Coach Paul Grayson is refusing to give up hope that his Yorkshire Diamonds side can reach the Kia Super League’s Finals Day at Hove later this month - but he knows they can’t afford any more slip ups.

The Diamonds have won just one of their six games so far - against fellow strugglers Southern Vipers at York last Thursday.

They have four to play, starting with the return clash against the Vipers at the Ageas Bowl tomorrow.

Grayson said: “We have to win our next four games to have a chance of going through.

“I don't want to put a spin on it, but I still believe we can do that.”

Grayson’s side were beaten by champions and group leaders Western Storm at Scarborough on Sunday as they failed to defend a target of 173.

The obvious area for improvement is their bowling.

They conceded 18 wides against Heather Knight’s side added to the 19 they leaked in their first meeting with the Vipers, although it didn’t cost them on that occasion.

“That’s a massive issue,” continued Grayson.

“We’re trying to bowl tight lines at the stumps, and occasionally in one-day cricket you are going to get the odd wide. We know that. But there’s been too many.

“We’ve bowled six extra overs in the last two games. That’s just a lack of discipline.”

Looking ahead to their televised clash with the Vipers (2.30pm), who this season have been a shadow of the team that won the KSL in 2016 and were finalists last year, Grayson spoke about positives in their batting.

At York, they posted 175-5 before adding 172-5 at Scarborough.

“I thought we played positively with the bat against the Storm,” he said.

“We had another good power play. I think we should have got a few more, but we lost our way with a bit of reckless hitting.

“After the first couple or three matches, I must admit I was slightly concerned about where we were going as a group.

“But I’ve seen enough across the games at York and the other day to be upbeat.

“If we get the small margins and the bits of detail better in the field, I think we’ll have a chance.

“We know we have to play some very good cricket over the next 10 days to have a chance of qualifying.

“It’s frustrating because we’ve played some decent cricket, but we’ve come up short.

“I think we’ve improved from last year. There’s certain individuals who have improved. It’s just about putting that complete game together.

“You have to bat, bowl and field well, especially against the good sides like Storm. You have to find ways of stopping them scoring.

“There’s a good spirit in the camp, the girls work really hard for each other.

“We need to win all four. It’s very much down to us. Free up, give it a go and see where it takes us. First of all, we have to win at the Ageas.

“We played the Vipers the other day, and they’re in a similar position to ourselves.

“We have to put in a big performance on Wednesday and then keeping churning them out.”

The Vipers have also only won one of their six games so far, but they sit bottom given they have lost five compared to the Diamonds four. The Diamonds had a washout against Surrey at Guildford.