Geraldton women chasing second country week championship as host team

Geraldton will be without star player Janelle Phillips for this weekend’s women’s country week after the all-rounder was unable to recover in time from a shoulder reconstruction. But Geraldton captain Jo Walker said there was still plenty of talent around for her team to repeat the heroics of last year’s tournament. The Geraldton A side went undefeated across five T20 matches in the inaugural 2021 women’s country week, with Phillips named player of the tournament. While Phillips leaves big shoes to fill, Walker said she was looking forward to seeing how her team handled the pressure. “It will be interesting — we are the hunted this year,” she said. “Although Janelle isn’t playing, everyone contributed last year. “We didn’t rely on one player. Everyone had a moment in each game.” In only the third summer of women’s cricket in Geraldton, Walker said there was plenty of improvement across the board. “I think our batting has improved in our local comp — we are getting bigger scores and understanding how to move the game along a bit more,” she said. “Our fielding and bowling was pretty good last year, but I hope the batting steps it up to another level.” Pointing to the likes of Olivia Bidwell, Sam Biddiscombe and Meg Spalding, Walker said there were several players in red-hot form at club level. Bidwell, who is averaging above 60 with the bat playing for club side Wanderers, has gone to another level this season. Speaking with the Guardian, Bidwell said she was playing with confidence under the tutelage of Wanderers coach Bruce Gillingham. “I wasn’t as strong as I am this year,” she said. “Having the strength and the confidence plus having Bruce’s help has made a difference.” Bidwell said she would bat at number 3 this weekend for the Geraldton A side and was excited by the opportunity to play every game on turf. “It changes quite a bit going from hard (synthetic wicket) to turf,” she said. “Once you get into it, I like it better, because you can definitely play straighter.” Geraldton are hosting the women’s country week for the second year in a row, with seven teams from across WA taking part in the tournament. Bunbury and Geraldton are each playing two teams, while West Pilbara Cricket Association, Southern Scorpions — made up of players from the Great Southern, Goldfields and Esperance — and Peel round out the competition. Walker hoped her side would take advantage of the familiar conditions to make it back-to-back championships. She said the Southern Scorpions would likely be a tough match up. “Bunbury will bring a better show this year — they will be out to restore a bit of pride,” she said. “It’s very new, so it’s hard to judge. “We are just worrying about our own game.” Geraldton A play their first game against West Pilbara on Saturday afternoon at Wonthella Oval, followed by a night game against the Southern Scorpions at the same venue. Geraldton B start the tournament against Bunbury Red at GBSC Sports Park at 2pm on Saturday. The grand final will be played at Wonthella Oval on Monday at 5.30pm. “Because WA didn’t get the Ashes, this weekend is the chance for people to get out and see some great live cricket action,” Walker said.