The Hundred: Luff relishes Welsh Fire move to Cardiff

Western Storm captain Sophie Luff says representing the Welsh Fire franchise in Cardiff will be a "great opportunity".

Luff, 27, is one of five players confirmed for Welsh Fire women, as the Hundred tournament organisers plan for the 2021 launch.

Welsh all-rounder Alex Griffiths, 18, Georgia Hennessey, Lauren Filer, and Nat Wraith are the others named.

They will play their home fixtures in Cardiff for logistical reasons.

The Welsh Fire women's side were originally due to have their games split between Bristol, Taunton and Cardiff in 2020 ,but coronavirus precautions and ease of staging TV games have brought a re-think for the second attempt at starting the competition, allowing more televised double-headers with men's matches.

Luff was previously employed by Somerset as a coach to develop the women's and girls' game, but is now a full-time player after the England & Wales Cricket Board gave out 41 domestic contracts on top of the central England pool of players.

"It's making a huge difference, I've been lucky enough to be training full-time for the last six months and it's an opportunity for me to get better as a player. Hopefully that's my career for the next couple of years at least," Luff told BBC Sport Wales.

Despite the more established presence of the Western Storm Superleague side in Bristol and Taunton, Luff is looking forward to a change of scenery.

"We're playing all our games in Cardiff which is a great opportunity for me. It's a ground I've never actually played at, but I spent three years at university there and trained there a lot, so I'm really excited to tick another ground off," she said.

"Great memories, though it feels like a long time ago now, the MCCU programme in Cardiff supported me massively in my development and kept me going even though the women's game wasn't professional at the time.

"(Ex Cardiff MCCU head coach) Mark O'Leary was a huge part of that set-up and now he's head coach of Western Storm so that's a great partnership and hopefully it'll continue."

She admits that it is a tough decision whether to try to feed off the publicity of the men's game or promote the women's version as a stand-alone attraction.

"It's a difficult one to balance, previously in the Kia Superleague we played a few double-headers and it does get a few more fans into the ground which is what we want. Hopefully we will be able to get crowds in for the Hundred this year and it gives the (women's) sport visibility which is what we want."

Griffiths and experienced spinner Claire Nicholas provided the Welsh representation in the 2020 Fire squad, and Luff is excited to see Griffiths among the first contingent for 2021.

"Alex is a hugely talented cricketer, she's got natural ability and she'll grow and develop over the next few years," said Luff.

"She needs to keep being put into those pressure situations to understand what her role is in the side.

"The Hundred is a great competition for her because she 'sees ball, hits ball' and can certainly clear the boundary so it'll be exciting to see how she goes."

It remains to be seen whether international stars of the calibre of Australia captain Meg Lanning can be attracted again, with overseas players yet to be named in the women's tournament.

After a frustrating season reduced to a few weeks' action by the pandemic, Luff and her team-mates will be hoping for a busy 2021 split between the red shirts of Welsh Fire and the green colours of Western Storm, who will be playing 50-overs and T20 tournaments either side of the Hundred.