Surrey suffer first defeat as Bears beat Durham
Villiers' career-best knock in vain as Bears ease home
Durham suffered a fourth defeat in five outings despite a T20 career-best 85 not out from England all-rounder Mady Villiers.After winning the toss and choosing to bat the home side were soon in trouble when they lost former New Zealand skipper Suzie Bates to the third ball of the innings - clean bowled by England's Issy Wong without scoring.Leah Dobson (8) quickly became Wong's second scalp but Villiers, who was dropped early in her innings, crashed 11 fours and one six while finding useful support from skipper Hollie Armitage (15) and Bess Heath (27) to keep the scoreboard ticking over and set a challenging total.Wong's return of 2-19 was well backed up by Hannah Baker's 2-22 from her four overs with the Bears bowling attack standing-up well to Villiers' onslaught.The visitors made light work of their victory target with openers Meg Austin and Davina Perrin sharing a stand of 62 from the opening six overs to set a platform for them to ease home with 10 balls to spare.Perrin eventually perished for 49 from 31 deliveries only for wicketkeeper Nat Wraith to take the Bears to the brink of victory with her 56 containing seven fours before she became Villiers' sole victim with the ball."I don't think we should go away from how well Mady (Villiers) played first half - it was a great innings and if you're doing things like that, you shouldn't be losing games of cricket," said Durham head coach Dani Hazell.The Bears remain in third place while Durham are second from bottom.
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Daily Mail
7 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
How no-nonsense Lucy Bronze, who played the entire Euros with a fractured tibia, left fans swooning over THAT leg-taping clip
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'She kills me,' one penned, while another agreed, writing: 'Casually strapping up her own hamstring like it's whatever.' A third wrote: 'It's the first time I've seen a bandage look cool.' Elsewhere, one commented: 'Strapped herself up, then took a must score penalty and smashed it home. Bada** moment.' On social media, people also shared clips, joking about being mesmerised by the viral moment. 'Girls are like "I needed this" and it's literally just watching clips of Lucy Bronze strapping her own leg on repeat,' @beccasianh shared. In another, couple account @mim_elss posted a clip saying: 'When I go to see my girlfriend but she's watching edits of Lucy Bronze "self taping".' In another, @baronessbt quipped that her girlfriend 'hasn't been the same since Lucy Bronze self-strap'. As if this wasn't impressive enough, on Sunday Lucy revealed she had been smiling through pain for the entirety of the Euros -with an injury she had kept secret until after the final. She was taken off at half-time in extra time during Sunday's final, but when asked about the new knee injury she picked up during the game, the athlete casually disclosed that she had already been playing through far worse. 'I have actually played the whole tournament with a fractured tibia,' she told BBC Sport. 'And then I have hurt my knee on my other leg. 'That's why I got a lot of praise from the girls after the Sweden game, as I've been in a lot of pain. If that's what it takes to play for England, that's what I'll do. Very painful.' As England defeated Spain 3-1 nail-biting penalties on Sunday, fans couldn't believe the shocking post match interview in which right-back star Lucy Bronze (pictured) revealed that she had been playing the whole tournament with a fractured tibia The pro is known to have an impressive set of skills, speaking English, Portuguese, Spanish and French. Speaking to She's a Baller , goalkeeper Hannah Hampton was reflecting at the viral moment Lucy was 'doing her own physio' at the England versus Sweden game It sparked an outpouring of disbelief and admiration across social media, with supporters calling the player a 'beast'. 'She really said pain is temporary but trophies are forever,' one wrote. 'Built different doesn't even cover it at this point.' It's not just Lucy's tough-as-steel athletics that has people obsessed, however. She has also wowed her fellow teammates and fans alike with her languages knowledge. The pro is known to have an impressive set of skills, speaking English, Portuguese, Spanish and French. Speaking to She's a Baller, goalkeeper Hannah Hampton was reflecting at the viral moment Lucy was 'doing her own physio' at the England versus Sweden game. 'But the ref was Spanish,' she revealed. 'And the ref was asking her, "so what are you a physio now?". 'And Bronzie's there replying in Spanish "yeah I do everything"'. And elsewhere, her close bond with Sunday's match rival - but dear close friend Ona Batlle - had people swooning. 'Girls are like "I needed this" and it's literally just watching clips of Lucy Bronze strapping her own leg on repeat,' @beccasianh shared Footballers have long been known to be the heartthrobs of the sports scene - with famous celebrity crushes including Beckham, Messi and Ronaldo - but now a new, fierce contender has emerged following the Lionesses' historic feat at the Euros last night In one emotional moment Lucy consoled her close friend Ona Batlle, 26, after England came from behind to beat Spain and retain their Women's Euros crown. Lucy started every game of the tournament but was forced off in extra-time before the Lionesses went on to win 3-1 in a nerve-shredding penalty shootout. At 33 years, eight months and 30 days, Lucy was her side's oldest player at the tournament and she was again front and centre of a record-setting triumph. Chloe Kelly proved herself the hero for her country again by slotting home the winning spot-kick after Mariona Caldentey and Aitana Bonmati saw their efforts saved by goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, while Salma Paralluelo skewed off target. Jubilant celebrations saw Chloe's team-mates flood onto the pitch to begin the party, but Bronze took a moment to escape the hubbub and made a beeline for Ona. Inseparable on and off the pitch, the two friends high-fived before sitting down on the pitch, seemingly discussing the pulsating showdown that had played out in Basel. Once the madness had died down, Lucy, kitted out with her gold winner's medal around her neck, took a stroll with Ona, who had changed into her tracksuit. The roles were reversed back in 2023 after Spain got the better of England in the World Cup final, when Ona consoled a tearful Lucy after full-time. Jubilant celebrations saw Chloe's team-mates flood onto the pitch to begin the party, but Bronze took a moment to escape the hubbub and made a beeline for Ona The duo were all-conquering team-mates in the 2023-24 season when they were at Barcelona, and they struck up a blossoming friendship, too. They also won the Champions League, Liga F, the Spanish Cup and Spanish Super Cup together. Lucy then completed a move back to England with Chelsea last summer. Lucy and Ona enjoyed a holiday together ahead of Euro 2025 in Switzerland, sharing photos of the trip across their social media profiles. It appeared the duo were celebrating Ona's birthday, with the Spaniard's caption on Instagram reading: 'Bday week.' One photo shared online showed them enjoying an ice cream in the sun, while another saw them relaxing on a lilo together in the sea. Lucy and Ona also took a boat trip on their vacation and spent time together in a private pool. Their holiday this summer was by no means their first. 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The Independent
7 minutes ago
- The Independent
Spanish newspapers react to Lionesses' Euro 2025 triumph as press hits out at ‘cocky' Chloe Kelly
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The Independent
7 minutes ago
- The Independent
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