The Northern Diamonds are delighted to announce that Australian all-rounder Erin Burns will be returning to the region for the remainder of this summer’s Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.
Burns initially signed an overseas deal at Headingley up until the start of the Hundred in July, with the expectation that other commitments would rule her out of the final month of the campaign.
But she will now return to Diamonds colours and be available for Sunday’s clash with Lancashire Thunder at Southport and beyond.
All being well, she will return to Australia following the RHFT final on September 21. At present, the Diamonds are second in the eight-team table, with the top four advancing to the semi-finals.
Burns, aged 36, is currently in the West Indies having just finished Caribbean Premier League duty with the Guyana Amazon Warriors team, for whom Lauren Winfield-Hill also played.
Burns is the leading run-scorer in that tournament with 172 from four innings, including scores of 15, 78 not out, 61 and 18.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Erin Burns shares a joke with her Diamonds team-mates as Sterre Kalis (l) looks on.
Unfortunately, the Warriors haven’t qualified for the final.
Burns and Winfield-Hill will make the journey from Trinidad to Southport on Saturday: “Aye, it’s a canny journey that one, isn’t it!” smiled Diamonds coach Dani Hazell.
“It was one of our big ones to make sure that Burnsy came back and had a big impact on the back end of this competition.
“Erin’s been brilliant for us this summer, and not just on the field. Off the field, it’s been fantastic to have an experienced head around some of our younger players.
“It’s been really good to have her, and we’re looking forward to having her for the Thunder game.
“It shows that we have an environment in which people want to come back into and play. That’s something we pride ourselves on. We were very keen to get somebody in for the last few weeks of the season, and Erin was top of our list.”
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Lauren Winfield-Hill will fly from Trinidad back to the UK on Saturday on the same flight as Erin Burns, and both will be available for Sunday’s clash with Thunder at Southport.
Former Australian international Burns has scored 241 from 10 matches for the Diamonds in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, putting them on course for the semi-finals.
They currently sit second after 11 of 14 matches.
She has also taken 13 wickets with her off-spinners.
In the mid-season Charlotte Edwards T20 Cup competition, she took 16 wickets from nine matches added to 82 runs. She was the joint second leading wicket-taker across the whole competition, including a career best 5-25.
Diamonds assistant coach Kyle Coetzer added: “Erin’s been a great addition to our group.
“She’s bowled excellently and picked up really important wickets and also played some excellent knocks at just the right time, particularly the one against Sunrisers at York (35 not out in a successful chase of 110 last month).
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Coach Dani Hazell is delighted to see Hollie Armitage and Bess Heath gain England recognition.
“She’s a very skilful cricketer, and she’s a vital cog in our group. It’s been an absolute pleasure to have her this year, and we can’t wait to see her again.
“She’s certainly got a few trophies in her locker, so one more would be nice!”
The return of Burns and Winfield-Hill to the squad has come at just the right time for the Diamonds given the impending unavailability of captain Hollie Armitage and Bess Heath.
Armitage and Heath have both been named in England’s squad for their forthcoming white ball tour of Ireland between September 7-15.
It means Armitage will play against Thunder at Southport on Sunday before being unavailable for the final two RHFT group games on September 4 and 7 against Southern Vipers at Headingley and South East Stars at Durham.
She would also be unavailable for the semi-final on September 14 should the Diamonds qualify.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Hollie Armitage is heading to Ireland with England.
Should the Diamonds qualify for the final on September 21, Armitage would be available to lead the region.
Winfield-Hill will deputise as captain in Armitage’s absence.
Heath, meanwhile, missed yesterday’s defeat against Sunrisers at Chelmsford at the request of the ECB, with the England management keen for her to rest.
And she will be unavailable for the remainder of the regional campaign having been called up for England’s T20 World Cup squad, a tournament beginning in early October in the UAE. Armitage has not been selected for that event.
“It just gives someone else an opportunity, like Maddie Ward on Monday,” said Hazell.
“This is what we do this for. We want people to go on and represent their country. That’s our job to produce cricketers who play for England, and that’s what I mark myself on. That’s why we have a squad.
Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com. Bess Heath has been selected for England’s T20 World Cup squad.
“There’s obviously a lot of movement with squads and availability, but it’s the same for every side.
“We’ve put ourselves in a decent position. We’ve now got to make sure we nail the back end of it.
“It’s going to show which teams have the depth in their squads.
“It’s all about making sure everyone not in your first team gets plenty of cricket because they may be needed at any time. It will make the back end of the season all the more interesting. It’s exciting.”
