Someone clearly messed up British winters, as it was far too bright and too sunny for an early departure to Peterborough. Anyways, with Rob’s complicated yet ever-dynamic formation, the game opened strongly for Cambridge South. The forwards pressed strongly, the midfield linked well with judicious use of width and dominated possession in the opposition half.

The opener came from slick open play: explosive midfield energy from Alex linked well with the right wing, and after a short pass across the face of goal, the ball was fired home with a decisive finish. Goals two and three followed shortly, both from Rob, the second was a classic Rob move finished clinically from a short corner (SC), while the third came from a brilliant reverse-shot from open play. At 3–0 up, the defence remained untested and the goalkeeper was yet to use any of his ATP.

Goal four was pure class from Noah, who calmly sent the advancing keeper the wrong way before beautifully rolling the ball into an empty net—a clear MoM moment. Wolf followed soon after with a clean finish in a very crowded D to make it 5–0.

Peterborough 8’s defenders struggled to move the ball into midfield, particularly against Wilco’s wide reach and decisive interceptions, consistently rebounding possession back into Peterborough’s defensive half (though his earlier undecisive meet-up plans earned him a lemon :D ). This sustained pressure from midfield and attack created additional SCs. The sixth goal came from John, whose perfect strike into the left corner gave no chance to the keeper.

The second half brought tired legs, but not tired dominance. With the scoreline comfortable, the captain adjusted the formation and moved players into new positions, refreshing the team’s perspective.

Relentless forward play continued to generate SC after SC—some from Jo’s skills, others from defensive miscontrol. Rob converted another from a SC to complete his hat-trick. Goal eight again came from a SC, this time Jo’s clinical slap pushing the ball beyond the keeper’s reach. The final goal was sealed with a half-lobbed pass from midfield, finding Noah behind the keeper and finished calmly to make it 9–0.

Although Peterborough’s attack managed to enter South’s defensive 3rd 3-4 times but decisive defending from Andy M, Tommy and Andy T kept them at bay and did not let a single shot on goal – resulting in a quiet morning for Dan. Peterborough’s keeper was kept extremely busy and to be fair prevented double figures almost single-handedly.  

Overall, a decent and enjoyable game of hockey to round things off.