With Juliette wearing the right coloured socks this time, the L5 underdogs lined up against the L3/4s for four quarters of hot hockey.

Playing a 4-4-2 formation and knowing our opposition as only sibling teams can, we structured ourselves purposefully: to smother and frustrate the L3/4s gifted strikers.

A pleasant breeze cooled the first 15 minutes and once Polly had clarified her position (right wing? Left wing? Bat wing? [Ed - you mean something like this?]) we settled into our groove, digging deep, keeping our shape and supporting each other beautifully. The second 15 minutes got underway with a bit more zest, goalie A made a stunning chest-high save, keeping us in the game. Close to half-time Naomi came off with a back strain that unfortunately ended her game, and Ann was able to clarify certain matters pertaining to Fi’s perspiration volumes. We were also delighted to see Becky appear pitchside, however she was nearly an hour late, or a day early (depending on which match you take as a reference point), and with her lenses in the wrong eyes she headed off home again, proud winner of LoM!

Turning back to the pitch for the second half, we watched in delight as Hayley S. passed a glorious ball for Juliette to hyperdrive through the L3/4 defence. Whilst that strike was saved by goalie Louisa it appeared that we were ‘Game On’ and the third quarter got interesting. Our midfield was building in confidence and there was some lovely foot and stickwork from Ann, Polly, Hayley P., and Claudia to create space and chances. Fi worked hard to hold off the great Annie M, and with Shree and Vicky taking turns to practically Velcro themselves to Liandi, it fell to Captain Nic to run right up the pitch and set up a bit of ‘Rittman magic’ - Sarah tapped in a lovely goal which took us 1-0 up! It felt pretty good, but there was more work to do: in Rosie’s case this included a full stick throw in the course of squashing Emily and conceding a short corner, but others kept to the script- with more stick-tight marking by Rebecca, Shree, Vicky, Hayley and Nicole; more saves made by A; more pressure applied by a tireless midfield of Ann, Claudia, Polly, Fi and Hayley P., and more chances created by Sarah and Juliette. And that L5 discipline and focus persisted to the final whistle.

It was hard to pick a PoM with so many of the girls playing out of their skins today, but ultimately Hayley S. took the award for her incredible effort as well as leadership of the defence. Other nominations went to Katie for all round great play, Sarah for her wicked goal, Juliette for her attacks, A for several awesome saves, and Shree for incredible persistence in marking and clearing the ball out of the D.

Today the L5s played as a strong team; we showed commitment, energy and concentration, but we also enjoyed the hockey and each other’s company. And the icing on the cake is that the wider L5 squad includes players who bring even more strength and depth, as well as the ability to do some handy photoshopping (thanks Niamh!). Confidence is building for next season - time to ditch the imposter syndrome girls! Today the L3/4s, tomorrow the world! Well, the City 5s anyway…