Cambridge South 3rds, sponsored by PwC, guaranteed themselves second place in the Division 7NW table at the Christmas break, with a seventh victory from nine outings.

St Neots had travelled to the game with only ten players and South started the game exploiting the space to trap the ball in the visitors half for long periods. This spell saw them take the lead from a short corner, Wilco Dijkstra cracking in a clean shot from the top of the D. However, despite numerous useful situations, they weren’t able to add to this lead, and St Neots made them pay. A first serious foray up the pitch forced a short corner. This short produced two further short awards, the third of the sequence being hammered clinically home.

For a while it looked like South would amazingly be turning around level after a half in which they had utterly dominated territory and possession. But this changed with seconds to go, when John Horsley swept home a James Cobbe cross to at least give the hosts a slender half-time advantage.

Early in the second half, South earned themselves a cushion in the game. Tim Waller's run into the D caused confusion, from which teenager Tom Rosselli profited, smartly turning home a loose ball for his first goal for South.

This strike would prove more important that it had initially seemed. St Neots' half time team talk was clearly inspiring, as instead of spending the half on the back foot as they had in the opening period, they forced the game, creating the majority of the chances. But their luck was out as none would quite drop for a Saints stick, and the game finished 3-1.

South deserved their win when the entire match was considered, but credit must go to the visitors for their second half efforts, in which, despite their numerical disadvantage, they were the better side.