St George-Sutherland and Sydney to contest for Ruth Preddy Trophy

_{Sydney's Sammy-Jo Johnson and St George-Sutherland captain Cailyn Mozar with the Ruth Preddy Trophy}

The match will begin at 10am, with live scores visible HERE, and a live stream to become available through our Cricket NSW YouTube channel on the day, HERE.

St George-Sutherland

• The Slayers finished their regular season as first-grade minor premiers, bounding into finals with a record of 13 wins and four losses.
• With a crucial 34 not out against Northern District in the semi-finals, Rhiannon Dick went beyond 500 runs for the season (506 at 42.17) the most of any other cricketer in the first-grade competition.
• Dick also leads the league in wickets taken with 36 (average 8.94) – including finals, nine more than her nearest competitor.
• Tahlia Wilson is expected to open the batting for the Slayers after returning from representative duties in the Cricket Australia Green v Gold fixture at Karen Rolton Oval.
• NSW Pathways talents Juliette Morton and Lucy Finn will be eager to celebrate their premier cricket season with the trophy, adding to their recent selection in an Australian Women’s squad for an U19 series in Sri Lanka in April.

Captain of the St George-Sutherland first-grade side, Cailyn Mozar, said:

“It’s the first grand final for a lot of our girls, being so young, but hopefully the experience we have with our older girls will help make it a really good game.

“We’ve got a couple of exciting young players… Lucy Finn, who’s coming off a five-wicket haul the other week and Ella Briscoe, who’s been selected in an NSW Second XI side and our young opening quick Annika [Karlsson].

“The Ruth Preddy Trophy has eluded us, so this will be our first one. I’ve been with the club for 17 years, so this is something I really want. It would mean a lot.”

Sydney

• Sydney secured second spot on the competition ladder with a regular season record of 11 wins and five losses.
• Tigers captain Kira Churchland has led from the front this season, scoring 385 runs at an average of 22.65 and capturing 27 wickets at 15.15.
• Having recently been named Player of the Carnival at the U16 Female National Championships, as well as top-scoring (54) in Sydney’s semi-final win over Northern District, young gun Emily Powell will be eager to shine in this big fixture.
• The Tigers’ potential grand final line-up could include the representative talents of Sammy-Jo Johnson and Maitlan Brown.
• Sydney is searching for their second piece of silverware in 2023/24 after claiming the Kingsgrove Sports T20 Cup at Cricket Central on January 26.

Sydney Tigers superstar, Sammy-Jo Johnson, said:

“Grade cricket is one of my favourite things, I mark it on the calendar as much as possible. Any opportunity we [state players] get to come back and impart our skills and experiences from the top level, will assist in continuing to grow the depth of women’s cricket in Sydney.

“It’s always a great competition against those girls [St George-Sutherland]. They’ve got a really good side and have played really well this season to finish at the top. If we can get one over them, I’d be really, really happy.

“Our coach Russell Grimson has been a big part of our success as a team and club. I want to send him out with the double this year. We got the T20 Cup, if we could take the 50-over Cup too that would be outstanding.

“I also just want to be successful with this club [Sydney CC], they’ve done a lot for me since I’ve come down from up north. I’m grateful to have such a supportive club, and another trophy in the cabinet would be nice.”

These two first-grade teams last met one month ago in Round 16, playing out an enthralling contest that resulted in a one-wicket win to the Tigers.

Emerging Slayer, Ella Briscoe top scored with 62 runs, while Sydney skipper, Kira Churchland snared what proved to be a decisive five-wicket haul (5-25) (HERE).

Sydney last lifted the Ruth Preddy Trophy two seasons ago, overcoming Penrith at Drummoyne Oval, while St George-Sutherland are searching for their first Ruth Preddy Trophy.

The umpires for the Women’s McDonald’s NSW Premier Cricket First-Grade Final will be Bob McGregor and David Stewart.

What: Women’s McDonald’s NSW Premier Cricket First-Grade Final
Who: St George-Sutherland v Sydney
When: Sunday, March 10. First ball 10am
Where: Cricket Central, Sydney Olympic Park