Amy Gordon’s Surrey wrapped up a successful 2024 with 11 victories and a win ratio of 64.7%, the team finished second in the ECB’s 50-over competition and once again secured the London Cup at the Kia Oval.
“As a group of quite young players, and with lots of debuts this season, the girls did really well…We know each other well but being with each other all the time and getting used to playing together really helped. Whenever we were on the field, we tried to play the best cricket we could,” reflects the skipper. “We played with heart and determination, and it showed in the way we competed,” adds Claudie Cooper, Surrey’s leading wicket-taker of the season.
Competing in four competitions throughout the summer, the Three Feathers finished second in ECB’s 50-over competition, losing out on the top spot to Sussex by three points, and third in the Women’s London Championship. Despite having a cracking T20 campaign, winning five of their eight matches and losing just once – one of three teams to win five or more matches – Surrey stood sixth in the ECB County T20 table due to missing out on bonus points.
“Every week the message was ‘let’s go out, play to our strengths and have a good time’, and as a team, we really worked on that throughout the year,” shares Gordon, who was named Surrey’s captain before the start of the season. “It was easier to grow into the role this year after being officially named [having captained in 2023 when Aylish Cranstone was unavailable]. The girls around me were very supportive… it can’t get much better than having a team that backs you and I backed them 100% with whatever they wanted to do,” she continues.
A standout highlight of the action-packed campaign for Surrey’s young side was retaining the London Cup against Middlesex at the Kia Oval. “We put on a great show for an amazing crowd!” recollects Cooper, who starred with 2/13 in that game.
Cooper, alongside Priya Khatkar (2/13), did the damage early on that warm June night in south London before composed innings from Gordon, Maddie Blinkhorn-Jones, and Thea Brookes steered Surrey home in convincing fashion against their London rivals.
Before the first of three London derbies of the year, the Three Feathers had kicked off the final season in their current form – with Surrey’s new, professional Tier 1 team ready to take off in the restructured domestic game from 2025 – on the front foot, defeating Hampshire comprehensively in ECB’s 50 over competition in April.
Left-arm spinner Khatkar was the hero of the season-opener, laying the foundation with an astonishing 5/10 from 10 overs as Charlotte Stubbs (34*) and Laxmi Johal (25*) had Surrey racing towards the target.
The month of May saw three fixtures washed out, including the County T20 triple-header, but the fourth one turned out to be the game of the season. Going up against Kent at Beckenham, Surrey pulled off a dramatic one-wicket, last-over victory in an all-time classic London Championship run-fest.
Chasing 267 runs from 50 overs, Blinkhorn-Jones (125) and Stubbs (80) shared a brilliant 153-run stand and kept the Three Feathers on course to victory. There was, however, a twist in the tale as Kent’s Izzy Kirby triggered a collapse of seven for 15. With the scores level, Kirby bowled a wide to Surrey’s number eleven and the Three Feathers clinched a famous win in extremely tense circumstances.
“We had quite a few key performances over the year, and obviously Maddie getting a hundred in that game which went down to the last ball was one of them,” recounts Gordon.
In June, charged up by the triumph in the London Cup, Surrey continued their terrific form in T20s, seeing off Sussex and Kent at Hove. The month ended with Gordon’s side narrowly falling to the first of their four defeats of the season, this one coming at the hands of Sussex in a low-scoring 50-over game.
Surrey made a jubilant start to July, getting the better of their London rivals for a second consecutive time in the season. Kira Chathli struck a superb half-century in her first game post-injury after Surrey’s spinners had skittled Middlesex for 94 all out.
A week later, however, Middlesex got their revenge at the same venue and prevented a hattrick of London Derby victories for their south-of-the-river rivals, snatching a three-wicket win in the London Championship encounter. A bittersweet end to the month followed as Surrey bounced back with a triumph over Suffolk but lost to Berkshire in the County T20 matchday in Chipstead.
The busiest part of the season began disappointingly for Surrey, falling short in a hard-fought 50-over friendly against Kent at New Malden in August. Gordon’s side did not take long to regroup and closed their campaign in a smashing style, winning four games in a row.
Following two defeats on the trot, the skipper took it upon herself to inspire her side, setting the powerplay ablaze against Essex with a quickfire 36 off 18 balls. Laxmi Johal, fresh from thumping 216 runs from 152 balls for Surrey U18s a few days earlier, chipped in with an impressive knock of 43 and the Three Feathers mounted 157/5 in Weybridge – their highest T20 score of the season – to clinch a comprehensive victory. Surrey made it a perfect T20 matchday, winning their second game of the day against Buckinghamshire with ease.
Anna Lewis (2/16), who made her Surrey debut earlier in the season, bowled a striking new ball spell as Surrey saw off Sussex by four wickets to round off their London Championship campaign.
An impressive feature of the squad throughout the summer was debutants coming into the side and seamlessly finding their feet. The likes of Lewis, Izzy Sidhu, and Shimako Kato, receiving support from the nucleus of experienced heads in the team, made an important contribution to Surrey’s success.
“Both new and familiar faces played a part this season, and everyone contributed in a big way, on and off the field,” says Cooper, adding: “I was very impressed by our younger players, especially Anna who made a big impact with her incredible bowling in the opening overs.”
“We’ll all be there for you, just back your strengths and go out to have fun” was the skipper’s main message to the debutants. “I tried to get them involved in the game as quickly as possible as well, just so they break the ice of all those nerves,” adds Gordon.
It was fitting that Gordon – the leading run-getter of the season (348 runs) – and Cooper – the highest wicket-taker in the team (15 wickets) – inspired Surrey’s commanding victory over Kent in the final game of the summer. Cooper’s 3/22 helped restrict Kent to 121/6 at the Spitfire Ground before Gordon wreaked havoc with 54 off 25 balls as Surrey sprinted to the finish line inside 15 overs.
“I’ve always been a big believer that if I’m going to say something, I have to back it up with how I act as well… So I couldn’t turn around and say to the girls ‘play how you wanna play’ and then not do it myself,” comments Gordon. “I’ve always been a bit of an aggressive batter, especially in T20s. If the ball’s there for me to hit, I’m going to try! I just really wanted to show that this year and to finish as the leading run-scorer was incredible.”
Cooper, who also enjoyed one of her best campaigns in the Three Feathers, says: “This has been a season I’m incredibly proud of. Finishing as the top wicket-taker and achieving my best-ever figures are memories I’ll cherish… Being able to contribute with the ball, bat and in the field for Surrey is an honour.”
Looking from a wider lens at the concluding era of domestic cricket, she goes on: “Our entire team, from players to staff, have been phenomenal. Whether they’ve been part of this journey for one year or ten, everyone has made a significant impact on the sport, and they should all be proud of their role in the growth of women’s cricket.”
