A Richmond teenager may have to put up with some ribbing over how she spends her Saturdays in the summer - but Laura Swainston knows the score.

After all, she has been keeping count of the runs at Richmondshire Cricket Club for the past three years and is adamant she's quite happy when she's in charge of her scorebox - sometimes for as long as eight hours a day.

She has already developed what professionals describe as a "scorer's eye", allowing her to keep an eye on the action, while she keeps an accurate written record of the match and changes the numbers on the scoreboard.

Laura said she would love to play cricket herself but, as there are no girls' teams in the area, she has settled for the next best thing - for now.

She started her unusual sporting career by scoring for the junior teams, under the eye of scorekeeper Carl Doughty, but has now taken responsibility for senior games as well.

"I really enjoy it," said Laura, who attends St Francis Xavier School, in Richmond, but lives with her family in Catterick Village. "My friends all think I'm mad."