Sidmouth Ladies took to the pitch for their first ever outing, a soft ball festival meeting at Heathcoat.

Originally, the festival had been set to see four teams take part, but sadly, two of the four dropped out late in the day leaving Heathcoat and Sidmouth to go head-to-head.

Sidmouth travelled with a squad of 13 ladies, all of whom had been attending the popular Wine and Wickets initiative that has been running on Friday evenings at the Fortfield.

Sidmouth played two softball 12-a-side pairs fixtures. The first fixture saw captain Taryn Murray call correctly and opt to bat first. Taryn decided to lead the way by attending the crease first with partner Barbara Vidion. Taryn showed her hand eye coordination skills from her representative hockey years by striking some lusty blows towards the Heathcoat pavilion. With 35 runs being accumulated off the first two overs the pace was set for the Sidmouth innings. Pairings were Jo Fisher and Bryony Hulbert, Kate Warren and Jenny Wilson, Denise Bickley and Juliet Parker, Anna McMahon and Jess Tubbs, and last pairing of Emily Dodds and Emily Keenan.

All of the pairings showcased the skills they have been acquiring from the Friday night sessions. The Sidmouth innings closed with the team tally at 268 for 5. As with junior cricket pairs, the batting team starts with 200 on the board and each time a wicket is lost five runs are also deducted. With this taken into account Sidmouth actually struck 93 runs off the bat which was a fantastic effort first time out.

The ladies managed to exhibit some athletic fielding skills together with excellent catching, reducing Heathcoat to 234 for 8 from their allotted overs. Stand out bowler was ex-Devon U17 Girls seam bowler Emily Dodds, who bowled at a lively pace, but also very straight. With extras being a rather prolific contributor for both teams there was still room for improvement in future fixtures, however.

After some light refreshments and a barbecue, it was time for the second game of the day.

New captain Kate Warren had the coin in hand this time. However, Heathcoat called correctly and decided due the unfinished glasses of prosecco that they would set the Sidmouth ladies a target this time around. Wickets fell at regular intervals, with some excellent catches being taken by Taryn Murray and Emily Dodds. The Heathcoat innings closed on 224 for 10, a fine all round team effort by the Sidmouth Ladies.

Some tinkering took place with the order of the Sidmouth pairings, but opening continuity was maintained with Vidion and Murray walking out first for Sidmouth. The strong middle pairing of Hulbert and Fisher, saw Jo Fisher in particular target the short club house side boundary. Sidmouth made light work of the Heathcoat tally amassing a huge 288-5 second time round.

This represented a great first outing for the Sidmouth ladies, coming away with a played two and won two record.

The ladies enjoyed the closing ceremony of the day with chocolates, prosecco and non-alcoholic refreshments being consumed. A note of thanks to all who attended and also to Heathcoat for hosting. A return fixture has already been talked about so watch this space for the next ladies fixture.