It was a quite literally below freezing on Friday evening when Cheltenham travelled to the north to face Nuneaton in a double-header at the University of Warwick.

After a number of cancelled and rescheduled matches, we arrived ready to get our mixed lacrosse season underway - freezing weather and crashes on the M40 be damned!

While low on players due to injury and illness, our numbers were bolstered by three Warwick University players, without whom the game couldn’t have gone ahead. With our blended team assembled, we took the field ready to show our claws.

From the offset it was clear that this was to be a challenging day. Conditions would struggle to be described as clement, and the pitch itself seemed to shimmer with a growing frost that Elsa would have been proud of. Gingerly, the game got underway.

Cheltenham’s account was opened by an incredible drive to crease off the wing by Eliza, skating, literally, past the Nuneaton defence to fire ahead.

Nuneaton began to assert dominance as the next quarter progressed, with players who were physical with quick feet and unperturbed by the ice beneath their feet . The outcome seemed as if it were to be decided by whoever was willing to put their body on the line in the treacherous conditions. A yellow card for Frazer put Cheltenham down a player and Nuneaton capitalised, extending their lead.

As the second half commenced, Cheltenham redoubled their efforts and came out fighting. Some incredible technical lacrosse helped our clearing, with Gary being pivotal in carrying the ball into the Nuneaton goal area. This nearly outshone the moment where captain Lloydy, playing in goal, received a yellow card for a dangerous check. This had two outcomes - Ash had to serve his penalty for him as he couldn’t leave the pitch as our only goalie, and he had to stand behind the Nuneaton attacker as they fired into an empty net. Not ideal.

The last moment of brilliance came in the third quarter as Cheltenham were awarded a free position, with the shot being given to Frazer. The whistle blew and the ball was in the net. Genuinely. The speed on the shot was audacious. One second it was in his stick, the next it was in the Nuneaton goal.

As the third quarter drew to a close, another slip and fall made it clear that the game couldn’t be continued. After some deliberation, the game was ended early in order to protect the players.

While the score won’t have ended in Cheltenham’s favour, we showed our mettle and desire to play this game we all love. We’ve things to improve on, but significantly more to be proud of as we look towards our next fixtures in the mixed league.

Written by James Humphreys