Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com – 26/08/2026 – Cricket – Metro Bank One Day Cup Women – Yorkshire Women v Surrey Women – Ampleforth College, Ampleforth, England – Yorkshire’s Jess Woolston bowls.
Jess Woolston believes Yorkshire can look back on this summer with real positivity as they bid to progress over the winter and into 2027.
The White Rose new-ball seamer has been reflecting on the county’s first season as a Tier 1 side as they prepare for the final four games of the campaign in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup.
The summer has been a rollercoaster ride for Yorkshire, although they were not expecting anything different. Highs of beating Lancashire twice and high-flyers The Blaze have been coupled with some frustrating defeats and near misses such as failing to get one off the last ball against Durham in a 50-over game at Scarborough, a game which ended tied.
Many players have progressed their games – Woolston very much in that category – and there’s no doubt Yorkshire will be better for the experience whichever way the last four games go.
The first of those is against Somerset at Headingley tomorrow, starting at 10.30am.
“We had a couple of games against Tier 1 counties last season when we were Tier 2, and we knew we could beat them,” said Woolston.
“The challenge is doing it consistently with a busier schedule, more fixtures. But we know we can play at this level.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. It’s a busy couple of months coming up for Rich Pyrah, who heads to Melbourne next month to take charge of the Stars in the WBBL.
“We’re still working out roles and where people fit into the team, and it’s just piecing it all together.
“But we’re definitely looking forward with a lot of positivity.
“I think we’ve played some tough cricket, and we’ve fought really hard. The next challenge for us is, can we absorb that pressure for longer and get the game done?
“Hopefully, we can do over the next few games and into next season.”
Woolston’s own game is progressing nicely.
Having missed the start of last summer with a stress fracture of her foot – she didn’t play until late May – the 23-year-old has since taken 25 wickets across both 50-over and T20 cricket with a best of 5-45.
Woolston impressed with 2-30 from nine overs in last Wednesday’s One-Day Cup defeat against Surrey at Ampleforth College.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Sarah Glenn, coming towards the end of her first season at Yorkshire.
Seemingly, not only has a winter of club cricket in Australia helped her – she played for North Geelong women ahead of this summer – so too a recent month-long block of training whilst The Hundred was being played.
She said: “Australia was a massive experience for me, and it probably came at a really good time.
“Obviously off the back of the injury, when everyone was a little bit tired near the back-end, I felt like I was just starting to get going.
“I feel like I came back home with a lot of confidence with the ball, although I didn’t get as much opportunity with the bat as I’d have liked.
“Still, a few more games under my belt, a bit more experience. It was really good.
“I’m going back out there this winter to play for Carlton in Melbourne, which is the next league up – in the Premiership.”
Woolston continued: “The training block which we’ve just had during The Hundred has been very good for me.
Picture by Harry Trump/Getty Images. Somerset captain Sophie Luff.
“Usually it’s games, games, games, but we used that time to think, ‘Right, what are those little one-percenters that we can work on?’
“My action’s slightly changed from a couple of years ago, and it’s been about grooving that.
“I used to be a lot more swinging the ball in, predominantly. But I’ve been working on being a lot taller, a bit stronger with my action, just getting behind the ball and using my height to my advantage.
“It’s just building that intensity into the crease, all those little things and just piecing it together and trying to get the ball to go both ways.
“It’s about trying to be a multi-format player as well.
“I used to probably just be a 50-over player. But I’ve had a couple of friendlies, and at the back end of the T20s it was nice to see that I can play in both formats and contribute.
“I want to be able to help win games in all formats for Yorkshire. That’s my goal.”
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Yorkshire captain Lauren Winfield-Hill.
Yorkshire are still mathematically in the race for a top-three finish and knockout cricket, despite sitting second from bottom in the table.
Somerset are the team they are trying to catch. They sit on 27 points with four to play, while Yorkshire have 16. In that respect, this is a must-win game for the White Rose, who will have to be flawless from here on in.
Captained by batter Sophie Luff, Somerset have won six and lost six to Yorkshire’s three wins, eight defeats and a tie.
Somerset arrive at Headingley on the back of a two-run semi-final defeat to Surrey in Saturday’s Vitality County T20 Cup Finals Day at Emirates Old Trafford. The Blaze went on and won that competition and remain on course to win the domestic treble.
