Photo Credit: New Zealand Cricket
A New Zealand Policewomen’s XI took on Canterbury Development Women in a series of fixtures over the past week.
Played at Weedons Cricket Club, Rolleston, the series represented NZ Police’s second ever appearance – following on from their matches against New Zealand U19 Women in 2021.
NZ Police Team Manager, Glenn Dawson, explained the history & purpose of the NZ Police in Cricket.
“Our Policemen have a long and proud history of Police cricket, dating back to the 1950s, but our wāhine were only established last year – where we played the NZ Under 19 Women in Christchurch,” said Dawson.
“For Police, it’s a great opportunity to get away for a few days and enjoy the beautiful game of cricket while sharing in some banter with your colleagues from all over the country, without the pressures of our everyday roles.”
Canterbury Cricket’s General Manager High Performance, Ant Sharp, described the opportunity this series provides to his development side.
“This series is a brilliant opportunity for our developing young female cricketers to play as a team together, play against an experienced Police team, share knowledge, and grow their skills in a new environment,” said Sharp.
“We are always keen to support our servicemen and women, build new relationships, and what better way than through the game of cricket.”
The Policewomen’s XI featured an abundance of talent – including Georgia Guy (Auckland & WHITE FERNS), Holly Huddleston (Auckland & WHITE FERNS), Olivia Gregory (Central Districts & Otago), and Sian Ruck (Central Districts, Wellington & WHITE FERNS).
The matches were evenly contested, with both Canterbury Development and the Police winning two matches apiece.
Check out the scores below:
Game 1 – 40 over match
NZ Police 176/6 (H Huddleston 38*, S Gurnsey 3/28) beat Canterbury Development 175/10 (R Rijk 55, L Stead 1/14)
Game 2 – T20 match #1
Canterbury Development 119/6 (B Ellis 29, A Malone 2-14) beat NZ Police 95/7 (O Gregory 28, H Huddleston 2/14)
Game 3 – T20 match #2
NZ Police 146/2 (H Huddleston 68, H Huddleston 2/9) beat Canterbury Development 98/7 (G Sullivan 24, P Watkins 2/23)
Game 4 – 40 over match
Canterbury Development 198/10 (P Watkins 52*, J Read 3/15) beat NZ Police 144/10 (G Guy 25, S Ruck 3/26)
Ant Sharp expressed his desire to build on the series into future seasons.
“We hope to continue this relationship and also open it and to other major associations to join the series in future.”
*ENDS*
Name of Author: New Zealand Cricket
The New Zealand national cricket team, known as the Black Caps, made their Test debut in 1930 against England in Christchurch, becoming the fifth nation to play Test cricket. After waiting 26 years for their first Test win against the West Indies in 1956, they also played their first ODI in 1972–73 against Pakistan. New Zealand are the inaugural World Test Championship champions (2021) and have won the ICC Champions Trophy (2000). They have reached the Cricket World Cup final twice and the T20 World Cup final once.
