After two whiteouts over the previous two weekends, the M4s turned up at Catz and the majority probably wondered if they had collectively missed a message from their captain about the fixture while they waited for him to arrive with the keys to the gate and pitch. Once everyone was in and sorted out, the team was raring to go and get stuck into some hockey for the first time this year. Peterborough have a young and skillful team but the captain's message was simple: get stuck in, use the extra subs we lacked for the reverse fixture and let's get some goals and give them a real game.

It turned out that the youngsters were also somewhat ring-rusty as the opening stages were played as a very cat and mouse affair. Neither midfield fully took the game by the scruff of the neck as the ball pinged around from player to player. As predicted, the Peterborough team were having a tendancy to steam down the South left and as the game settled down, Peterborough used one such attack to squeeze a shot in to open the scoring.

Stung by the strike, South started to exert some influence of their own in the midfield and several good breaks were worked down both flanks.

Some willing running from Nathan and Andy, combining well with some good distribution from Wilco, Dave M and Ian meant South were starting to work their way around and behind Peterborough but finding that the lack of games since December meant the final ball was sometimes a little lacking and the breakthrough wasn't quite coming, although the feeling was that the pressure was beginning to tell.

A well worked ball forward found Nathan in some space to take on the winger, skin him for pace and flick the ball inside to Boris. With one touch, Boris turned inside and fed the ball towards Simon F lurking near the top of the D. One of Peterborough's older heads at the back saw the danger but miscued the clearance skewing it sideways. Quick as a flash, the skipper pounced; gathering the loose ball and sprinting for the D as the covering left back tried to desperately make up the ground. It wasn't even close as Simon entered the D, drew the keeper forward and cooly dispatched the ball past his out stretched kicker and into the bottom corner. 1-1

Buoyed by the equaliser, South started to boss the game for a period and soon had Peterborough caught cold again with another quickly played ball from front to back. Once again, Nathan used his pace down the left to terrorise the Peterborough rightback before pulling the ball back for Simon F. Nutmegging the last man, he burst through into the D again but as he went to pull the trigger (and with Boris screaming for a pass at the top of the D), the skipper found the only dodgy patch of ground in that end of the Catz pitch and promptly did an impression of a newborn foal, much to the relief (and no doubt hilarity) of the Peterborough defence. 1-1 it remained at half time despite one further chance from a short corner that was cleared from the danger area following a smart shot from John G towards the right hand post.

More of the same was required but unfortunately letting the oppo score first again, wasn't what the skipper had in mind during his half time team talk. Peterborough started to find more and more space on South's left and started to get several opportunities as they started to overload us on that side. Shahzad had to make several smart saves to push the ball away from danger before resistance finally crumbled and Peterborough got their second goal of the game.

Peterborough's confidence was growing and they started to pour forward looking for more opportunities and goals down that left hand side. David B and Ky were finding themselves busier and busier as the game went on, but the cooler, more experienced heads prevailed as time and again they swept up the attacks as they came through or forced the youngsters into over committing and making mistakes.

South were never out of it though and more space was opening up behind Peterborough as they started to push further and further forward. One such break saw Rasmus maurauding forward from the right back position and beating all comers with the ball. Turning the ball inside to Wilco, the ball was switched across to Nathan on the left wing. Having the beating of his man virtually every time he went for it Nathan suddenly found himself free and bearing down on goal only for the keeper to push his shot wide of the post. Undeterred, another break saw Simon F receive the ball just inside the 25. Again, burning the defender for pace, his initial shot was partly parried by the goalkeeper, but Nathan bursting forward to beat his marker to the ball was unlucky to see his follow up effort slide just wide of the left hand post. It was surely only a matter of time before the equaliser came?

It was and it came in the same manner as the first. A poor clearance from Peterborough was intercepted in midfield and pinged about to Simon Jelley in space. His through ball cut the defence in two and found Simon F in space. Collecting the ball on the run, he waited for the onrushing keeper to commit, then tucked the ball under his falling body to bring the scores level once more at 2-2. This then spurred the Peterborough lads into life and the scores only remained level for a short while before a third was scored from a short corner.

Peterborough's young team then endeared themselves to the South defence in particular, by owning up to an errant foot in the build up to what could have been a fourth goal for them. The number 6 admitted his guilt to the umpires and the goal was chalked off for which the lad was nominated for a MoM award in the pub afterwards among the other general nods of appreciation to the young side. Would it prove to be costly though as try as they might, they could not find the two goal cushion to help see off South?

Further chances came and went for both sides. Nathan had another glorious chance to get his name on the scoresheet as again his pace took him clear of his man and into space, only to see his shot just fall the wrong side of the post. Simon F also spurned the chance of a first hat-trick for South, when finding himself once more with only the Peterborough keeper to beat, manged to only hit the keepers pads when perhaps the ball (and the glory) could have been passed to someone with a better angle to finish. However, no further goals came and 2-3 was the final score.

A win for Peterborough was probably the right result. They had the better opportunities and the skill and fitness to make better use of them. However, South produced a great performance that had it come on the back of two games as scheduled, would probably have given them the additional match sharpness to take one or two of the lost efforts to have possibly stolen one or even all three points. Its a shame that this season, they've come up against a team of such experience and skill as Cambridge City 5s when only one team gets to be promoted from 6NWS.

However, I'm sure with time a lot of these players will be playing in higher leagues with Peterborough's other teams.