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Central Districts Māori side has been finalised ahead of the Māori Wāhine National Cricket Tournament, held in Heretaunga from 13th October to the 15th.
5 teams will compete for the Rona McKenzie Taonga in honour of the White Ferns’ first ever Māori captain Rona McKenzie (Ngāti Awa).
Georgia Atkinson will captain the side after her stint in Ireland’s Super Series. The legspinning allrounder posed a challenge to batters with her looping deliveries. She picked up 1 wicket in the T20 leg of the series, wracking up 79 runs from 4 outings with the bat.
It was the 50 over format she excelled in though, finishing 3rd in the tournament with 7 wickets alongside former Auckland bowler Arlene Kelly. Atkinson also had one of the best economies, conceding just 4.58 an over.
Ocean Bartlett is a promising talent in the Hinds ranks, making her debut in the 2021 Super Smash. She’s had little opportunity to display her leg spin in a stacked Hinds bowling attack but was selected for the NZ Development XI that toured India in 2022.
Her sister India is also in the squad after outings with the CD U17 team in the North Island U17 Girls Tournament.
Sam Mackinder has recently turned out for the Hinds ‘A’ team against Northern Districts equals, picking up 64 runs off 68 in a one-day game.
Wairarapa is well covered in the CD Māori squad, with Liv Clark and Macy Lyford raring to go.
Speedster Clark has been pottering around the Hinds age-ranks, first debuting in 2020/21 where she claimed 6 scalps. A consistent operator, she backed it up with 4 in 2022 and 5 in 2023.
Lyford picked up a single wicket from her solitary over for the CD U19 in 2021/22, snapping up 26 runs from 4 games. She only featured in 2 games in the next edition of the competition before picking up an injury, which ruled her out of the Māori vs Pasifika series.
Hawke’s Bay’s Reese Drager was named Taradale Cricket Club’s Māori Player of the Year earlier this year. The left-handed batter picked up 87 runs from 6 innings in the National U19 Tournament for the Hinds.
Nelson’s Dustin Emms-Healy was named head coach for the CD Māori Wāhine after his stint with the CD Māori men’s team last year. Emms-Healy is currently the Nelson Cricket Community Cricket coordinator.
Alongside him is Kerry Tomlinson, who will be acting as assistant coach as well as playing for the CD team.
She has been a key figure for Māori cricket, helping start up the Northern Districts Māori Women's team when she played for the Brave. The team soon went on to tour the Cook Islands.
Tomlinson was Head Coach of the Samoan Women’s U19 team at the recent ICC East-Asia Pacific U19 World Cup Qualifier in Vanuatu. She was also included in NZC’s Pathway to Performance coaching programme last year, and was a member of the Māori Schoolgirls 2023 coaching staff.
CD Cricket Female Pathways and Performance lead Jamie Watkins commented on the squad and tournament:
“The tournament will extend the pathway established by the Māori Secondary Schoolgirls programme that has provided playing and coaching opportunities for many of this selected squad in previous years.
“This inaugural senior tournament provides a unique opportunity for our talented wāhine Māori cricketers to showcase their skills.
“They’ll be up against some of the best players in the country, looking to create a legacy for wāhine Māori cricketers in CD, and to increase visibility across our region — and indeed, the country.”
Central Districts Wāhine Māori Squad:
Georgia Atkinson (c) (Ngāti Kahungunu), Ocean Bartlett (vc) (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou), India Bartlett (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou), Olivia Clark (Kai Tahu), Reese Drager (Ngāti Porou), Madison Greenaway (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Raukawa), Macy Lyford (Ngāti Kahungunu), Sam Mackinder (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), Olivia McKnight (Ngāti Porou), Molly Noema-Barnett (Tūhoe), Jasmine O’Dell (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), Kerry Tomlinson (Te Whānau a Apanui, Ngāti Porou)
Head Coach: Dustin Emms-Healy (Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Waitaha)
Asst Coach: Kerry Tomlinson (Te Whānau-a-Apanui, Ngāti Porou)
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