WOMEN’S PREMIER LEAGUE AWARDS ANNOUNCED (2.9.2025)

The SportsHub Women’s Premier League concluded last Thursday in dramatic fashion with Merrion CC winning the 2025 title by the narrowest of margins (1 point) from Pembroke CC.

So now we turn our focus to the individual awards…..

The Crawford Cup for the top batter in the Women’s Premier League has been won by Shauna Kavanagh, the captain of Pembroke who finished the season with an average of exactly 60 per innings ahead of her team-mate Clear Shillington who averaged 47.50 across her 14 appearances for the club. Lara Maritz is worthy of mention here too as she finished with a run aggregate of 478 which underpinned much of her team success at Balbriggan.

This trophy was donated by Clarissa Crawford (subsequently Pilkington), who was an outstanding cricketer for Dublin University in the first dawn of women’s cricket and continued a strong participation as player and administrator when it was revived. She was subsequently honoured as the first women to be admitted to the LCU Hall of Fame. This trophy was first presented back in 1955.

Shauna Kavanagh has won the top batting cup for 2025

Shauna Kavanagh has also scooped the Dawson Cup at the leading wicket-keeper in the top division finishing with 13 dismissals as keeper (9 caught, 4 stumped).

This trophy was presented by Sandra Dawson back in 1980. Sandra kept wicket for YMCA and Ireland on many occasions in the 1990s and in fact won it herself on two occasions. Helen Hearnden (McDonnell) won this trophy in seven of the first nine years of its existence.

The wicket-keeping cup has also been won by Shauna Kavanagh

The Harrison Cup for the top bowler at Premier level has been won by Aoife Brennan from Merrion with an average of just 11.27 for each of her 15 wickets for the League, Cup and All-Ireland T20 Champions. The table below for the leading bowlers includes a good mix of club representatives and a healthy mix of youth and experience.

This trophy also dates from the 1950s and Clarissa Crawford was in fact the first winner. Also notable was the achievement of Marie Coffey of Clontarf who won the trophy in 1955 and following the revival of women’s cricket took it again in 1976 and ’77. Pride of place must however go to Susan Bray (O’Neill) of Clontarf who won this cup no fewer than ten times between 1985 and 1998.

Aoife Brennan has won the top bowler award

And finally, the Howard Cup which is awarded to the leading all-rounder in the Premier League has been won by Lara Maritz from Balbriggan whose combined performances with both bat (478 runs) and ball (19 wickets) make her the stand-out winner with over 200 points more than any other player in the province.

This trophy was presented by and commemorates Isolde Howard, a distinguished player and organiser in the early days of women’s cricket right back to the 1930s and who remained active when it was restarted in the 1970s. Isolde played for Dartry CC, one of the clubs that unfortunately did not survive to the second coming but became a distinguished member of Leinster CC.

Lara Maritz – top all rounder in the Premier League

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

All league awards (both team and individual) will be presented at the CL Awards Night & Gala Dinner on Friday 30^th January in the Round Room at the Mansion House. Tickets and tables can be booked by following this link:

https://buytickets.at/cricketleinster/1788398