In all the years I have been involved in the willow on leather game, I never ever imagined myself writing about cricket being a family sport, and yet after a quick look round the area of Grampian, I find pockets of such involvement.
When Rachel Heyhoe Flint came along in the 1960’s, I thought okay women’s cricket just a flash in the pan; it will not catch on in the likes of distant Huntly. How wrong I was.
Here in 2026, we find a young lady from the aforesaid town on the A96 making her way in the newly fashioned ”Hundred” and would you believe being paid handsomely to do it. But then Ailsa Lister is not just any lady, and has steadfastly been making her mark, first with in her native Huntly, and then at Stoneywood-Dyce where as a wicketkeeper batsman she caught the eye of the Scottish selectors.
The rest is history, as they say; for now she is an established member of the Scotland team, although she has yet to lay first claim to the gloves, and this season, she featured prominently with the bat in the World Cup in England. The latest feather in her cap has been to sign up for Trent Rockets, giving her a higher profile than she could ever have imagined in her days at Castle Park.
Ailsa(22) first became known to me when she played at the People’s Park where she was a regular in the Stoneywood-Dyce team, then in the Eastern Premier League, regularly challenging Andy McLaren for a place behind the stumps.
Interviews with her were serious but fun. Her desire to get into the professional ranks were evident early on, but as we joked every time she was simply ”living the dream.” Ability and sheer enthusiasm have made her my ”poster girl” and on her back, I shall build a case for the women’s game, starting next week with a chat with Mark Lambley who in addition to being the President of Stoneywood-Dyce is one of the promoters of Grampian Thistles a woman’s team who play in the Women’s Premier League, more of which to be read next week.