A late in the day fixture, made even later by an injury in a preceding match, pushback happened at 5:20 under floodlights. The delay clearly gave Cambridge South the extra time they needed, as they came out of the trap with a level of energy I haven’t seen before.

The first few minutes saw South dominate play with an early opportunity just out of reach for a diving Dexter to press home. After a couple more minutes hoarding the possession and looking dangerous, St Ives realised they needed to wake up and start playing. From this point on the first half was pretty even. St Ives had an experienced core that would take the ball up the field but the central defensive pairing of Jo and Etienne never looked too troubled, with Etienne even managing a few runs up the field.

In Souths turns with possession the ball moved up the centre, possibly too predictably as we might have better used the width of the field, but the hard work of Ahmed and Harry still managed to move the ball up, leading to St Ives’ D being the one most troubled. A handful of shorts were won, although St Ives defended them well. For the last five minutes of the first half St Ives moved their experienced players up the pitch, showing their first threat of the game, but this was contained by the defenders, with Dan ever vigilant in the pads as a back up. An uneventful half concluded with nothing on the scoresheet.

The second half saw St Ives drop back a little, appearing to take the pressure off the South backline, but whether calculated or coincidental, this was a trap, as a turn over and quick counter offensive led to Jo having two attackers to manage, and as quickly as Jelley dropped to support, St Ives had another runner join. In this 3 on 2 a shot was fired that Dan reached but couldn’t deflect enough to keep out of the net. 1-0 St Ives, and a frustrating goal against the run of play.

John D who had been released to run the wing after starting as wing back found this freedom cut short by a torn calf. Get well soon. 
Jo and Etienne were masterful at stopping any further opposing attacks finding their mark, while Luke, Dexter, Andy and John G tried to find an angle to penetrate St Ives’ frustratingly solid defence. Ahmed, Wilco and Harry, occasionally helped by Howard and Jelley, tried to keep feeding balls but as the clock ticked to zero, the scoreline remained unaltered.

A slightly frustrating result for a relatively even game where south had more chances, but St Ives converted when it mattered.