Season starts at Newsham Park

Softball Team start 2025 with defeat at Newsham Park

Newsham Park 94-1 (Net score 289)

Mersey Rose 79-7 (Net score 244)

Newsham Park won by 45 runs Scorecard

Mersey Rose's softball team kicked off their 2025 season on Sunday at Newsham Park.

The hosts batted first but Rose got off to the best possible start when, in the first over, Zak Harrison held a catch at mid-wicket off the bowling of Andi Page. Zak almost made a sensational single-handed catch moments later but couldn't hold onto the ball.

Rose fielded well, not giving much away but were unable to take wickets. Anna Page came close a couple of times when she beat the bat with the ball narrowly bouncing over the bails. Some sensible batting helped Newsham Park reach 94 for 1 from their sixteen overs.

Andi Page and Heidi Page were the opening pair for Rose and they put on 15 without loss. Joey Harrison and Zak Harrison added 35, although Joey was brilliantly run out by Darren Leader. Unfortunately, Rose then began to lose wickets and struggled to keep momentum, finishing on 79 for 7 - a net score of 244 despite some positive batting from Ian Mosquito and Abigail McKeown. Overall, there were positive signs for Rose who fielded pretty well and batted with purpose. In the final analysis, a few more wickets would have been useful although in that respect we were perhaps a bit unlucky.

Many thanks to Newsham Park for the game, which was played in a friendly and good-natured spirit.

Player of the Match: Abigail McKeown. On debut, she fielded extremely well and batted positively.

Photographs by Xanthe Page