South arrived at the match today knowing that this is where the season really starts. "It's where the men are sorted from the boys", Cheggers said gruffly before the match. And he wasn’t wrong as St Ives fought and battled hard throughout this game.

South were expecting twelve for the match but had to start with eleven as Asbo was temporarily disposed until half time (rumours of a court appearance this morning were strongly denied). This meant a shuffle in personnel as the ever dependable Snetler slotted into central defence (alongside Graveling, Benedikz and Pippard) with Murray and Reilly making up the left side. The uninitiated would never have known about this last minute switch, though, as the South defence was as solid as ever and rarely looked like conceding.

The match started at a high tempo. Or it did for St Ives, anyway, South seemingly content to watch the hustle and bustle of the opposition from a distance. St Ives had most of the possession and pressed hard to break the deadlock.

When the ball did finally reach the South front line, however, it displayed no such lethargy or distractedness. In one of the first forays into the St Ives D, Forrest was able to nip the ball away from the keeper and play the ball across goal (via the post – it was a tight angle). Summoning up all his shooting skills, Keith duly slotted it home from a couple of inches out ("It definitely wasn’t going in this time" he said afterwards). Soon afterward a quick break down the right allowed Forrest space to send a fast cross to Murray. He the ball steered goal-wards, but unfortunately couldn’t keep it beneath the bar.

St Ives continued to enjoy the greater share of possession and forced a number of short corners, but fortunately they can't score (not past us, anyway). So it was left to the South forwards to show them how it's done – this time it was Forrest on the score sheet. Picking up a pass from Creed just outside the D a quick turn took him past a couple of defenders and, despite their physical presence, he managed to slide the ball under the keeper and into the net.

Soon after this St Ives had their best opportunity of the match. Parker produced a couple of excellent blocks but the ball fell to a St Ives attacker and his looping shot was goal bound until the ever-committed Benedikz launched himself full-length goalwards and scooped the ball off the line with his reverse stick ("Yeah, I quite enjoyed it", he said after the match). It was at about this time also that Dan Pippard had to go off the pitch for treatment ("Ow" is what he might have said had he stayed around instead of heading off at half time for treatment). Let’s hope that thumb is moving again soon, preferably within the next week…

At least one player on the St Ives team knows his way to the goal, however. Unfortunately he's in goal and in lifting his foot over a seemingly innocuous hit into the D he inadvertently gifted Forrest his second of the game after it clipped his stick on the way in ("It definitely didn't hit my foot this time" he said later). This gave South a 3-0 lead at half time.

In the second half St Ives pressed and pressed and tried and tried, but the goals had deflated them and they were starting to tire. With Asbo re-instated in the defence to give yet more solidity there was never much chance that St Ives would get past Parker.

As South soaked up the pressure, the St Ives defence left gaps at the back that the ever-running Reilly and Forrest plundered with glee. With Creed and Baker orchestrating things in midfield the chances came on a regular basis but the St Ives keeper displayed a rejuvenated talent in the art of goal keeping and managed to snuff out the danger, including tipping a shot over the bar from Murray. This was until a loose ball in the St Ives half was pounced on by Reilly and he flew into the D to slide the ball expertly under the keeper and into the corner ("Scoring’s really not that difficult, is it?" he might have said).

This proved to be the last action of the game and so it proved once again that possession is nothing – it's goals that win games of hockey.