The Admark Print Wellington Women's Under 19 team have finished fifth at the National Under 19 tournament at the New Zealand Cricket High Performance Centre in Lincoln after winning three and losing four matches during the week.

Round 1 | v Otago

Wellington got off to a slow start to the national tournament, falling convincingly by 90 runs to Otago. Batting first Otago made an imposing total of 278, Olivia Gain reaching an unbeaten century alongside good help from Jane Meltzer. In response, Wellington never got going and, despite a strong knock from Natasha Codyre (68), they ended up falling 90 runs short. 

Otago 278/5 (Gain 106*, Meltzer 52, Codyre 3-43) beat Wellington 188 (Codyre 68, Hamilton 24, Loe 3-26) by 90 runs

Round 2 | v Northern Districts

It was another loss for the Wellington side on day two against Northern Districts. Bowling first they kept Northern Districts to 199, Natasha Codyre stepping up with the ball with 4-32. In response, Georgia Plimmer's 37 was the only notable score and the side fell by short by 96 runs.

Northern Districts 199 (Templeton 92, Perano 25, Codyre 4-32) beat Wellington 103 (Plimmer 37, Baker 3-20) by 96 runs

Round 3 | v Auckland

It was a much improved performance from Wellington in a rain-affected match against Auckland on day three. Wellington batted first after the match was reduced to 34 overs a side and posted 118. It wasn't to be enough, despite a brave performance in the field, and the Auckland side chased down the target with two balls to spare.

Wellington 118/9 (Mason-Jones 30, Bryant 24, MacMillan 2-7) lost to Auckland 119/8 (Handyside 35, Browning 30, Kells 3-23) by two wickets 

Round 4 | v Canterbury

Wellington picked up their first win of the tournament with a strong 46-run win over Canterbury on day four. Batting first Wellington posted 223, Antonia Hamilton leading the way with 56. They backed it up well with the ball, restricting Canterbury to just 177 to claim a good first win.

Wellington 223/9 (Hamilton 56, Plimmer 30, Dean 4-38) beat Canterbury 177 (Dunlop 35, Gerken 29, Bryant 3-50) by 46 runs

Round 5 | v Central Districts

Wellington took the momentum of the win against Canterbury into the first T20 match against Central Districts, claiming a tight eight-run win. Georgia Plimmer showed her class batting first with 51 from 41 balls as Wellington posted a competitive 155. They were sharp in the field and defended their total well, Kate Chandler picking up 3-28 to help secure the second win of the week.

Wellington 155/7 (Plimmer 51, Mason-Jones 21, Apperley 3-26) beat Central Districts 147/8 (Pedersen 56, Apperley 20, Chandler 3-28) by 8 runs

Round 6 | v Otago

Wellington made it three wins in a row over Otago in the second T20 match of the tournament. Antonia Hamilton was the player of the match with 82 opening the batting helping Wellington post an imposing 182. Otago pushed hard in response but Wellington ended up coming away winners by 15 runs.

Wellington 182/5 (Hamilton 82, Plimmer 34, Cuttance 3-28) beat Otago 167/9 (Adams 55, Meltzer 27, Leach 3-13) by 15 runs

Round 7 | v Canterbury

It was a disappointing end to the tournmaent for Wellington as they fell to Canterbury on the final day of play. It was a batting day to forget as the side posted 84 batting first, Canterbury chasing it down with a few wobbles of their own, eventually getting home by three wickets. 

Wellington 84 (Chandler 20*, Hamilton 18, Stead 3-16) lost to Canterbury 87/7 (Gerken 30, Banks 14, Trethewey 1-10) by three wickets 

There were plenty of strong individual performances throughout the week. Antonia Hamilton finished third on the leading runscorer list with 205 runs and Georgia Plimmer was just behind her in fifth with 185 runs. Natasha Codyre showed her promise with the ball, finishing as the second leading wicket-taker with 13.

Article added: Tuesday 12 January 2021