2025 Annual-report

NOTTINGHAMSHIRE COUNTY CRICKET CLUB 2025 ANNUAL REPORT & ACCOUNTS 26 AtTrent Bridge, this transition meant The Blaze – originally established in 2022 to represent the East Midlands – became Nottinghamshire’s women’s side, continuing proudly underThe Blaze brand as a tier one professional team. Project Darwin’s ambition was to strengthen the quality and visibility of the women’s game, deepen engagement with supporters, and ensure long-term sustainability by rooting teams within county systems. In our first year as a tier one team, we played more games at Trent Bridge than ever before, including a record four double-headers in the Vitality Blast alongside Notts Outlaws. The winter of 2024/25 again under- scored the increasingly global nature of our squad. Senior players continued to thrive on international stages: Nat Sciver-Brunt,Tammy Beaumont and Sarah Glenn all enjoyed further success with England. Kathryn and Sarah Bryce excelled in theWBBL, with Sarah later featuring in theWPL, and Nat claiming the title with Mumbai Indians; Kirstie Gordon returned to New Zealand for another impactful season with the Otago Sparks; and several players furthered their development through Australian grade cricket. These overseas experiences enriched our squad’s readiness for the challenges ahead.They also delivered an early connection between our players and incoming Head Coach, Craig Cumming, who joined us in February after five successful seasons leading the Sparks. Craig succeeded Chris Guest, who moved into a role within the EnglandWomen camp, and brought with him a strong record of player development and silverware. To support this new chapter, our coaching structure was refreshed; Jon Bateson-Clarke became our Assistant Head Coach, with Notts great Luke Fletcher joining our backroom as seam bowling coach after his glittering Trent Bridge The 2025 season marked a defining moment for The Blaze. It began in the wake of the ECB’s Project Darwin initiative, which brought the regional structure to a close and ushered in a new era: eight fully professional women’s county teams embedded within existing county clubs. J AM E S C U T T THE BLAZE REPORT “THE WINTER OF 2024/25 AGAIN UNDERSCORED THE INCREASINGLY GLOBAL NATURE OF OUR SQUAD. SENIOR PLAYERS CONTINUED TO THRIVE ON INTERNATIONAL STAGES.” James Cutt