Love was in the air at Long Road as Cambridge South M1s hosted Old Loughts on Valentine’s Day. Although, Loughts were a cruel mistress and ultimately snatched the 3 points away from us.

South came out with plenty of heart in the first quarter. Mark played cupid at the back, stepping in front of his man to steal the ball, which may or may not have enjoyed a brief trip off the pitch. No matter, the move was recycled sweetly and the final arrow was fired by Schuey, who finished with a flourish to give South a 1–0 lead and plenty to swoon about.

The second quarter saw Loughts fall back in love with the ball. After a series of retaken short corners that felt longer than the dating phase, the ball broke kindly to their man on the P spot, who slapped home the equaliser. 1–1 and all square at the break.

South thought they’d rekindled the spark in the third when Elk bundled the ball into the net, only for the umpire to coldly rule a back stick in the build-up. No chocolates, no flowers, just a free hit the other way. Loughts seized the momentum and, from another short corner, their drag flicker sent one whistling in to put the visitors 2–1 up. The honeymoon phase was truly over.

With ten minutes left in the final quarter, and South starting to franticly swipe right to find a winner, Stanley was sacrificed for the greater good as South went all-in with an extra outfielder. Sam made some dangerous penetrations into the box and won a flurry of short corners. From one of them, a desperate Loughts defender gave him a big hug and as they cuddled on the floor, the umpire awarded a penalty flick.

Teddie bravely stepped up, hearts in mouths around the ground, but it wasn’t to be as the Loughts keeper guessed right and kept his side ahead. South kept pressing, throwing everything forward, yet time proved the cruellest partner and the game ended 2–1.

A performance full of passion, just missing that final loving touch.