FIRST INNINGS –ALANA WATTS

Warkworth chiropractor Alana Watts has been playing cricket her whole life – but her most significant chapter is only just beginning.

It started, as so many things do, in a front yard. Alana was bowling to her brother when one of his friends turned up, watched for a moment, and said: "Oh, you can actually bowl – you should play." She joined the Mahurangi College girls' first eleven, and cricket has been part of her life ever since.

Through college, Alana played alongside teammates who would go on to compete for the Kaipara Flats Women's team in the early 1990s – a side that sharpened their skills and saw several players, Alana among them, selected for Northland age-group teams. When she moved to Auckland to study at the New Zealand College of Chiropractic, she kept playing, representing various Auckland clubs and eventually earning an invitation to trial for the Auckland Hearts.

The trial date clashed with her Chiropractic Board exams. She chose her career. It's a decision she doesn't regret, but cricket never fully let her go.

Back in Warkworth and running her own practice, Advanced Wellness Chiropractic, Alana continued playing – travelling to Auckland for club cricket and turning out locally for the Kaipara Flats men's team, a side she speaks of warmly for their welcome and support. She also represented Northern Districts in indoor cricket, drawn to the pace and energy of that version of the game.

Then came news of something entirely new: the inaugural New Zealand Women's Over 40 Cricket team, selected following a tournament in Queenstown earlier this year, with an international in Christchurch scheduled for February 2027 against Australia, South Africa, India, and the USA. Alana was named Understanding Dementia in the squad – an opportunity that has come at a time in her life when, with the help of fundraising, she can make it happen.

"Being part of the first ever team is something really special that can never be taken away," she says. The achievement carries particular weight given that women's masters cricket internationally is well established and competitive – Alana expects tough opposition at February's international, and she's ready for it. She hopes too that this is the beginning of something bigger for women's masters cricket in New Zealand, following the path the men's game has already carved across multiple age groups.

At this stage of her career, she isn't certain how many seasons lie ahead. But she is deeply appreciative of those working behind the scenes who have been the driving force behind the Women's Masters Cricket initiative in New Zealand. Representing the country for the first time, in an inaugural team, at this point in her life — that, she says, is something she'll always treasure.

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