Daniels steals the show as Invicta take Premier League title
BARBARA DANIELS, in her year out from international cricket, took the batting and bowling honours as Kent based Invicta beat North Riding by nine wickets in the Premier League final at Milton Keynes yesterday
Cath Harris
06-Sep-1999
BARBARA DANIELS, in her year out from international cricket, took the
batting and bowling honours as Kent based Invicta beat North Riding by nine
wickets in the Premier League final at Milton Keynes yesterday.
Daniels took 4-23 as the North champions were bowled out for 129 in 49.2
overs on the flat Campbell Park pitch. Batting at number three she then
struck 44 runs off just 46 balls in exactly one hour. She remained unbeaten,
as did England opener Charlotte Edwards who finished on 46.
Sue Metcalfe hit 34 and Nicola Payne 33 of Riding's disappointing total.
They bowled well to begin with when Invicta started their reply, with Payne
bowling Liz Whelan for 16.
The wicket only meant the arrival of Daniels who hit four boundaries before
she and Edwards reached the 130 target with no further losses.
Invicta captain Jill Hennessy said: "We didn't expect such a decisive win at
all, you can never expect to win a final because it's all about what happens
on the day.
"We played well throughout and North Riding were probably disappointed with
their batting. It's been a great season for us especially after being
outdone last year when we had to default against Old Stacians because of a
problem with one of our pitches."
England bowler Melissa Reynard captained North Riding and admitted that her
side had been below par. "That's not to take anything away from Invicta
though, because they played very well and bowled tightly.
"We bowled well to start with but mid-way through Invicta's innings we
bowled too many bad balls which you can't do with such a low total. They
batted patiently and deserved to win."
Invicta delayed their victory party until the end of the season but Hennessy
admitted they weren't fit to celebrate after the match. "It was such a hot
day and we had to travel back. We were knackered," she said!