SPRINT COATINGS WOMEN’S DIVISION ONE – MATCH DAY ONE PREVIEW (9TH MAY)

8 months on from Clontarf completing the most remarkable of league title successes in the 2023 edition, the Sprint Coatings Women’s Division One season gets underway this week with a full complement of 4 fixtures.

The opening fixtures see the reigning champions visit Jack Harper Park to welcome Balbriggan into the Senior ranks, as they kick off their first foray into Sprint Coatings Division One with a home fixture. Merrion were just edged out last season and they begin their campaign with a home tie against Phoenix, a reverse of the final fixture of last term. Malahide play host to The Hills, with the final tie of the round being Leinster’s visit to Sydney Parade to face Pembroke. All games are slated to start at 17:45.

PEMBROKE VS LEINSTER

Two sides who have somewhat underperformed over the last few seasons in Sprint Coatings Division One face off in Sydney Parade, however both have strengthened over the winter and this will likely be a strong contest whether the sides are with or without their Irish internationals.

Leinster have added Aussie Clare Webber to their ranks, and with an already strong battalion of experienced players they can call on including opening batter Rebecca Rolfe, all-rounder Jenny Sparrow, keeper Ellen Ridgeway and seamer Katie Dillon. Sophie MacMahon is set to appear in this fixture and will prove hugely important to the side if lining up, with her powerful stroke play and medium-pace bowling of great benefit to the balance of the team. Aussie Webber hails from Newcastle, just outside of Sydney and her hard hitting at the top of the order along with some accurate seamers will really add some depth to the side.

Pembroke’s recruitment has gone a little bit deeper, with Sarah Forbes, Kate McKenna and Robyn Lewis three names of note now in their 1^st XI squad, both McKenna and Lewis are set to debut in this fixture. They add to a wealth of international experience which Pembroke can call on between Shauna Kavanagh and Clare Shillington and will no doubt be targeting a clean run at the league title this season if they can retain good availability, which shouldn’t be a major issue for the side with only Orla Prendergast and Lou Lou Little likely to be consistently with the Irish side. Shillington and Kavanagh will lead the batters, whilst the side is boosted this week by the inclusion of Prendergast, however neither of the Little sisters are available. Lainey Martin and KimLi McDonald have been good performers for the Pembroke 2^nd XI for the past couple of seasons, and their step-up into the 1^st XI this season is likely to prove important to how the side gets on this season.

It could well be a case for Leinster of just ensuring that last season’s Marchant Cup winner Clare Shillington doesn’t bat them out of the game, her wicket was crucial to any side who hoped to defeat Pembroke last season and that will likely prove to be the case again this time around. Leinster will be desperate to knock over Shillington early, and will likely look to Sophie MacMahon to tie her down and knock over the league’s leading batter in 2023.

KEY BATTLE: Clare Shillington vs Sophie MacMahon

BALBRIGGAN VS CLONTARF

Balbriggan venture into Sprint Coatings Division One for the first time, just two seasons on from entering the leagues for the first time at Division Two level. They probably couldn’t have found a tougher opening assignment however, with holders Clontarf the Match Day one visitors to Jack Harper Park. The core of their side has changed hugely since last season, Reena Devi was the leading bowler in Division 2 last season however is the only real survivor in the side that contributed consistently last season. Jamie-Lee Strang is replaced by New-Zealander Claudia Green in the overseas role, whilst fellow Kiwi Anna Gaging has also joined for this season to further account for the squad changes in the off-season. Green and Gaging both ply their trade for the Central Districts Hinds, and whilst both would be primarily bowlers in domestic cricket in New Zealand, Balbriggan will need them to have a strong all-round impact this season. Erin Bond is another player likely to feature, having played just one game for Balbriggan last season – in Division Four – the Holywood all-rounder is now likely to be a mainstay in the side. Izzy McLean will have the gloves again this season and along with Devi will likely be the strongest contributors left from last season’s side.

Clontarf meanwhile are a side which are also unlikely to be affected by international call-ups, and no doubt the consistency with which they got almost identical XIs on the field throughout last season helped in their title charge. Robyn Searle had an excellent season after her move from The Hills, and she returns once again to try help the side defend it’s title. Christina Coulter-Reilly has emerged from the pack as a star performer with the bat in the past couple of seasons, and will once again be an important cog in the wheel for the league title holders. ‘Tarf have benefitted hugely from an excellent underage side which has so far produced full-international Freya Sargent, as well as four more players who have been 1^st XI regulars for the past 3 seasons in Alice Walsh, Lucy Barry, Julie McNally and Anna Marshall, and now a second wave of talent is set to make a mark on the side, with Sinead Thomson and Genevieve Morrissey both set to make the consistent step up into Sprint Coatings Division One this season. Clontarf’s team remains extremely young however the level of experience within the team is certainly not to be underestimated, with several of the side now having won both a Pilkington Plate and Division One title in the past two seasons.

‘Tarf’s batting was explosive enough to build some excellent totals around Robyn Searle last season, and with Balbriggan’s new recruits both being highly regarded seam-bowlers, they will likely be targeting her wicket as a crucial moment if they want to turn the league champions over in this clash, Anna Gaging’s extra pace could be what proves crucial to the home side in this battle.

KEY BATTLE: Anna Gaging vs Robyn Searle

MALAHIDE VS THE HILLS

Malahide have been an extremely solid force in the league for the last number of years, without really troubling the sharp end of competitions, no doubt they will be hoping to change that this term, and a home tie to start the season will see them hoping to get off on the right footing. In many ways the side has seen themselves a victim of their own success stories, with Amy Hunter and Arlene Kelly their two most consistent performers of the past few seasons being rewarded with positions in the Irish team which sees them missing out on club cricket regularly. Lana Ryan was an excellent addition to the side last season and is in the squad once again this term, whilst the Kerrison sisters, Anna and Maria are two vital all-rounders in the side. Sarah Condron had something of a break-out year with the bat last season, averaging over 40 and she will be another all-rounder which the side will look to for a strong performance.

The Hills travel to Malahide with a strong side set to compete this season, whilst they may be without one or both of the Maguire sisters on international duty from time to time, they can call on some serious talent throughout the team. Tahlia Dunne had a brilliant first season in Ireland last year and is back for a second term, whilst the addition of Abbi Harrison is an obvious boost to the side. Overseas player Elise Noble is a fine all-rounder who hails from the extremely strong Penrith CC in Sydney, for whom she has scored over 1000 First Grade runs, and whilst she has big shoes to fill in replacing Mary-Anne Musonda’s contributions from last season, she is sure to have the class to succeed in this league. All of these players are mentioned before even getting towards some of their mainstays in the side over the past number of years in Aisling Byrne, Rebecca Gough and Clíodhna O’Reardon.

Having produced her career best performance with the bat last season against this opposition, Sarah Condron will be keen to reproduce some good efforts for Malahide this time around, The Hills will be looking to prevent their hosts from putting together a decent batting effort, and will likely be looking to left-arm spinner Aimee Maguire to keep the Village’s middle order quiet.

KEY BATTLE: Sarah Condron vs Aimee Maguire

MERRION VS PHOENIX

The last fixture between these two sides saw Merrion demolishing Phoenix with full points and still falling agonisingly short of league title success. They are the home side this time around and will be looking to kick off this season just as last season began. The side are likely to be without Leah Paul and Rebecca Stokell for this opening fixture with the pair just back from international duty. That however doesn’t damage the amount of international experience in the side too severely with their skipper Celeste Raack and coach Izzy Joyce both set to lead the way for the home team again this season. Their seamers are led by teen pair Niamh MacNulty and Síbha Bhoja, with the bowling unit likely to be completed by the accuracy of Julianne Morrissey and medium pace of Sophie Stewart. Whilst the absence of Paul and Stokell is likely to be felt by Merrion, it’s set to give an opportunity to the likes of Ally Boucher and Annabel Squires, along with new signing Aoife Brennan, to produce some good performances with the bat.

Phoenix have been one of the major beneficiaries of the off-season reshuffle between clubs, the signings of Gaby Lewis, Siúin Woods and Alice Tector makes them an all-over far stronger proposition, with that trio joining Georgina Dempsey, Ali Keenan and Nevedha Saravanarajan in a strong spine of a team, along with coach Claire Terblanche who proved to be a good performer when the side needed her to produce runs last season. Whilst Lewis’ debut is likely to not happen in this fixture, Woods adds some serious firepower and depth to the batting line-up, whilst Tector was the leading bowler in the league in 2022 and is sure to be an excellent addition to the bowling attack. The side will likely be rounded out by the spin bowling of Arisha Foysal and all-rounder Alison Black. Georgina Dempsey’s appearances in 2023 were restricted to just 4 matches, and better availability for her this term would almost make her feel like a fourth new signing for the side. Both Dempsey and Woods are batters who tend to hit plenty of boundaries when they make runs, and that could well prove to be the key to their side’s early season successes.

Two line-ups that in most weeks of the season will be full of explosive boundary hitters, however with some notable absences, the experienced heads in both sides will be under pressure to lead the batting for their sides. Celeste Raack has stepped up on several occasions for Merrion with the bat when needed in the past couple of seasons, and will need to lead the way again here, with Alice Tector’s debut bowling spell for Phoenix likely to put her to the test from the outset.

KEY BATTLE: Celeste Raack vs Alice Tector

SPRINT COATINGS DIVISION ONE – MAY 9^th (17:45)

At Sydney Parade – Pembroke vs Leinster

At Jack Harper Park – Balbriggan vs Clontarf

At Malahide – Malahide vs The Hills

At Anglesea Road – Merrion vs Phoenix