Lauren Winfield-Hill is in advanced talks to sign a long-term contract with Yorkshire but will consider going out on loan in 2025 in order to play 'Tier 1' cricket.
Women's domestic cricket in England and Wales is being revamped at the end of this season, moving from a regional structure to a county-based model. Yorkshire were not one of the eight teams awarded Tier 1 status and funding by the ECB and will play in the second division next year, but have been assured of promotion for 2026 .
It has left several Northern Diamonds players with a difficult decision to make between relocating to Durham (or another Tier 1 county) and staying in Leeds for another season. Hollie Armitage and Danielle Hazell, the Diamonds' captain and coach, have both signed three-year deals with Durham but Winfield-Hill is set to commit her long-term future to Yorkshire.
"My intention is to stick around and commit to Yorkshire," Winfield-Hill said. "I haven't officially signed a contract or anything, but that's what I'm looking to do. What that looks like with loans or opportunities to play Tier 1 cricket is something that we'll explore, but if that doesn't happen, it doesn't happen.
"I'm pretty loyal… I've always been really keen to finish where I started and [Yorkshire] is a place that's really close to my heart. It's where my friends and family get to come and watch me… those sorts of things are massively important to me."
Winfield-Hill seriously considered a permanent move away but when the ECB confirmed that Yorkshire would only have to spend one year outside of the top tier, she decided to stay. "It made the decision a little bit easier. If it had been two years, it might've looked slightly different, but I'm not that old - I can hang on for a year or so."
But she will investigate the possibility of a loan deal for some or all of the 2025 season, which would enable her to play in the top tier of domestic cricket. "We're just working through it all now," she said. "There's lots of things that are quite unknown with what Tier 2 and Tier 1 looks like, what the crossover is and all the rest of it.
"I don't really want a year of not playing top-flight cricket domestically in England but what that looks like, I'm unsure of now. That's the truth. We're trying to get the best of both worlds in terms of being around for Yorkshire stuff, developing that, and making sure that in 18 months or two years' time, we're ready to hit the ground running and compete in Tier 1.
"But equally, from an individual point of view, it's important that I'm still playing to the highest standard I can. Whatever that mix looks like is what we'll try and pursue."
The final season of the regional structure will resume on August 26 after the conclusion of the Hundred, with Diamonds sitting second in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy's table as the group stage nears its conclusion.
The Blaze, who sit fifth, have signed Ireland allrounder Orla Prendergast for the rest of the season after Nadine de Klerk was ruled out through injury. "Orla is a great player with a proven List A record and the ability to slot straight into our group for the run-in," their coach, Chris Guest, said.
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