U13s
Hosted by West Herts CC, the u13s HJL 2022 finals day saw an excellent display of cricket by the teams on what was a very hot day.
In the semi-finals Shenley Village CC successfully chased the 108 runs laid down by West Herts CC, while Wheathampstead CC successfully chased the 95 set by Bishop Stortford CC.
This then set the scene for the u13 HJL final which was a repeat of the final clash of the u10s Hard Ball in 2019 between Shenley Village CC and Wheathampstead CC.
Having lost the toss Wheathampstead CC were put in to bat. The openers set a good foundation, leveraging the extras in the first 7 overs, when their partnership was broken. Top order continued scoring with some fine boundaries and strike rotation. The innings concluded with 3 wickets of tight bowling, but runs continued to flood in with some nice shots including the scoop shoot and a 6 off the last ball.
Chasing 127, Shenley Village CC lost their openers in the 4th over. The middle order responded well, cruising towards the target with two retirements. Shenley required 13 runs to win with 4 wickets in hand off the last 5 overs. Wheathampstead brought on their opening bowler who responded with a double wicket maiden, one of which was an incredible over-the-head flat catch at mid-off. The chase ended in the 17th over with a wicket and a run out.
A noteworthy result for the under 13s team with Izzy B. following in the footsteps of Ellie Kendal from West Herts who won in the U15s eight years ago, something rarely seen outside of Herts girl's junior league.
Overall, a fantastic day of cricket demonstrated by all the teams, supported by the officials and with excellent hospitality provided by West Herts CC.
Semi-finals: Wheathampstead CC 100/3 15.4 ov. beat Bishops Stortford CC 97 18.3 ov.
Finals: Wheathampstead CC 127/6 20 ov. beat Shenley CC 115/8 17.5 ov.
Final’s day performances
Fielding
Catches win the matches – Finn K, Goerge C, Alex C, Jack H, Callum S
Catches uncatchable – Alex C
Run outs – Arnold W/Alex C, Izzy B/Marco R, William C/James D
Boundary riders – William C, Barney H
Energy in the field – Finn K
Bowling
Wicket takers – George C 3, Callum S 2, James D 2, Alex C 1, Arnold W 1
Bowling at death – Jack H 6-1-4-12
Batting
Batting – Marco R 63*, Callum S 32, Alex C 29, George C 21
Shot of the day – Barney H 6 off the last ball