8 Aug 2025Northern Districts Cricket has named its 2025/26 contracted women’s players for the upcoming season and it’s a squad packed with power, potential, and players ready to take their game to the next level.
With the Hallyburton Johnstone Shield and Dream11 Super Smash on the horizon, ND have doubled down on a group that’s building towards something big.
“Exciting to be announcing our first round contract list for the 2025-26 season. We believe it’s packed full of young talent and we can’t wait to see them on the park this season.” - Ian Sandbrook, GM Performance & Talent
"I'm excited about our squad for the 25/26 season. A team of with a lot of talented young players, some of whom I believe have the potential to be White Ferns one day. I look at our list and I feel as though this is a group who will hopefully be together for a few years and could build something really special together." - Peter Borren, Women's Head Coach
Congratulations to Skye Bowden who has earned her first domestic contract with ND. Skye’s
season was heavily impacted by injury last year, but we know her huge talent and potential, and look forward to seeing her performing this season. We also welcome Yaz Kareem back onto the list. Yaz had a strong season, particularly in
HBJ, and has worked incredibly hard to put performances on the board and a domestic contract is great reward for that effort.
We are also pleased to be able to retain a reasonably settled list on the whole
with 11 players from last season’s contracted group. Within that are a lot of
young players that have come through our system and are now starting to flourish as domestic cricketers. We believe many of these players have the potential for higher honours and it will be a focus to continue to support their development.
The team has made significant progress as a group in the last couple of seasons
under the guidance of Head Coach, Peter Borren, and he is committed to continuing this upwards trajectory and moulding this group into a dominant force over the next few seasons.
Northern Districts Women
First Round Contracted Players 2025-26
• Nensi Patel
• Jess Watkin
• Carol Agafili
• Skye Bowden
• Tash Wakelin
• Eve Wolland
• Yaz Kareem
• Caitlin Gurrey
• Marina Lamplough
• Holly Topp
• Kayley Knight
• Marama Downes
This year’s contract list shows a clear commitment to developing continuity and backing players who’ve shown grit and promise. With a strong returning core, the Northern Districts women are well-placed to build on last season’s progress and push deeper into both competitions.
There’s experience, there’s balance, and there’s real fire in this team. With match winners across every line, 2025 promises to be an exciting year for ND cricket fans.
