Kent starlets earn Stars Academy spots

Eight young guns from various stages of Kent’s Female Talent Pathway have earned places in the first cohort of South East Stars’ Academy regional programme.

The group includes players that have already made their Kent Women debuts, including: 2019 County Champions Kalea Moore and Ryana Macdonald-Gay, as well as 2020 debutants in Darcey Carter, Sydney Gorham and Megan Sturge.

Current Kent county age groups player Alexa Stonehouse is also included, whilst her teammates Jessie Gale & Jemima Spence are included in the Wider Squad of the Stars’ first intake.

Former Kent Women star Indigo Gentry, who will now play county cricket for Sussex, is also included.

As part of the new Women’s Domestic Structure in England and Wales, eight new Regional Academies have launched to underpin the eight women’s senior regional teams, including the South East Stars.

The new Regional Academy structure replaces the Regional Development Centres (RDCs), and the new Academies will see an uplift in the hours of delivery across Winter and Summer, offering year-round training and matches.

Match and training schedules for regional sides will accommodate county considerations for 2021, ensuring that counties will have as many of their players available throughout the season.

Kent Women’s Head Coach, Dave Hathrill, said: “It’s fantastic to see nine cricketers that have worked their way up through our Talent Pathway earn places at elite regional academies.

“They have not got here by default – this is a result of the effort, hard work and dedication that these players all have put in to keep on improving their game, and I’m pleased to see that they have all now made the first step into the regional programmes.”

South East Stars 2021 Academy squad in full:

• Alexa Stonehouse (Kent)
• Alice Capsey (Surrey)
• Bethan Miles (Buckinghamshire)
• Chloe Brewer (Surrey)
• Claudie Cooper (Surrey)
• Darcey Carter (Kent)
• Emma Jones (Essex)
• Indigo Gentry (Sussex)
• Kalea Moore (Kent)
• Megan Sturge (Kent)
• Ryana Macdonald-Gay (Kent)
• Sydney Gorham (Kent)

Academy Wider Squad:

• Anjali Ketan (Surrey)
• Jemima Spence (Kent)
• Jessie Gale (Kent)
• Laxmi Johal (Surrey)
• Maddie Blinkhorn-Jones (Surrey)

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