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Preview: Hampshire Hawks Vitality Blast Double Header
THE MATCHES
Somerset Men and Somerset Women are both in action in the Vitality Blast when they take on their Hampshire Hawks counterparts at the Cooper Associates County Ground tomorrow (June 19th).
Somerset Women will get the action underway at 2:30pm with Somerset Men taking to the field at 6:30pm.
Tickets for this match are still available.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Gates will open at 1:30pm.
Please note that double headers are not included in 2025 Somerset Women Membership.
Please note that there will be no re-admittance after 5:30pm.
Information on everything that you will need for a matchday at SCCC, including how to download your e-tickets and how to use the SCCC Ticket App can all be found in our Visiting Guide.
Bag searches will be in operation and spectators are reminded that no glass or sharp implements will be permitted within the Cooper Associates County Ground.
For full Ground Regulations please visit the link below:
Ticket buyers can download their online tickets via their SCCC account. All ticket or Membership collections or queries will be managed at the Jack White Gates (St James Street).
The Club Reception Desk is now permanently based in the Reception of the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion and not in the Andrew Caddick Pavilion.
Due to the busy nature of a matchday, our telephone lines will reopen at 10am on Friday June 20th.
Scorecards will be available from Reception in the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion. Completed scorecards can be downloaded after the match via the Membership section of this website.
FAN VILLAGE & CATERING
We will once again be staging our fan village in the St James Street side of the Cooper Associates County Ground.
The fan village features a wide range of food and drink plus live music from The Haus Band between fixtures and during the men’s interval.
Matchday food and drink will also be available from the SCCC concessions and bars around the ground.
HOW CAN I KEEP UP TO DATE?
Our award winning live stream is available for fans to watch via this website and our YouTube channel.
You can also keep up to date by using our dedicated matchday blog via this website’s Match Centre and on our X feed.
In association with Vertu, Somerset County Cricket Club will be providing radio ear pieces to enable Members and supporters to enjoy our live ball-by-ball match commentary. These will be available to purchase from Reception in the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion at a cost of £12 and these will last all season.
A report on the day’s play will also be posted on this website.
THE OPPOSITION
HAMPSHIRE HAWKS WOMEN
Captain: Georgia Adams
Overseas players: Charli Knott (Australia, full competition), Ellyse Perry (Australia, last six matches + Finals Day if Hawks qualify)
Key winter moves: The Vipers to Hawks transition saw more outgoings than incomings – with the likes of Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Georgia Elwiss, Emily Windsor, Alice Monaghan and Charlie Dean all departing. With younger players given more chances and responsibility. But one new face looms large – the Australian great Ellyse Perry.
The big question: Will Ellyse Perry get Hawks over the line when she arrives? There is huge excitement about Perry’s signing but her introduction at Chesterfield on July 4, with six matches to go, may well be perfectly timed to get them to Finals Day, but equally Hampshire could be only playing for pride.
Wildcard watch: Mary Taylor. The fast bowler missed the start of the season with a finger injury but her return in the Vitality County Cup saw her take a four for 26 in an innings none of her team-mates went at under 10s and Surrey smashed 237. A bustling and uber-accurate presence with the ball, Taylor is also more than capable of bunting late-innings runs.
Final thought: The likes of Ella McCaughan, Rhianna Southby, and Bex Tyson massively stepped up in the first Metro Bank One-Day Cup block to fill the experience void, and send Hampshire top of the 50-over table. A replication of that, and Maia Bouchier shaking off her Ashes disappointments, put Hawks in a good position to continue the proud record of women’s cricket at Utilita Bowl. Paul Prichard and co. have seamlessly made sure there has been no disruption since Charlotte Edwards’ exit.
HAMPSHIRE HAWKS MEN
Captain: James Vince
Overseas players: Lhuan-dre Pretorius (South Africa, 10 matches from June 13), Dewald Brevis (South Africa, full competition)
Finals Day appearances: 10 (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023)
Titles: Three (2010, 2012, 2022)
2024 finish: Seventh (South Group)
2024 leading runscorer: Joe Weatherley (324)
2024 leading wicket taker: John Turner (15)
Key winter moves: The Hawks have completely refreshed their overseas contingent with two of the most exciting young players in the world. Lhuan-dre Pretorius was the top run-scorer in the SA20 over the winter and wunderkind Dewald Brevis. Fast bowler Sonny Baker is also added from last year’s Blast.
The big question: Can James Vince feel at home again? The Hawks skipper is only playing in the Blast for Hampshire this year after moving to Dubai over the winter. He had a rare lean 2024 – understandable after attacks on his family house – but the Blast’s all-time leading run scorer has been tearing up franchise leagues around the world and is ready to return to the UK with his destructive brand of cricket.
Wildcard watch: Dewald Brevis. Has been mentored by South African great AB de Villiers and it shows. He burst onto the scene by breaking the most runs at the 2022 U19 World Cup. He ended that year by smashing 162 in 57 balls – the joint third highest T20 score of all-time. More recently, he won the SA20 with MI Cape Town with the competition’s highest strike-rate. Also bowls very useful leg-spin.
Final thought: Having won the Blast in 2022, before reaching Finals Day the following year, 2024 was underwhelming, filled with a series of overseas not arriving and general under performance. The new Proteas contingent provides an exciting new headline but the core squad, that knows the unique challenges of the expansive Utilita Bowl, is still there. Vince should return fresher without two months of Rothesay County Championship cricket in his legs but with PSL form.
TEAM NEWS
Somerset Women will be without Heather Knight (hamstring), Dani Gibson (back), Emma Corney (knee) and Lola Harris (exams).
A starting XI will be named from the following squad:
Somerset Men have named an unchanged squad for this fixture.
A starting XI will be named from the following squad:
VIEWS FROM THE DRESSING ROOM
Ahead of this double header, Somerset Women Head Coach, Trevor Griffin said: “We are improving with each game and the group are desperate to put in a performance on Thursday in order to get that first win ahead of the break. There’s a real togetherness in the dressing room. Although there’s disappointment and frustration there’s a real sense that they’re all in this together and hopefully that togetherness can push us forward to that first win this week.
“We haven’t been good enough so far in the competition. We need to pull together all three facets of the game and we know what we need to do. We need to take on that responsibility both individually and collectively.
“The support that we get at the Cooper Associates County Ground is amazing and the players are fully aware that the Members and supporters here back us through thick and thin. We’re desperate to put on a show in front of another big crowd on Thursday and to finish the T20 block with a win.”
On the eve of their clash with Hampshire Hawks, Somerset Men Head Coach, Jason Kerr said: “The obvious intention is to get back to winning ways. We’ve had a great start to the tournament, we’ve played some outstanding cricket and we’re looking forward to having the opportunity to bounce back on Thursday. Momentum is big in sport and that’s been arrested slightly, but the weather is set fair, there’s going to be another big crowd and we’re looking forward to it.
“The games have been high-scoring and have provided great entertainment. This is an incredible place to play and the brand of cricket that we’re playing is good to watch. Long may that continue.”
TRADE NATION STATS
CLASSIC MATCH
We go back to 2018 for our look back at a classic T20 match between Somerset and Hampshire at Taunton.
It was a match that saw the home side come out on top by 16 runs thanks in no small part to Jerome Taylor securing the second best figures by a Somerset bowler in T20 cricket.
MATCH SPONSOR – COREUS
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Their broad offering includes cost consultancy, project management, development management, building surveying, sustainability and environmental consultancy along with BREEAM, all brought to you by an expert team of experienced specialists from multi-disciplinary consultancy backgrounds including global corporations.
They go much further than the standard process-driven, off-the-shelf solutions.
THE VERTU MOTORS CROWD CATCH!
As well as enjoying the spectacular action of this season’s Blast, you can be a part of it with the Vertu Crowd Catch!
If you take a clean catch in the crowd during any of our Home Vitality Blast matches, you will win hospitality for two to our Metro Bank One Day Cup match against Durham on Friday August 8th.
In order to qualify for the prize, the official in-play match ball must be caught by the winner straight from the air without having touched any object or person before being caught by the winner. Evidence of identity, ticket and age may be required.
RAINBOW LACES
Cricket is proud to support Stonewall’s Rainbow Laces campaign.
Our game is for everyone, and we want cricket to be a game in which the LGBTQ+ community feel both welcome and able to be themselves.
For more information, head to Stonewall website using the link below:
NEXT MATCH
Somerset Women’s next match takes place on Friday July 4th when we take on Durham Women in the Vitality Blast at the Banks Homes Riverside. This match is part of a double header which will also see Durham Men face Notts Outlaws.
Tickets for this match are available now:
Somerset Men are next in action on Friday June 20th when we take on Glamorgan in the Vitality Blast at Sophia Gardens.
Tickets for this match are still available.
