The History of Western Storm
Initially, Western Storm was one of six elite women’s domestic teams that played in the ECB Kia Super League. The Kia Super League was established in 2016 to create an exciting, fast-paced women’s competition that aimed to bridge the gap between County and International Cricket. Based in the South West, Western Storm was created in 2016 when Somerset County Cricket Club, Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and the University of Exeter joined forces to form a unique consortium that was successfully awarded hosting rights from 2016-2019.
Led by England Women’s Captain Heather Knight, Western Storm contained a host of international stars such as Anya Shrubsole (England), Stafanie Taylor (West Indies), Smriti Mandhana (India) and Rachel Priest (New Zealand), bringing together the world’s best female cricketers with the best local domestic talent within the UK.
On the pitch, Western Storm enjoyed great success in the Kia Super League, finishing runners up in the 2016 Kia Super League Final and going one better in 2017 to beat the Southern Vipers and become Kia Super League Champions. In 2018 Western Storm became the only KSL team to qualify for all three Finals Days, before narrowly losing out to Surrey Stars.
2019 was the final year of the Kia Super League and everyone involved wished to finish this important chapter in Women’s cricket history with a bang! Western Storm were once again a dominant force, flying through to Finals day for the fourth consecutive year at Hove. Western Storm won the final Kia Super League after a brilliant 78 not out by captain Heather Knight, which helped seal a six-wicket win over Southern Vipers at Hove.
With the Kia Super League coming to an end, the successes from the last four years were marked at a special Women & Girls Celebration Event at the Cooper Associates County Ground.
With Women’s cricket moving into its next chapter in 2020, Somerset County Cricket Club, Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and Glamorgan County Cricket Club joined forces and formally setup Western Storm Ltd.
Western Storm now sits within the new eight regional structure model which will provide world class training, coaching and match play opportunities to develop the most talented female players for sustained international success and drive the performance of England women’s cricket.
Servicing the South West and Wales, the legacy of Western Storm and all that was achieved under the Kia Super League will live on as we, with the support of our region, continue to take Women and Girls Cricket to the next level.
