Director of Hockey's XI 2,

Dartmouth ladies 2

It was fun, it was frantic it was festive and it was fantastic.

This game was about giving the new members of Dartmouth Hockey Club a run out and run they did.

It also gave members like Jeff Hunt (director of hockey), Mark Rendle (chairman), Colin Wilson and Matt Putt (coach) a run out and with the exception of one of them, they too ran.

Hunt, rolling back the years, started at right back then, as the game progressed, he pushed up to release two defenders and eventually pushed futher to put pressure on the Dartmouth ladies' defenders and 'keeper alike.

The Dartmouth ladies found Hunt hard to contain when he got his stick to the ball.

The Dartmouth ladies had their secret player as well. Gerrard Picot, better known as "Dash" the right wing flyer of DRFC, played a blinder in goal for the Ladies, stopping at least 10 goal-bound shots from the opposition, most of them from Jeff Hunt.

The game started with a frantic pace and the Dartmouth ladies showed their intent from the start.

Umpires Marge Rendle and Mother Nature got the game under way and immediately Lucy Pillar tried to utilise the right wing to penetrate the XVI defence, but came up against Jeff Hunt on the right who would not budge.

The ladies therefore decided to push the ball left, getting much more joy with Freyer Bradley, but try as they might, coming up against the lesser of two evils, with Colin Wilson and Mark Rendle mopping up any danger from the left was quelled.

However, it was the ladies who went in front first with two goals in quick concession. Colin Wilson and Mark Rendle let the team down by not challenging for the ball enough.

Once the two goals went in the director's team stepped up to the plate, Jeff Hunt going close as did Nick Ob­olensky, Alicia Wade­son and Becca Squires. It was, though, Lisa Hunt who made the comeback special.

Lisa picked the ball up from deep and passed to Nick, who in turn found Jeff. He returned the ball to Lisa, who hammered past the stranded Picot for a great team goal.

The next goal was set up by Jeff Hunt again and this time Ollie Wilson picked the ball up to level the scores.

From then on Picot came to the fore, stopping anything that came near him.

On another day the director's team could and should have won by a country mile, but it ended in stalemate with the Dartmouth ladies the much more relieved team at the whistle.

The game was kindly sponsored by Adrian Rendle. Adrian, a local carpenter, was more than pleased to be part of a fixture that will hopefully continue for many seasons to come.

The ladies are in action again on Boxing Day against an easier opposition when they take on Dartmouth RFC in the annual Rex Bolton trophy.

Rex, a staunch supporter of Dartmouth Hockey for many years, sadly passed away a few years ago, but daughter Anita and the grandchildren are keeping the Bolton cup very much a living tribute to Rex.

The push back will be at noon at Kings­bridge Community College and both teams will be at the Seale Arms after the game.

The club asks that if anyone has the Rex Bolton trophy, could they please bring it along on Boxing Day.