The Women's One Day Cup Roses clash ended in a farcical manner at Old Trafford, when Lancashire assistant coach Clinton Perrin stepped in to umpire the final stages of their match against Yorkshire.
Lancashire assistant coach steps in after umpire suffers head injury
Umpire Amy Clark was hit on the head at the bowler's end by a drive from Mahika Gaur. The ball deflected off bowler Jess Jonassen's hand and hit Clark on the side of her head. After she was assessed by medical staff, she left the field for further treatment. At that stage in the game, Lancashire were nine down and needed another 87 to win the match.
After play had been delayed for several minutes, Lancashire assistant coach and former Queensland middle-order batter Perren stepped onto the field with the other umpire, Grace Bambury.
Under MCC Law 2.2, "An umpire shall not be changed during the match, other than in exceptional circumstances, unless he/she is injured or ill. If there has to be a change of umpire, the replacement shall act only as the striker’s end umpire unless the captains agree that the replacement should take full responsibility as an umpire."
Perren took up position at square leg, while Bambury took over from Clark at the bowler's end. After Jonassen finished her over, Bambury continued to umpire at the bowler's end for Claudie Cooper's next over, while Perren continued to fill in at square leg.
The decision to bring Perren on caused some confusion from the commentators on Lancashire's live stream, who speculated over whether the substitute was allowed.
Match 15, Lancashire Women vs Yorkshire Women
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- Ball by ball Over
The situation didn't last long, however, with Cooper snaring Gaur caught behind off the fourth ball of her over to seal the win for Yorkshire over the defending champions. Lancashire were bowled out for 158, with Yorkshire claiming their second consecutive win in the One Day Cup.
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