Mixed Break Hearts

14/11/2010

Cambridge won 21-0

Cambridge were welcomed to the University of Hertfordshire’s very swish sports village on Sunday to face a team they have not played for more than a year. Eleventh-hour injuries meant that the squad was smaller than usual, but this turned out to be no obstacle to the light blues.

Difficult circumstances resulted in the lack of an umpire which stalled the match for around fifteen minutes. Noticing the teams getting anxious, Cambridge Captain Sally Mantell stepped into the absentee’s shoes for the first quarter with a reserve referee on the way. Lucky she’s such a fan of her whistle... Cambridge dominated in the first quarter racking up a stylish seven goals. Turnovers were immediately shut down due to the enthusiasm of what has become quite a feisty team, especially when contesting groundballs. Keen play in the centre from Ben Treloar won the drill consistently, eagerly received by attack wings Tristan Withers and Travis Winstanley.

With the official umpire’s arrival the second quarter continued in much the same way as the first. Spacing in attack worked well and communication in defence with any turnovers ensured that the ball largely stayed in Cambridge’s attack. A few slightly more tense moments in Cambridge’s defensive half were immediately shut down by stellar Goalie Tory Brown, guaranteeing that Hertfordshire’s scoreboard stayed blank.

The third quarter allowed considerable settling of the ball in attack, with sharp stick skills- particularly from Becky Rosenberg in the centre- allowed much more ball movement. Set attack plays (inspired by Top Gun) were implemented effectively and resulted in several more Cambridge goals, despite some excellent saves from Hertfordshire’s Goalie.

The final quarter saw more movement in Cambridge’s defence as players struggled to stay warm in foul weather. Indeed a few neat punches into Hertfordshire’s defence saw straight defender Emily Binning score a fantastic goal. Controlled play in attack racked up the final few goals for Cambridge, resulting in a very mature 20 + 1 for the light blues.

Commendation must go to all the team for keeping their focus in the face of rather unpleasant meteorological conditions. The team is developing into really quite a tight lacrosse force.

By Sally Mantell