The Otago Sparks is the women's cricket representative team for the New Zealand region of Otago and the surrounding area. They play their home games at University Oval, Dunedin. They compete in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield one-day competition and the Women's Super Smash Twenty20 competition.
History Otago made their first appearance in the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield in 1939–40, where they lost to Wellington. The following period in the one-day competition was dominated by Auckland and Wellington, however, and Otago did not record a second-place finish until 1957–58. They finished second again in 1960–61 before finally winning their first title in 1962–63, winning two matches and drawing one. In 1967–68, Otago competed in the Australian Women's Cricket Championships, finishing fourth out of five.
Otago did not play in major competition between 1983–84 and 1997–98. Some Otago players instead played for Southern Districts, which competed between 1983–84 and 1987–88. They returned for the 1998–99 season, but finished bottom of the one-day competition points table.
Otago won their second one-day competition in 2013–14, finishing second in the group stage before beating Auckland in the final, helped by 99 from captain Suzie Bates and winning by 3 wickets off the penultimate delivery. They won their third one-day competition in 2021–22, finishing second in the group stage to qualify for the final, before beating group winners Wellington in the final by 138 runs. They won their fourth one-day competition in 2023–24, this time topping the group stage and defeating Wellington in the final.
Otago have also competed in the Twenty20 Super Smash since its inception in 2007–08, finishing second in 2014–15 before winning the title in 2016–17. They finished second in the group stage in 2016–17, but beat group winners Canterbury in the final, with Suzie Bates scoring 74 and Kate Heffernan taking 4/21. Otago bowler Leigh Kasperek was the leading wicket-taker in the tournament, with 8 wickets.
Grounds Otago played their first home Hallyburton Johnstone Shield match at University Oval, Dunedin, and the ground has remained the side's primary home ground throughout their history. They also used Logan Park and Carisbrook, also in Dunedin, until the early 2000s.
From 2005, the side began using Molyneux Park, Alexandra and in 2007 Queens Park, Invercargill. In the 2017–18 season, they also began using Whitestone Contracting Stadium, Oamaru. In 2021–22, the side primarily used University Oval, as well as playing two games at Whitestone Contracting Stadium and three, for the first time, at Queenstown Events Centre. In 2022–23, the side used University Oval and Queenstown Events Centre for their home matches.
Players Current squad Based on squad announced for the 2023–24 season. Players in bold have international caps. No. Name Nationality Birth date Batting style Bowling style Notes Batters7 Caitlin Blakely Right-handed Right-arm medium All-rounders17 Hayley Jensen Right-handed Right-arm medium 18 Paige Loggenberg Right-handed Right-arm medium 23 Suzie Bates Right-handed Right-arm medium Vice Captain 33 Saffron Wilson Right-handed Right-arm medium 36 Gemma Adams Right-handed Right-arm medium 49 Felicity Robertson Right-handed Right-arm medium Captain Wicket-keepers11 Olivia Gain Right-handed — 21 Bella James Right-handed — 29 Polly Inglis Right-handed — Bowlers5 Louisa Kotkamp Right-handed Right-arm medium 10 Molly Loe Right-handed Right-arm medium 14 Sophie Oldershaw Right-handed Right-arm leg break 23 Chloe Deerness Right-handed Right-arm off break 24 Eden Carson Right-handed Right-arm off break 30 Emma Black Right-handed Right-arm medium 46 Poppy-Jay Watkins Right-handed Left-arm medium
Notable players Players who have played for Otago and played internationally are listed below, in order of first international appearance (given in brackets):
Marge Bishop (1935) Merle Hollis (1935) Helen Allan (1935) Esther Blackie (1949) Eris Paton (1954) Betty Sinclair (1954) Mary Webb (1957) Daphne Robinson (1961) Trish McKelvey (1966) Louise Clough (1969) Carol Marett (1972) Jan Hall (1982) Gillian McConway (1982) Shona Gilchrist (1984) Catherine Campbell (1988) Clare Taylor (1988) Pauline te Beest (1990) Jill Saulbrey (1995) Rachel Pullar (1997) Paula Flannery (2000) Rowan Milburn (2000) Amanda Green (2003) Alex Blackwell (2003) Katey Martin (2003) Beth McNeill (2004) Suzie Bates (2006) Sarah Tsukigawa (2006) Lynsey Askew (2006) Laura Marsh (2006) Emma Campbell (2010) Morna Nielsen (2010) Kate Ebrahim (2010) Beth Langston (2013) Nicole Bolton (2014) Hayley Jensen (2014) Felicity Leydon-Davis (2014) Leigh Kasperek (2015) Amanda-Jade Wellington (2016) Kate Heffernan (2018) Alice Davidson-Richards (2018) Kirstie Gordon (2018) Linsey Smith (2018) Marina Lamplough (2019) Shebani Bhaskar (2019) Hannah Darlington (2021) Natasha Miles (2021) Eden Carson (2022) Bella James (2024) Polly Inglis (2025)
Coaching staff
Head Coach: Craig Cumming
Honours Hallyburton Johnstone Shield: Winners (4): 1962–63, 2013–14, 2021–22, 2023–24 Women's Super Smash: Winners (1): 2016–17
See also Otago cricket team
Notes
References