It was a great pleasure to be coaching the Under 11B team this afternoon. I was able to witness the quality of some of their passing and movement but also the way they learned to break down a strong Loretto defence.

Helena set the lead as captain: competing physically in defence (up to the point that the umpires allowed her) and showing great tenacity. As Loretto grew into their game, so Glory and Lotte both had to raise their game as defenders, which they certainly did.

Livia and Isla were the gears that helped us move through the court swiftly while Thalia battled well to get in a number of shots, scoring the majority of our goals.

Alexandra and Jemima both found it tough against older girls but I was impressed by their cheerful tenacity on court.

Special credit goes to Clara who moved from goalkeeper to goal shooter and showed her versatility as she battled to claim passes that were fired into her from different directions. While her shooting started erratically, she found her range and scored a crucial goal at the end.

Well done to Cargilfield for winning 6-4 but also to the Loretto girls who contributed with enthusiasm to a lovely game played in the right spirit.