Under 11 girls fall just short

This was game 2 of a double header on a soggy Sunday.

Stortford won the toss and chose to bat, looking to impose themselves on this unbeaten Harpenden side. It soon became clear why Harpenden are top of the league with some fast and accurate bowling pegging back our openers Mattie and Florence Mac.

Loose bowling from the next Harpenden pair allowed Elsie and Jemima to accelerate. Then some quick singles from Florence Mc and strong hitting from Grace, Evie and Charlotte, who all reached double figures, gave a strong finish to the innings. But the regular fall of Stortford wickets kept chipping away at the score, which ended on 249/9.

The Harpenden openers started very strongly, their star player hitting a number of boundaries. Some tight bowling from Stortford slowed them down mid-innings, and a burst of very fast, direct bowling from Grace resulted in three quick wickets and a Harpenden wobble. But in the final four overs they recovered their composure to make sure of the win.

A great effort from the girls, particularly after the earlier game, on a wet cold day - they can be very proud and have a brilliant chance of overturning this result in the return next weekend.

Player of the match - Grace for her incredible bowling display