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Alberta Women's Provincial Series -2010

The first Calgary vs Edmonton intraprovincial women's game was hosted by Calgary at Riley Small on June 19, 2010. Fittingly, the 25 over game ended in a tie at 69 runs each. Edmonton was fortunate to have a pair of very talented 12 year old twin boys [Prasana and Cheytanya Sohani] to help be competitive against a more established Calgary team. One of the twins was able to hit a 4 off the final ball to secure the tie.

The return match in Edmonton at Coronation Park was also a very close game with Edmonton beating the Calgary score of 79 with 3 balls left to play. The backbone of the innings for the win was from Angela Counsel with 36 not out. Maria Hussain batted well for Calgary with 23 and there was tight bowling from Zarfishan Waqar and Wajiha Riaz.

The teams have embraced not only the thrill of the game but recognize the value of playing in the true spirit that is required. All the women involved can be very satisfied with the progress and their part in the history of the womens game in Canada.

 

Participants in 2010:     

Calgary - Zarfishan Waqar (captain, in photo), Omaima Waqar, Wajiha Riaz, Maria Hussain, Tehrim Pathan, Saleha Chishti, Mahnoor Pasha, Mahrukh Pasha, Shivalika Katyal, Puja Pandya, Midhat Waqar, Vardah Paracha, Sidrah Aslam

Edmonton - Janine McKall (captain, in photo), Ruth Williams, Angela Counsel, Leah Naiken, Janan Jarrah, Goli Yohannes, Michaela Korol, Wendy Warawa, Hannah Warawa, Amrutha Das, Kakie Sohani, Cloe Whittaker, Joy Chand, Manroop Kaur 

 

Historic Women's Interprovincial Series - September 2010

It was a wonderfully successful Labour Day weekend that made Canadian women's cricket history at Beacon Hill park in Victoria, BC. Thirteen players from Calgary, Alberta arrived on Friday night and participated in an epic day of cricket on the 4th of September.

Tony Boardman ran coaching sessions for teams on Friday night and a joint session for the sides on Sunday morning. He reviewed basic fielding techniques and introduced several new drills that the women from Calgary were keen to take back home. Due to one field being double booked and awkward flight times for the Calgary women, Saturday was a full day of cricket. The visitors ended up playing 90 overs of cricket in one day and were keen to play more!

Game One:

Victoria vs Calgary - marked the first interprovincial women's game ever played in Canada, as well as the first time many of the players had ever played against women. A 30 overs match was played, and what the Calgary women lacked in experience they made up for in enthusiasm. Calgary batted first with Joanna White and Julia Fathers opening the bowling, the pair of which proved to be too much for the Calgary batsmen. Kim Coulter and Helene Gaffney opened the batting and Victoria reached the final score of 47 without loss.

Game Two:

Calgary vs Vancouver - A team of young players from Vancouver arrived to participate in the events and for 6 of the women it was their first game ever! Calgary played Vancouver in a 10 over a side match that they won easily. New players themselves, Calgary were welcoming to the new Vancouver players. It was truly inspiring to see Calgary helping and coaching the new Vancouver players out in the middle.

Game Three:

Victoria vs Calgary - The Victoria and Calgary teams were mixed to play a 20:20 match to end the day. It was very exciting and came down to the final over. There were some tremendous batting performances from Isabel Mengual (34 not out) and Zarfishan Waqar (32). Joanna White and Shelly Boardman ran a coaching session for the new Vancouver players during the Victoria vs Calgary game.

It was an immensely successful weekend. The women from Victoria were energized by the enthusiasm of the Calgary women and all were struck by the improvements the new players made as the day progressed.

The weekend could not have happened without the support of cricket organizations and individuals. Cricket BC provided funding for the coaching sessions, transportation for Vancouver players, and a BBQ held after the games on Saturday that allowed the women to mingle and share their cricketing experience. The Victoria and District Cricket Association provided field time at a very busy point in the season. In addition, Blair Boardman, Paul Wilson, David Norrish, Bobby Gajendra, and Pamela Brown umpired and scored the matches.

The success of the weekend demonstrated that there is a huge potential for growth of women's cricket in western Canada. Plans are already underway to hold another western event next year in either Calgary or Edmonton.