Wellington Blaze
Personnel
CaptainLeigh Kasperek (one-day)
Amelia Kerr (T20)
CoachLance Dry
Team information
ColoursKKR
FoundedFirst recorded match: 1934
Home groundBasin Reserve, Wellington
Secondary home ground(s)Karori Park, Wellington
Hutt Recreation Ground, Lower Hutt
History
First-class debutAuckland
in 1936
at Eden Park, Auckland
HBJS wins18 (including 1 shared)
SS wins7
Official websiteCricket Wellington

The Wellington Blaze is the women's representative cricket team for the New Zealand city of Wellington. They play their home games at Basin Reserve. They compete in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield one-day competition and the Women's Super Smash Twenty20 competition. They are the most successful side in the history of the Super Smash, with seven title wins, as well as being the current holders of the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield.

History

Wellington played in the first Hallyburton Johnstone Shield in 1935–36, in which they beat Auckland to claim the title.[1] They subsequently defended the title over the next two seasons, before losing it to Auckland in 1939–40.[2][3][4]

Wellington have gone on to win the Shield (under various names) 18 times. They had periods of dominance in the 1950s, where they won the title five times, and in the 1970s, where they won the title a further five times.[5][6] Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Canterbury dominated the competition, winning the title 20 out of 21 times, but Wellington were the side to break their streak, topping the points table in 1989–90 with three wins from four matches.[6][7] They next won the one-day competition was in 2003–04, when they shared the trophy with Canterbury after the final was rained-off.[8] Between 2006–07 and 2021–22, they lost in the final seven times, including three times in a row between 2008–09 and 2010–11, before again winning the competition in 2022–23, beating Canterbury in the final..[9]

Wellington have also played in the Super Smash since its inaugural season in 2008–09, and are the most successful side in the history of the competition, with six title wins. They won the title in 2008–09, 2012–13, 2014–15 and three times in a row in 2017–18, 2018–19 and 2019–20.[10] In 2020–21, they lost in the final to Canterbury by 4 wickets, despite a hat-trick from Wellington bowler Amelia Kerr, and Wellington batter Sophie Devine ending the season as the tournament's leading run-scorer.[11][12] They regained their title in 2021–22, however, going unbeaten in the group stage before beating Otago Sparks in the final by 75 runs.[13][14]

Grounds

Wellington's primary home ground from their first match in 1937 until the 1950s was Basin Reserve, and they began using the ground consistently again from 2014. In between these periods, Wellington used grounds such as Kilbirnie Park in Wellington, Te Whiti Park in Lower Hutt and Petone Recreation Ground, also in Lower Hutt.[5][9][10]

From the 2000s, Wellington began using Karori Park, Wellington, as well as Trentham Memorial Park, Upper Hutt. In 2021–22, they played most of their matches at Basin Reserve, as well as two at Karori Park. In 2022–23, the played most of their matches at Basin Reserve, as well as two at Hutt Recreation Ground.[9][10]

Players

Current squad

Based on squad for the 2023–24 season. Players in bold have international caps.[15]

No. Name Nationality Birth date Batting style Bowling style Notes
Batters
18Georgia Plimmer New Zealand8 February 2004Right-handedRight-arm medium
28Caitlin King New Zealand5 September 1996Right-handedRight arm medium
30Rebecca Burns New Zealand30 September 1994Right-handedRight-arm off break
All-rounders
48Amelia Kerr New Zealand13 October 2000Right-handedRight-arm leg breakT20 Captain
62Leigh Kasperek New Zealand15 February 1992Right-handedRight-arm off breakOne-Day Captain
77Sophie Devine New Zealand1 September 1989Right-handedRight-arm medium
Wicket-keepers
1Gemma Sims New Zealand27 July 2001Right-handed–
5Jess McFadyen New Zealand5 October 1991Right-handed—
15Antonia Hamilton New Zealand15 April 2004Right-handedRight-arm medium
Bowlers
3Natasha Codyre New Zealand29 October 2003Right-handedRight-arm medium
12Xara Jetly New Zealand29 August 2001Right-handedRight-arm off break
14Nicole Baird New Zealand6 August 1993Right-handedSlow left-arm orthodox
19Kate Chandler New Zealand2 November 2006Right-handedRight-arm leg break
23Phoenix Williams New Zealand20 December 1998Right-handedRight-arm medium
24Jess Kerr New Zealand18 January 1998Right-handedRight arm medium
55Hannah Francis New Zealand4 February 2006Right-handedRight-arm medium
58Monique Rees New Zealand29 September 2000Right-handedRight-arm medium

Notable players

Players who have played for Wellington and played internationally are listed below, in order of first international appearance (given in brackets):[16]

Coaching staff

Honours

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Hallyburton Johnstone Challenge Shield 1935–36". CricketArchive. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Hallyburton Johnstone Challenge Shield 1937–38". CricketArchive. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "Hallyburton Johnstone Challenge Shield 1938–39". CricketArchive. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  4. ↑ "Hallyburton Johnstone Challenge Shield 1939–40". CricketArchive. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Women's First-Class Matches played by Wellington Women". CricketArchive. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  6. 1 2 Watkin, Evan (October 2015). "The History of Women's Domestic Cricket in New Zealand" (PDF). Cricket Wellington. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 April 2017. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  7. ↑ "Hansells Cup 1989–90 Table". CricketArchive. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  8. ↑ "Canterbury Women v Wellington Women, 31 January, 1 February 2004". CricketArchive. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  9. 1 2 3 "Women's List A Matches played by Wellington Women". CricketArchive. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  10. 1 2 3 "Women's Twenty20 Matches played by Wellington Women". CricketArchive. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  11. ↑ "Wellington Women v Canterbury Women, February 12 2021". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "Records/New Zealand Cricket Women's Twenty20, 2020/21/Most Runs". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  13. ↑ "New Zealand Cricket Women's Twenty20 2021/22/Table". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  14. ↑ "Final, Hamilton, Jan 29 2022, Women's Super Smash: Wellington Women v Otago Women". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  15. ↑ "Rees and Sims Complete Wellington Transfers, Hannah Francis and Phoenix Williams Awarded Contracts; 2023-24 Blaze Contracts Unveiled". Wellington Cricket. 18 August 2023. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  16. ↑ "Wellington Women Players". CricketArchive. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  17. 1 2 "Former Black Cap Luke Woodcock, Lance Dry to team up as Wellington Blaze coaches". Stuff. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
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