This season was always going to be a developmental year for our Under 12s and after a good win last week, the boys came up short against a well-drilled and well-supported Poynton side. With only a couple of Year 7s in the squad, experience was in short supply, so expectations from this game were kept in check, which was good, as it proved to be a tough morning for the boys.

On an unseasonably warm and sunny morning, the early signs were ominous. Forgotten kit and a sloppy warm-up led coach John to comment that “it’s like playschool” in reference to the boys’ preparations. In fact, having Zippy and Bungle in the side may well have improved things!

Quarter one began at pace, with both sides having chances in and end-to-end opening. It was Chuckle Brothers lacrosse – to me, to you – with neither side taking control of the game, giving away possession too easily. Shots from Jack Royle, Finn Howie and Jake Fell all went close, but it was Poynton who broke the duck with a good goal on the break. This set the tone for the quarter, with Mellor winning the shot-count 5-4, but the difference was that we didn’t convert shots to goals, whilst Poynton converted their four shots into three goals.

The boys continued to push for opportunities in the second quarter, but frequently possession was given away far too easily and often in our own half. John called a time out and commented “You’re still making this really tough on yourselves”. This pep talk seemed to bring better shape to the team and the boys pushed on, looking for any opportunities. With the game continuing to switch from one end to the other, our midfield was having to work hard in both defence and attack. Jack Royle, Jake Fell, Ellis Booy, Eddie Liles, James Peel and Sammy Chalmers all put in big shifts in the balmy conditions. Two more Poynton goals stretched their lead to five, but a well taken chance by Jake Fell broke our duck and the boys finished the quarter the stronger.

The second half began as dark clouds loomed, literally and metaphorically. A previously winless Poynton side were now dominating ground-ball skirmishes along with winning virtually all face-offs. Despite this, they were only able to increase their lead by one in the quarter, as our defence threw their bodies on the line against the frequent Poynton sorties. Robbie Wilson and Jack Latham worked hard to gain possession, but the overall team’s lack of fluidity of turning defence into attack meant that our chances to close the gap on Poynton were way too infrequent.

The final quarter continued the theme of the previous three, apart from the fact that Poynton were now scoring more freely. Despite the constant running from the team and excellent ground ball work from Theo Crowther up front, it was two-minutes from the end of the game before we had our first shot of the half; Miles Plant breaking free but shooting agonisingly wide. Credit to the boys and coaching team that even with the score increasing, Mellor continued to contest face-offs when the option of a free-clear was available. In goal, our new keeper, Fredrick Jenkins, pulled off a number of saves against the torrent of Poynton shots, but ultimately their five goals in the quarter stretched their lead to a final score of 1-11.

Two wins and two losses from their first four games is representative of where the Under 12s are currently. The boys will be hurting from today’s defeat, particularly because it was mostly the basics that let them down. However, they will learn from these experiences and will all become better players because of it and looking on the bright side, at least we came second today!