SCOTLAND SQUAD NAMED FOR ICC U19 WOMEN'S WORLD CUP EUROPE QUALIFIER
The Scotland squad to compete at this week’s ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier has been confirmed today.
Scotland will compete against the Netherlands across three games in Aberdeen, with the winner progressing to the 2025 ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in Malaysia and Thailand.
The squad contains four players who were involved in squad that played in the inaugural ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in 2023, in South Africa, with Maisie Maceira, Kirsty McColl, Niamh Muir and Nayma Sheikh all involved once again.
The group will be led by Head Coach Kari Carswell, supported by Charlotte Dalton-Howells and Nikki Little (Assistant Coaches), and Rachele Nateri (Sport Pyschologist).
Gordon Drummond, Head of Performance Pathway, said:
“We’re really excited about hosting the qualifiers in Aberdeen this week, which is fantastic for the women’s game here in Scotland, particularly with the opportunity to qualify for a World Cup that comes with it.
“I feel we’ve picked a strong squad with variety in the bowling attack and power throughout our batting line-up, and we’re looking forward to playing on some good wickets up at Aberdeenshire, where the group will be able to showcase their skills.
“This year we re-entered the team into the ECB County competitions, which has provided us with high-quality fixtures against counties in England in a competitive setting, which has provided excellent preparation for this event.
“This week, we’ve also seen a number of the squad involved in the Women’s Super Series, and performing really well, so we feel that the squad are in a really good place.
“It’s been great to have Kari Carswell back involved, and she’ll be leading an all-female coaching staff, alongside Charlotte Dalton-Howells and Nikki Little. We’ve been working with Glasgow Caledonian University’s sport psychologist team throughout the summer, and it’s fantastic that we’ll have Rachele Nateri supporting the team in that role throughout the competition.”
Kari Carswell, Scotland Women Under 19’s Head Coach, said:
“The chance to qualify for a global event is a really exciting opportunity, something that some of the players have already experienced, and it’s amazing that all the girls have that in front of them next week.
“We’ve got to front-up now and win two of the three games against the Netherlands, but overall it’s a really exciting opportunity for the players and for women and girls’ cricket across the whole of Scotland.
“I’ve really enjoyed working with the group across the summer so far, we’ve managed to play a good volume of cricket, we were away last week in England and played seven games, so the whole squad has been able to get time out on the pitch, and we’ve been able to play some really good cricket on occasions, so hopefully we can carry that on.
“It’s always good to have players in the group who have been through tournaments like this before. Those players will have knowledge of being in ‘tournament mode’ to pass on to the others, but I think the whole group have really grown as the season has gone on, developing an understanding on how we want to play T20 cricket, and I think that’s really important leading into the qualifier.”
Scotland Women U19 Squad:
| Niamh Muir (c) | Watsonian/Dumfries |
| Ammy Baldie | Surrey |
| Molly Barbour-Smith | Sunrisers |
| Gabriella Fontenla | Carlton |
| Lucy Forrester Smith | Stewart’s Melville |
| Pippa Kelly | Stewart’s Melville |
| Maisie Maceira | Carlton |
| Kirsty McColl | Watsonian/Dumfries |
| Mollie Parker | Northern Counties |
| Nayma Sheikh | East Kilbride |
| Rosie Speedy | Stewart’s Melville |
| Pippa Sproul | Southern Vipers |
| Jenna Stanton | West of Scotland |
| Emma Walsingham | Stewart’s Melville |
ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier Schedule:
| Thursday 1 August | Scotland U19 vs Netherlands U19 | Mannofield (14:30) |
| Friday 2 August | Scotland U19 vs Netherlands U19 | Mannofield (14:30) |
| Sunday 4 August | Scotland U19 vs Netherlands U19 | Mannofield (14:30) |