The L3s team were excited for the first league of the new season - on Friday night the team WhatsApp group was popping off with talk about formation, ‘pivoting the dish’ and ordering squad navy fleeces (with Anna giving us all the wrong size recommendation … oops).

After a long and very windy road and being thrown about in the car, the L3 squad finally arrived at Long Sutton. As we arrived, Indie’s wish came true and the clouds parted and we had some lovely sunshine to welcome us and to kick start the warmup. Having been promoted last season, there were a few nerves but this was quickly forgotten with our fantastic warmup and everyone having their own objectives set for the game.

The game began and we soon realised how feisty the Long Sutton team were with their elbows and pushing. The goalie was seeing all our shots on goal off but we kept our determination. We were awarded several shorts but our first goal was elusive. The first short Tiff got a warning for breaking early - maybe a bit too keen to get to the post and get that goal! Stef was diving up the line after the fast balls and with Anna standing strong on post, the opposition’s defence were really under pressure. We dug our heels in and we got a beautiful goal from Rhi - a great slap from the top of the D across the goal. Rhi’s aim for the game was to finish in one piece, but with all the scraping for the ball she was really testing that hope to the extreme.

The first half got called short by a few minutes due to an injury, and we started second half with renewed energy, hunting for more goals.

The opposition’s D seemed more impossible than ever to break in, with lots of balls being cleared away by the opposition’s strong (and sometimes high) hits. Where the ball did end up in our half on the right, Emma was there, picking it up and running up the line with it to bring it back to the attacking D, sometimes overcoming not one but two players! Hannah with her strong pass was helping the team attack down the line, and with her cheering on each turnover (and mistakes) we were all pushing for our next goal. Tiffany missed just out on her own goal, which was so close to the line and then catching the rebounds off the goalie but was ultimately denied by a very good goalie.

The next goal came from Rhi with a quick angle flick on goal on a short where it was slipped to her! We were 2-0 up and goal hungry.

Our defence worked brilliantly - Louisa was key in making strong passes around the back, with Lydia shouting ‘pivot’ to the defensive dish where Lucy made a dive down the line. Lucy was up so high all the time she should maybe think about changing to playing as a forward! Indie had a few strong shots on goal but the goalie kept booting them out and away. These balls were quickly picked up by Cait who was always in the right place at the right time, making those runs into the D. Suzi was also crucial with shimmying the ball around the edges of D to find the gap in the defence. Our final goal came in the last 2 minutes from Anna L - she saw the gap the goalie left and went for it. The ball sailed past the goalie and we all cheered!

Overall it was a great start for the L3s - making their mark on the leaderboard of the new league! We worked so well as a team and we all came away with huge smiles - this and the hot jacket potatoes made the long trip worthwhile!

POM went to Cait for her skills and crucial runs in the game.

LOM went to Tiff (me) for being too keen to get to the post.