Cricket squad makes mark in Dubai contest
A South Island under-15 girls cricket team were placed second at an inaugural cricket tournament in Dubai after going up against teams from the UK and the UAE.
Retired New Zealand cricketer Kirsty Bond took on the role of training the team in late 2023, which includes five players from South Canterbury, for the inaugural R66T Academy Dubai Cup held over eight days in the first half of last month.
The team faced the Royal Hospital School (UK), Seven Oaks (UK) and the local “highly favoured” Desert Vipers.
They lost to the Desert Vipers in the final at the ICC Cricket Stadium by 29 runs and were placed second.
The players from South Canterbury were Hannah Kidd, Izzy Power, Camryn Linton, Sophie Kelly and Ruby Laming.
Team captain Camryn Linton described the tournament as a “really good” experience for everyone on the team.
Camryn was awarded the Spirit of the Tournament award, which was testament to her “captaincy and all round cricket prowess”. “We did really well,” Camryn said. “The English team were good but the Desert Vipers were the hardest.”
Camryn said the girls from South Canterbury enjoyed playing with their other team-mates from around the South Island, some of whom they have played against before.
Bowler Izzy Power said the tournament was “great”, and that it was really good to play against the different teams.
Competing against teams from the UK and the Desert Vipers was a bit “nerve-racking”, but it had inspired her to train harder as a bowler, she said. She described the other South Island players as “very talented”.
All-rounder Sophie Kelly said the Desert Vipers team were “very well drilled”.
The three girls agreed that being trained by an ex-White Fern was a great experience. The South Island team also met the Scotland and West Indies women’s cricket teams while they were training.
The R66T website said the tournament was aimed at attracting under-15 cricket teams from around the world “to enjoy cricket at its finest in the prestigious surroundings that Dubai offers”.
Following the tournament, the South Island team got caught up in the Dubai floods in April which saw a year and a half's worth of rain fall on parts of UAE, flooding roads and Dubai's airport.
A one and a half hour journey from Abu Dhabi, where the team visited to play against local teams, to Dubai Airport turned into a 4-hour-long journey.
South Canterbury player Sophie Kelly’s mum, Belinda Kelly, said after they reached the airport, the flights kept getting delayed until finally the flights back home were cancelled.
“The girls slept at the airport and spent their time playing indoor cricket and charades, and doing skits,” she said. “We got them hotel rooms the following day and we got a flight back home the day after.”
Camryn said everyone was quite exhausted during the ordeal but was glad the rain did not affect the tournament.
“It’s a trip we’ll never forget.”