"We've certainly got our goals" - Clare Boycott previews an exciting season ahead

With the advent of Project Darwin, and the subsequent introduction of a three-tiered county cricket ecosystem, the Rapids were thrown head first into a brand-new world consisting of livestreamed matchdays, increased media coverage, real-time data analysis and swiftly increasing expectations, all whilst having to juggle the many responsibilities of their day-to-day jobs outside of the game itself.

Facing off against the likes of Yorkshire, Middlesex, Sussex, Kent and Glamorgan in the second tier, the West Midlands outfit ultimately finished in 6th place in the Metro Bank One Day Cup and 4th in the North Group of the T20 Blast, with a premature 1st Round exit in the inaugural T20 County Cup coming at the hands of Northamptonshire at Wantage Road in early May.

It was a campaign, that with the power of introspection, fluctuated between various highs and lows from game to game and format to format, and it’s upon this backdrop that today’s conversation takes place.

At the helm of HMS Worcestershire, navigating the waves of this fascinating new era for the county game, stands their ever-reliable captain Clare Boycott, a classy opening batter who’s been calling the club home ever since she was 9 years old.

Over the years, the former Loughborough graduate, who plays her club cricket for Astwood Bank, has racked up over 200 appearances for the Rapids, establishing herself as one of the most consistent operators on the circuit in the process, but even by her own admission, the jump from the previous iteration of county cricket to the new look second tier took quite a bit of time to properly adjust to.

“It was a pretty big step up,” Boycott recalls. 

“The standard [of the previous competitions] wasn’t quite to the level that we’ve seen in Tier Two because the county teams, including our own, would be missing a number of players who were away with the Central Sparks and the other regional setups.

“The increased media spotlight and attention was definitely new to us as well. Everything was being streamed, everyone could watch how you bat, and bowl, and teams could see how you play in advance. In the past you’d just turn up to a match, play your game, and that would be that, but now there’s full analysis of everything so sides can set fields to cut off your strongest scoring areas, and it can get pretty intense out there at times.

“It’s a good thing overall though because it’s a sign of the increasing professionalisation of the game and it also gives you a better insight into where your areas of strength and weakness lie, so yeah, it’s definitely a positive for the future.”

At this point in the piece, it seems rather apt to mention just how quickly the wider Women’s game continues to evolve in both England and Wales.

In 2014, history was made when the first 18 professional contracts were awarded to regular members of the national team following an increase in funding from the ECB; flash forward to 2026, and the number of international and domestic contracts now stands closer to 170, with 9 fully professional clubs operating in the top tier of English cricket.

In 2027, with the elevation of Glamorgan into Tier One, that total will be fast approaching the 190 mark.

Even at the semi-professional level, players in the second tier, having plied their trade almost exclusively at outgrounds up until this point, have finally been given the chance to play at the main county grounds on a consistent basis for the first time in their careers, thus marking an important and welcome shift in the direction that the game’s heading.

It’s a development that isn’t lost on the Worcestershire captain, who made her senior debut for the Pears in a County Championship Division Four game against Essex at Pershore Cricket Club in 2008.

“It’s really exciting,” Boycott states.

“Playing at Headingley for example was great. My Mum couldn’t make it up to Yorkshire unfortunately, but she was watching along on the livestream and didn’t get out of her seat until I got out…or at least I hope she didn’t anyway!

“We got quite a good crowd in for the [T20 Blast] double header against Leicestershire at New Road as well. It was a pretty quick game in the end because we bowled them out for about 50/55 runs, but the crowd got properly involved and it was great to have that full Blast experience with the music and the overall atmosphere. It was really nice.”

Aside from those incredibly special memories at iconic grounds like Headingley and New Road, the Summer of 2025 also provided Clare with one of her proudest individual moments in a Worcestershire shirt to date, a moment that just so happened to arrive during a One Day Cup game against Derbyshire at Wolverhampton CC on 17th August.

“I finally got my first hundred after 20 odd seasons so that was good,” Boycott chuckles.

“I had hit a couple of 90+ scores in the past but even growing up through the age groups at the club, I never reached a century, so that was a big relief to finally get that off my back.

“A few people had also written me off before the season started, saying that they heard I was going to be playing in Tier Three that Summer, so, if anything, that really spurred me on to get those big scores in the end.”

Judging by the numbers at least, that extra sense of motivation clearly had the desired impact.

By the end of the Metro Bank One Day Cup campaign, Boycott had clocked up an outstanding batting average of 56.57, with a trio of half centuries against Leicestershire, Gloucestershire and Glamorgan respectively accompanying that career-best score of 112 against the Falcons of Derbyshire.

Those recent successes haven’t allowed the Redditch-native to rest on her laurels though; not by a long shot in fact.

As many a county cricketer will attest to over the years, the sword of Damocles hangs high above the heads of those who dismiss the importance of preparation, and the wheels are very much in motion for the Rapids ahead of another competitive campaign come the start of April.

“It’s been a busy Winter for us all actually,” Boycott says.

“We’ve been training at Malvern College every Saturday since November, with alternate Tuesday evenings thrown in there as well, and we’ve got a new Strength and Conditioning coach in Ashleigh Legge who’s been helping us massively with our fitness.

“It’s been intense, especially with those Tuesdays after work, but everyone’s bought into the gym sessions, and it puts us in really good stead as a group heading into the new season. We’re definitely ready to showcase the best of ourselves this year.”

Away from the world of yo-yo tests, dumbbells, exercise bikes and resistance bands, it’s also been a busy off season for the Rapids in the personnel department.

The Midlands side have already confirmed the additions of Netherlands international Sanya Khurana, Shropshire all-rounder Amy Griffiths and Oxfordshire wicketkeeper Maisie Wright to the existing ranks, alongside promising youngsters Madison Windeatt and Daisy Egerton, both of whom have been promoted from the academy ranks to the senior team prior to start of the 2026 campaign.

In addition to the newcomers, the Rapids will also be bolstered by the return of a number of key players from previous seasons such as Flora Bertwistle, Gwen Davies, Jess Beach, Bryony Gillgrass, Emily Churms and Caitlin Baker-Smith to name but a few.

Given the eclectic blend of youth, experience and ability present in the squad then, it should come as no real surprise that the Worcestershire captain heads into the upcoming campaign with a palpable sense of optimism and ambition.

“We’ve certainly got our goals,” Boycott affirms.

“Ideally, we want to make the semi-finals in both formats, and I feel like what we’ve been working on in the Winter is going to help us become more consistent compared to last season.

“It felt like we lost too many wickets in clusters at key times, especially in the T20’s, so that’s an area that we’re looking to improve on, and looking at the squad, we’ve definitely got the talent to achieve those higher scores and higher places in the table this year.

“Ultimately, we always want to win for the fans, and the club means a lot to the girls, so whether it’s in the Blast or the One Day Cup, whether it’s at New Road, or at one of the outgrounds, we’re going to need that support again this season. It would be great to see even more people watching us.”

And with that stirring message to the Worcestershire faithful, our conversation with Clare comes to a rather fitting end.

For the time being, it’s back to pre-season training at Malvern College and day-to-day work responsibilities for the top order batter before a jam-packed Summer of cricket kicks into gear with an enticing season opener against Sussex at The 1st Central County Ground on Sunday 19th April followed by a T20 County Cup First Round encounter against Northumberland at Himley CC the following weekend.

Whether the cricketing gods, in their many strange and mysterious ways, shine favourably on the Rapids in the silverware department this year remains to be seen of course, but here’s hoping, for both Boycott and the rest of the squad, that the 2026 season turns out to be yet another memorable one both on and off the field.