Philadelphia Cricket Club Women became Durham Cricket Board Performance Indoor Bash champions after defeating Shotley Bridge Cricket Club in the final on Sunday, 9 December.
Result: Philadelphia Cricket Club (53) win against Shotley Bridge Cricket Club (28) by 25 runs.
Phili’s Kelsey Potter took two wickets in the single over she bowled to restrict Shotley to 25 with only six overs to go.
Lucy Hughes bowled a wicket maiden and Rebecca Price got two excellent catches to help the team keep their lead and lift the trophy.
Philadelphia finished the competition with seven wins and a draw. The team qualified through to Finals Day after topping the table in the first stage of the Indoor Bash and got to play in the decisive match after winning two games on Sunday, 9 December.
Shotley Bridge also won their two games against Durham City Cricket Club and Durham University Cricket Team to qualify for the final game.
Batting first, Phili posted a good total of 53 in their 16 overs, with last batting pair Layla Tipton and Ella Tomys contributing 21 in their four overs.
In response, Shotley started well with 25 on the board halfway through, but Phili’s Potter managed to interrupt the momentum, pushing Shotley back to 21 after another four overs.
With only 20 balls to go, Shotley struggled to get over the line and finished on 28.
Captain Layla Tipton said after the final: “I’m really proud as a captain because we are such a young team. Everyone contributed their own little bits – Ella’s bowling has been fantastic, some of the catches were unbelievable.”
“I thought we all batted really well and everyone shone through. In the second innings we had to restrict them from getting the runs so each player put in their own personal ways – we took our wickets, we took our catches, we took our run-outs – and we got the result.”
Commenting on the seven-win competition record for the team, Tipton said: “It’s a massive improvement from last year because we did lose a few last winter, but that just shows how much we’ve progressed through the season and also in the indoor.”
Tipton added: “The Indoor Bash has a massive effect on our winter programme because it gives the girls a bit more experience. It gets more people involved and it gets us ready for the outdoor competitions in the season to come.”