PUBLISHED 19 April 2021
The momentous day finally arrived at AKS; the first Saturday fixture for the girls after a long year of waiting to play competitive sport. The scene could not be more perfect, a beautifully sunny day, 12 rounders teams from AKS and Rossall enjoying a superb morning of sport which saw AKS come away with a clean sweep of wins.
The U12A and B matches were very much coaching games for both schools and proved to be an incredibly successful learning curve for all the girls as the teams had little experience of playing the game. It was clearly obvious that both fielding and batting skills improved from the 1st to the 2nd innings from both schools.
After a close first innings , which saw AKS with their noses ahead leading by just 2 rounders, AKS players all grew in confidence in the second innings and the improved decision making of all the fielders restricted Rossall’s opportunities to score and limited them to just a further 2.5 rounders. With a clear target in sight the second innings also saw more successful batting from a number of players which led to a further 8.5 rounders being scored to seal the victory. Player of the match was backstop Amelia H who controlled the game when fielding as well as scoring a number of rounders. The final score was AKS 13.5 Rossall 6.
A close first innings in the U12B team game saw Rossall take a 7 - 6 lead at the half way point. AKS got off to a great start in the second half with first batsman Erin R scoring a rounder with what was the best hit of the game. Better batting in the second innings saw AKS score an impressive 10 rounders. With Rossall needing to score rounders to win, the AKS fielding needed to be composed. There was safe bowling from Rosie Leil while Emily T and Grace P linked well to stop half rounders at second base. Rossall scored a further 4.5 rounders to give AKS a 16 to 11.5. Player of the match was Erin R who showed great potential as both a batsman and a backstop in her first ever game of rounders.
The well organised AKS U13 A team put in a strong tactical fielding display to make scoring rounders very difficult for Rossall. Great bowling from Kirtika S made it difficult for Rossall to get any clean strikes and superb play on second base by Lucy W further denied Rossall scoring opportunities . Lisa P took a great one handed catch at full stretch in the first innings and there was another great catch from Sasha P to dismiss a dangerous Rossall batter. Great batting from Laura A playing her very first game of rounders kept the scoreboard ticking along and Lucy T made rounders by good tactical running decisions. And at the end of the game AKS were celebrating another win 16.5 rounders to Rossall’s 8.5. Lucy W’s superb fielding earnt her the Player of the match accolade.
The U13 B team also came out on top in another close fought game winning 14 – 10 with an enthusiastic team performance. Maddison Ashford was the Player of the Match thanks to a brilliant catch, which saw her leap and catch one handed behind her body and many fast direct throws to bases. Good consistent batting from Freya Evans and Anya Coupe kept the scoreboard ticking along and pleasing work between back stop Laura Kember and 2nd base Charlotte Clayton prevented numerous half rounders and helped secure the win.
The U14 team fielded first and limited Rossall to 6 rounders with some good bowling from Anya K and positive fielding from Jessica A. In our first innings rounders were hard to come by but some great tactical running by Priyanka R kept the scoreboard ticking along and further rounders from Charlotte T and Captain Katie S took our first innings score level at 6. Much improved fielding in the second innings by AKS saw some great catches from Evie F, Anya K and Charlotte Tdismiss the Rossall batters and these along with accurate field coverage from Lilly D and Jessica A limited Rossall to just 3.5 second half rounders. With a target of 4 to win we started slowly and struggled to add to our score due to good Rossall fielding. Evie F and Katie S ran well to add half rounders and then a great hit from Charlotte T to score a whole rounder saw us edge closer to our target. Victory was secured with more rounders from Evie F and Katie Sand the final score was 12 – 9.5 to AKS.
The closest game of the morning was in the U15 Match with both teams showing good batting and fielding skills. Great hitting by Anya J saw her score a number of rounders and won her the Player of the Match award and also proved to be the difference in the sides with the final score being 14 – 13 to AKS.