Sussex Under 11 Girls  30-3 (12.3 Overs) (Elodie Harbourne 1-1, Charlotte Henderson 1-9)
Run outs (1):    Lottie Hill        
Catches     None

Result:  Match Abandoned as a Draw

For our first full match encounter with Sussex, everything was set up at Newenden, arguably one of the most suitable grounds for Under 11 Girls cricket anywhere in Kent.  The ground was dry and for the second time young captains Elodie Harbourne and Izzy Cloke took charge.  Last week’s team might have been young, but the side we had for Sussex was even younger, with ten of out of thirteen being Under 10.

This time we won the toss and fielded.  Our bowling was reasonably accurate and Sussex were slow and not very adventurous with their stroke play, though they did pinch a few quick singles.

Lottie’s run out from long stop ended the opening partnership.  Charlotte took a wicket with her second ball, and Elodie went one better by getting one with her first.  We had given Sussex ten extra runs to help them reach 30 at drinks, and just when we thought we were going get the game in, we were hit by a sudden downpour.

In ten minutes the square was under water.  Tea was taken early.  The rain stopped and brushed surface water away hoping to get started later.  We did some useful catching and bowling practice on the outfield but the sky was grey and the square itself was not drying quickly enough.  

After an hour we looked at the pitch but, as we suspected, it was not dry enough and so we decided to call things off.  Ironically, the sun came out as soon as we had made our decision!  Sussex went home.  We played a six a side kwik cricket match in front of the pavilion, then made our way across the road to the White Hart for a chat, while the girls played volleyball, football and petanque.

Had we waited another hour, we could have finished the match because it turned out to be a beautiful evening with lovely warm sunshine.  It was such a shame that we could not complete the game at such a wonderful cricket ground.

Still, we won’t have to wait long to play Sussex again – next weekend in fact, away at Laughton CC, only this time on a Sunday 22nd August.

Elodie Harbourne - Captain
Izzy Cloke - Vice Captain
Emily Bennett
Sophia Long
Poppy Smith
Annabelle Richards
Bobbie Haywood
Lottie Hill
Georgia Moore
Zahra Crane-Mohammed
Molly Davis
Charlotte Henderson
Grace Whitelock