A squad of girls who honed their cricketing skills at Bolton School has won the National Hub T20 Competition this summer.
In 2010, Bolton School took the opportunity to partner with the MCC Foundation and host winter coaching courses for young cricketers. These were initially for Under 13 and Under 15 boys, but more recently an Under 15 girls’ group was added. The initiative aimed to give improved opportunities to state educated secondary school pupils.
This year, a squad of girls who completed their winter training in the Bolton School sports hall entered the National Hub T20 Competition and made it through to the final at Lord’s on Saturday 30 July.
They earned their spot in the semi-finals by overcoming the Manchester and Liverpool Hubs, and subsequently defeated Hub teams from York and last year’s champions, Bradford to earn the fantastic opportunity to play on the iconic Lord’s surface.
On the day of the final, the girls enjoyed a guided tour of the museum, pavilion and media centre before enjoying lunch in the players' Dining Room. They then took to the field against the Guildford Hub. In a close game, in which they chased down a total of 108-7, the Bolton girls won with a six hit into the Mound Stand in the final over.
Andy Compton, former Head of Cricket at Bolton School, was a delighted and proud Hub Manager and coach on the day. He said: ‘The memories of this day will live long and hopefully inspire and act as an incentive for more girls to play cricket – particularly as it was only a year ago that the first women’s hardball cricket game was played at Lord’s!’
