Under the bright sunshine of the first real day of spring, Cambridge South arrived at the Cambridge University Sports Ground ready for a lively match. Before pushback, the team paired up and shared one another’s “hockey superpower,” setting a positive tone for the game ahead.

The optimism was tested quickly when Cambridge University scored just 20 seconds into the match, catching South off guard. After the early shock, the game settled into a competitive back-and-forth. South soon equalised from a short corner, with El striking a beautiful slap across the D and into the goal.

The first half also brought a couple of painful moments, as Gemma was hit on the side of the head by a rebounding ball and Annabel took a knock to the finger. Both showed real determination by returning for the second half after half time.

South came back onto the pitch with renewed energy. Another well-worked short corner put them ahead: the ball was injected to Bex at the top of the D, passed to Gemma running in, then slipped back to Bex who fired it neatly into the right corner.

University pushed hard, but Sélène made several brilliant saves to keep South in front. A strong defensive moment from Luisa cleared the ball up the pitch, leading to a scramble in front of goal where Katie reacted quickly—picking up the rebound, running along the baseline, and striking through the goalkeeper’s legs to make it 3–1.

The match brought great team play, with Steph making powerful runs up the pitch and Indi and Hannah applying strong defensive pressure. University managed to score again in the final ten minutes, but South held their composure to secure a 3–2 win.

Player of the Match went to El for her excellent runs and positioning. And lemon went to yours truly for nearly turning up at Long Road instead of the University Grounds

A brilliant team performance and a perfect way to enjoy the sunshine and the start of spring!