North West Thunder, commonly referred to as Thunder, were a women's cricket team that represented Lancashire and North West England, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic women's cricket. They played their home matches at various grounds, including Old Trafford Cricket Ground. They were captained by Eleanor Threlkeld and coached by Chris Read. The team carried over many elements of the WCSL team Lancashire Thunder, but were partnered with Lancashire, Cheshire and Cumbria.
At the end of the 2024 season, following reforms to the structure of women's domestic cricket, the team was effectively replaced by a professionalised Lancashire team.
History In 2020, women's cricket in England was restructured, creating eight new 'regional hub' teams, with the intention of playing both 50-over and 20-over cricket. North West Thunder were one of the sides created under this structure, effectively replacing the Women's Cricket Super League team Lancashire Thunder and representing Lancashire and North West England, partnering with Lancashire, Cheshire and Cumbria. The side was to be captained by Alex Hartley and coached by Paul Shaw. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 season was truncated, and only 50-over cricket was played, in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy. North West Thunder finished third in the North Group of the competition, winning two of their six matches. At the end of the season, five Thunder players were given full-time domestic contracts, the first of their kind in England: Alex Hartley, Georgie Boyce, Emma Lamb, Eleanor Threlkeld and Hannah Jones.
The following season, 2021, North West Thunder competed in both the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy and the newly-formed Twenty20 competition, the Charlotte Edwards Cup. In the Charlotte Edwards Cup the side finished third in their group, winning two of their six matches, as well as their away match against Sunrisers ending in a tie. Thunder batter Emma Lamb hit the first Charlotte Edwards Cup century in the reverse fixture against Sunrisers, as her side made the highest team score of the tournament, 186/1. In the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, the team finished seventh in the group of eight, winning three of their seven matches. North West Thunder bowler Hannah Jones was the joint-second highest wicket-taker in the tournament, with 14 wickets.
Ahead of the 2022 season, Hartley stood down as captain of the side. Eleanor Threlkeld was named as her replacement. The side finished third in their group in the Charlotte Edwards Cup that season, winning two of their six matches. The side finished seventh in the group of eight in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.
In 2023, the side qualified for the knockout stages of a tournament for the first time, doing so in the Charlotte Edwards Cup after winning four of their last five matches. However, they lost in the semi-final to Southern Vipers. The side finished seventh in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, winning three matches. Head Coach Paul Shaw stepped down from his role at the end of the season, and was later replaced by Chris Read. In 2024, the side finished fifth in the Charlotte Edwards Cup and finished sixth in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.
2024 was the side's final season, with reforms to the structure of domestic cricket in England meaning that the side was effectively replaced by a professionalised Lancashire team.
Home grounds VenueGames hosted by season20 21 22 23 24 TotalAigburth Cricket Ground, Liverpool 2 – – – – 2Chester Boughton Hall Cricket Club – 4 – – – 4Old Trafford Cricket Ground – 1 4 5 7 17Rookwood Cricket Ground, Sale – 1 2 2 1 6Trafalgar Road Ground – – 1 1 1 3Stanley Park – – – 2 2 4Sedbergh School – – – 1 1 2
Players Current squad Final squad, 2024 season. No. denotes the player's squad number, as worn on the back of their shirt. denotes players with international caps. No. Name Nationality Birth date Batting style Bowling style Notes Batters23 Shachi Pai Right-handed Right-arm medium 30 Danielle Collins Left-handed Right-arm medium 50 Daisy Mullan Right-handed Right-arm medium All-rounders6 Emma Lamb Right-handed Right-arm off break 11 Naomi Dattani Left-handed Left-arm medium 31 Fi Morris Right-handed Right-arm off break 39 Liberty Heap Right-handed Right-arm off break Wicket-keepers21 Eleanor Threlkeld Right-handed — Captain32 Ailsa Lister Right-handed — 35 Alice Clarke Left-handed Right-arm medium 47 Seren Smale Right-handed — Bowlers3 Sophie Morris Right-handed Slow left-arm orthodox 4 Olivia Bell Right-handed Right-arm off break 7 Hannah Jones Left-handed Slow left-arm orthodox 16 Kate Cross Right-handed Right-arm medium-fast 17 Phoebe Graham Right-handed Right-arm medium 18 Mahika Gaur Gaur has also played international cricket for the United Arab Emirates. Right-handed Left-arm medium 19 Sophie Ecclestone Right-handed Slow left-arm orthodox 22 Laura Jackson Right-handed Right-arm medium 24 Tara Norris Left-handed Left-arm medium 26 Hannah Rainey Right-handed Right-arm medium 53 Grace Johnson Right-handed Right-arm medium
Academy The North West Thunder Academy team played against other regional academies in friendly and festival matches across various formats. The Academy selected players from across the North West region, and included some players who were also in the first team squad. Players in the 2024 Academy are listed below:
Name CountyOlivia Brinsden CumbriaHolly Brown LancashireSummer Carrington LancashireEliza Cottam LancashireOlivia Cunliffe LancashireGrace Hemsted CheshireGrace Johnson LancashireMaeve Jones LancashireTilly Kesteven LancashireEmilia Lamb LancashireMartha Rimmer LancashireBethan Robinson LancashireAmelia Sammons LancashireHannah Snape LancashireVenus Weerapuli Lancashire
Overseas players Piepa Cleary – Australia (2021) Deandra Dottin – West Indies (2022–2023) Laura Delany – Ireland (2023) Katie Mack – Australia (2024) Georgia Voll – Australia (2024)
Coaching staff
Head Coach: Chris Read Regional Director: David Thorley Senior Regional Talent Manager: Jen Barden
As of the 2024 season.
Seasons Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy Season Final standing League standings Notes P W L T NR BP Pts NRR Pos 2020 6 2 4 0 0 1 9 −0.515 3rd DNQ 2021 7 3 4 0 0 1 13 −0.620 7th DNQ 2022 7 1 5 0 1 0 6 −0.366 7th DNQ 2023 14 3 5 2 4 2 26 −0.274 7th DNQ 2024 14 5 8 0 1 3 25 −0.013 6th DNQ
Charlotte Edwards Cup Season Final standing League standings Notes P W L T NR BP Pts NRR Pos 2021 6 2 3 1 0 1 11 +0.029 3rd DNQ 2022 6 2 4 0 0 2 10 –0.190 3rd DNQ 2023 7 4 3 0 0 2 18 +0.331 3rd Lost to Southern Vipers in the semi-final 2024 10 3 6 0 1 1 15 –0.727 5th DNQ
Statistics Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy + Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy – summary of resultsYear Played Wins Losses Tied NR Win % 2020 6 2 4 0 0 33.33 2021 7 3 4 0 0 42.86 2022 7 1 5 0 1 14.29 2023 14 3 5 2 4 21.43 2024 14 5 8 0 1 35.71 Total48142626 29.17 Abandoned matches are counted as NR (no result) Win or loss by super over or boundary count are counted as tied.
+ Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy – teamwise result summaryOppositionMat Won Lost Tied NRWin % Central Sparks 8 3 4 1 0 37.50 Northern Diamonds 8 1 7 0 0 12.50 South East Stars 6 3 3 0 0 50.00 Southern Vipers 6 0 4 1 1 0.00 Sunrisers 6 2 1 0 3 33.33 The Blaze 8 3 3 0 2 37.50 Western Storm 6 2 4 0 0 33.33
Charlotte Edwards Cup + Charlotte Edwards Cup - summary of resultsYear Played Wins Losses Tied NR Win % 2021 6 2 3 1 0 33.33 2022 6 2 4 0 0 33.33 2023 8 4 4 0 0 50.00 2024 10 3 6 0 1 30.00 Total30111711 36.67 Abandoned matches are counted as NR (no result) Win or loss by super over or boundary count are counted as tied.
+ Charlotte Edwards Cup - teamwise result summaryOppositionMat Won Lost Tied NRWin % Central Sparks 3 2 1 0 0 66.67 Northern Diamonds 7 4 3 0 0 57.14 South East Stars 2 1 1 0 0 50.00 Southern Vipers 5 0 5 0 0 0.00 Sunrisers 4 3 0 1 0 75.00 The Blaze 5 1 4 0 0 20.00 Western Storm 4 0 3 0 1 0.00
Records Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy Highest team total: 292/5, v Sunrisers on 24 April 2024. Lowest (completed) team total: 110 v Southern Vipers on 10 September 2021. Highest individual score: 121, Emma Lamb v Western Storm on 29 May 2021. Best individual bowling analysis: 6/24, Alex Hartley v South East Stars on 16 July 2022. Most runs: 1,065 runs in 28 matches, Emma Lamb. Most wickets: 49 wickets in 35 matches, Hannah Jones.
Charlotte Edwards Cup Highest team total: 186/1, v Sunrisers on 9 July 2021. Lowest (completed) team total: 61 v Northern Diamonds on 19 June 2024. Highest individual score: 111*, Emma Lamb v Sunrisers on 9 July 2021. Best individual bowling analysis: 5/15, Sophie Ecclestone v Lightning on 3 June 2022. Most runs: 837 runs in 25 matches, Emma Lamb. Most wickets: 18 wickets in 16 matches, Kate Cross.
See also Cheshire Women cricket team Cumbria Women cricket team Lancashire Women cricket team Lancashire Thunder
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References