Northern Diamonds suffer third straight loss to miss out on Charlotte Edwards Cup Finals Day

Northern Diamonds ‘seriously underperformed’ after missing out on a place in the Charlotte Edwards Cup Finals Day.

Finalists in 2021 and the reigning Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 50-over champions, the Diamonds wasted a golden chance to qualify having won their first four games.

They needed just one win to guarantee qualification from their remaining three fixtures but lost all of them, after a landslide seven-wicket defeat to Thunder at Blackpool’s Stanley Park on Wednesday.

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“We can’t look much past the fact we seriously underperformed, and we’re going to have to live with that and move on,” said Diamonds assistant coach Kyle Coetzer.

Northern Diamonds captain Hollie Armitage and team-mates lost the last three games of the group stage to miss out on Finals Day (Picture: Alex Whitehead/SWPix.com)Northern Diamonds captain Hollie Armitage and team-mates lost the last three games of the group stage to miss out on Finals Day (Picture: Alex Whitehead/SWPix.com)
Northern Diamonds captain Hollie Armitage and team-mates lost the last three games of the group stage to miss out on Finals Day (Picture: Alex Whitehead/SWPix.com)

“Losing three wickets in the powerplay is a tough way to set your innings off. We’ve got some fine batters in the line-up, and we could probably play that game again 10 times over and not be 15-3.

“We were looking to put a big total on the board, but it didn’t quite go our way today. For our very high standards, we played a very low level of cricket from what we expect of ourselves.”

Scottish off-spinner Olivia Bell, 19, starred with three for nine from three overs in only her third senior regional appearance as the Diamonds were bowled out for just 96, a target achieved in 15 overs to secure a five-point, bonus-point victory thanks to an unbeaten 42 not out off 34 balls from Fi Morris.

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Not only have Thunder qualified for their first ever T20 regional Finals Day, at New Road on Saturday, by securing a top three berth, it is the first time in three and a half seasons of regional cricket that they have got out of the group stage of either this or the Rachael Heyhoe FlintTrophy.

After the Diamonds elected to bat, Thunder piled the pressure of them with some excellent bowling and fielding on the way to the lowest total of this season’s competition.

New ball left-arm quicks Tara Norris and Mahika Gaur both claimed two wickets, as did the off-spin of Morris, who later picked the perfect time to post her highest score for Thunder since joining them over the winter.

Naomi Dattani claimed three catches at long-on, affected a run out and opened the batting with 20.

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The Diamonds got off to a disastrous start, losing Leah Dobson, captain Hollie Armitage – the leading run-scorer in the competition – and Lauren Winfield-Hill all caught within the first 15 balls.

Dobson and Armitage fell to Norris in the space of four balls at the end of the second over, caught at mid-on and backward point respectively, before Winfield-Hill drilled Gaur to long-on. And they failed to recover.

Bess Heath followed when she aimed a wild swing at Gaur at the start of the fifth over, losing off and middle stumps, and the Diamonds were 19-4 and Thunder were dreaming of Finals Day.

South African Chloe Tryon threatened a recovery by calmly moving in the twenties, but she was bowled by Morris trying to play expansively through the off-side for 22 – 46-5 after eight overs.

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And returning Beth Langston, playing her first match since August following an ACL injury, followed four balls later when bowled by Bell.

Tryon and Dutch international Sterre Kalis with 24 were the only Diamonds batters to make it beyond 20, with wickets continuing to fall.

Kalis holed out to long-on off Morris before Bell had Katherine Fraser the same way – the third of three catches in that position for Dattani – as the score fell to 93-8 in the 18th.

Bell then had Katie Levick caught at cover for a golden duck before Grace Hall was run out to wrap up the innings with eight balls unused in the Stanley Park sunshine.

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Thunder handed a debut to fledgling left-arm spinner Sophie Morris, who bowled two wicketless overs before watching her batting team-mates seal victory.

Openers Liberty Heap and Dattani both fell as the score slipped to 64 for two inside 10 overs, but they were only minor blemishes.

Heap fell to a smart Kalis catch running back towards deep gully off Fraser’s off-spin before Dattani guided seamer Langston to short third.

But Morris was strong on both sides of the wicket to spark joyous scenes by the seaside despite the late departure of Deandra Dottin to Levick.

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Thunder captain Ellie Threlkeld said: “I couldn't be happier. If you'd have asked me would I take this position a couple of weeks ago when we had a tough start to the season, I'd have absolutely snapped your hand off.

“I'm really proud of the way the girls have turned it around, and it's testament to the people in our dressing room.

“We've worked hard, and we've got ourselves to Finals Day.

“It's my first Finals Day, and in previous years we've not come close. To get there is a huge deal. We'll be going in as underdogs, but that's a good thing.

“If we go out and play our cricket like we have done today, every game is winnable for us.”

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