East Preston Junior School

Girls Shine at Indoor Cricket Tournament!

On Thursday 29th January, eight talented girls from our school set off—by train—for an afternoon of Indoor Cricket from 12–4pm. From the very start of the journey, the team were brilliantly behaved, representing our school with maturity, teamwork and positivity.

🏏 Warming Up & Learning the Format

When we arrived at the venue, the girls took part in a lively warm‑up before being introduced to the Dynamos Indoor Cricket format, run by the Sussex Cricket initiative “Chance to Shine.”
This format uses fast-paced, rotation‑based cricket designed to boost confidence, increase participation and sharpen technical skills.

For some of our players, this style of cricket was completely new, but they approached it with open minds and great enthusiasm!

🏏 Match 1: Finding Our Feet

In our first game, a few nerves were visible. The hall felt big, the rules were unfamiliar and the pace of the match took us by surprise.
However… the batting was excellent right from the start!

We saw:

• Confident strikes using correct grip and stance
• Quick reactions when running between the wickets
• Positive communication between batting pairs

Even though we were settling in, the team showed real potential.

🏏 Growing Stronger Every Game

As the tournament progressed, something brilliant happened…

The team became more alert, more tactically aware and far more confident. Their:

• Fielding accuracy improved – fast retrievals, clean pick-ups and well‑aimed throws
• Bowling technique developed – smoother run‑ups and consistent releases
• Batting choices became smarter – choosing the right shots for indoor play
• Team encouragement grew louder and prouder after every single match

Their improvement was remarkable and clear for everyone watching.

🏏 A Fantastic Afternoon of Development

This tournament wasn’t just about scores—it was about:

• Learning a brand‑new cricket format
• Developing resilience and adaptability
• Working as a united team
• Showing sporting values throughout

Our girls demonstrated all of this and more. The coaches from Chance to Shine were impressed by their enthusiasm, teamwork and rapid progression in such a short amount of time.

🏆 We Are Hugely Proud

By the end of the day, the team were buzzing with pride—and so were we!
They represented our school brilliantly from the train journey to the final whistle, and they showcased determination, courage and fantastic sporting attitudes.

Well done to all eight girls—you were amazing!