopped the rounder at second. Oasis were quickly down to three batters. With a backwards hit on the last good ball, Oasis ended the innings with a score of two and a half. Crompton House stepped up confidently, and rightly so, as team work and communication prevailed, they secured their place in the final with a six point win.
Excited to be in the final, Crompton House met local rivals Saddleworth. Unfortunately we lost the toss and Saddleworth chose to field first. Crompton House finally showed their true talents and took every opportunity to score. Every batter contributed, some great decision making seen them score rounders which made them stand out from the crowd. In particular Emily Kay took a no ball which the deep fielder caught, due to her knowledge of the game she continued to run as you cannot be caught out on a no ball. Saddleworth were slow to react to stop the rounder and Emily scored. Similarly Hannah Williams managed to score a full rounder with a backwards hit. Saddleworth’s fielding wasn’t up to their usual standard however Crompton House were a cut above, scoring nine and a half. Crompton House took to the field, they knew they had to keep the fielding tight if they wanted to take home the silverware. It looked like a positive start, getting the first two batters out immediately. The next three batters saw no score either, with Crompton House stopping every rounder at second. Lucy Thomas and Lizzie Wilson had little to do in the field but remained focused throughout. The game continued, and on several occasions Crompton House would get batters out at first and fourth with their quick thinking. It was phenomenal to watch. The only score Saddleworth had gained was half a rounder from two no balls. One girl had gained a half at second, stopped at third but then left the post to which Emilly Kay, Emma Oldfield and Ellie McWiggin all reacted to and stumped her out at fourth resulting in her scoring zero for her team. With only two batters in, one on second, the other stepped up to bat, Crompton House knew to get the ball into the den. The batter hit the ball short of first and Abbie Radcliffe stretched out to catch one handed, before throwing directly to Ellie McWiggin who ended the innings. Final score, Crompton House – nine and a half, Saddleworth – half.
A lovely day in the sun had ended with some big smiles and rightly so. A huge well done to all involved. The girls now need to focus on bringing home the double, and we wish them all the best in the semi-final of the cup.
