U11 Stingers v Boyne Hill Girls Under 11

Stingers Fall Short as Boyne Hill Claim Friendly Victory

Sonning U11 Stingers travelled to Boyne Hill for a friendly pairs match on 21st April and, after winning the toss and electing to bat, were unable to post a competitive total as the hosts chased down the target to secure an eight-run victory.

Captain Ruby Cross chose to bat first, but the Stingers' top order struggled to find the boundary against a disciplined Boyne Hill attack. Openers Florence Alden and Nelisha Widanapathirana both finished with nought from their six balls apiece, while Isabella Partridge and Chloe Dawes could muster only one run between them across 12 deliveries. The Stingers' innings was heavily reliant on extras, with 33 of their 42 runs coming from wides and no-balls as the Boyne Hill bowlers wrestled with their accuracy.

The brightest moment with the bat came from Jessica Hawkins, who top-scored with six runs from eight balls, including the only boundary of the Sonning innings — a crisp four that briefly lifted the tempo. Mia Ho, Ruby Cross and Isabella Partridge each contributed a single, but a total of just nine runs from the bat highlighted the challenge the young Stingers faced.

Anushka Purhiot was the pick of the Boyne Hill attack, conceding just one run from her over without bowling a single wide or no-ball — a remarkably controlled spell at this age group. Sofia Dhamani and Samruipandian Vijaypandian each claimed a wicket, costing the Stingers five-run dismissal penalties that further dented their score.

In reply, Boyne Hill's batters showed more fluency in reaching their target of 43. Anushka Purhiot led the way with seven runs from seven balls including a four, while Sofia Dhamani struck a boundary of her own in her six off six deliveries. Grace Seymour chipped in with four, also finding the rope, and Samruipandian Vijaypandian added a brisk four from just three balls at the end of the innings.

Nelisha Widanapathirana produced the standout bowling performance for the Stingers, claiming the only wicket of the innings — that of Boyne Hill captain Zara Basu — while conceding six runs from a tidy over with no wides or no-balls. Mia Ho was equally impressive with the ball, delivering a superb over that yielded just a single run and no extras, offering a glimpse of real promise.

Elsewhere, the Stingers' bowling was less disciplined, with Ruby Cross conceding six wides in her over and Isabella Partridge also leaking six wides as Boyne Hill accumulated 21 extras to ease their path to 50 for one from eight overs. The 18 wides bowled by Sonning in the second innings proved costly and ultimately the difference between the two sides.

Despite the defeat, there were encouraging individual displays from Hawkins with the bat and both Widanapathirana and Ho with the ball, giving the coaching staff plenty of positives to build on as the season progresses.