Saturday saw the 1s head to Leeds with a bare 11 players to face a Leeds squad of 16, including five subs, on what can only be described as the hottest day known to hockey. 24°C, no rotation and 70 minutes of running around — what could possibly go wrong?

Despite the conditions, Driffield started strongly and refused to be intimidated by the numbers on the opposition bench. Kat in goal was absolutely outstanding, pulling off some incredible saves throughout the game and keeping the scoreline far more respectable than the eventual 6–1 suggests. Unfortunately, most of Leeds’ goals came from quick breaks down the baseline and unmarked players finding themselves suspiciously free on the P spot.

At the back, Ash, Kate, Fi and Abi put in a huge shift, making strong tackles and doing everything possible to keep Leeds at bay. In midfield, Charlotte and Keira worked tirelessly, covering seemingly endless amounts of ground — up when we were attacking, back when we needed to defend, and generally wondering why we had agreed to play hockey in 24°C with no substitutes.
Bry, Bron and Hannah were similarly committed to the cause, completing approximately 47,000 shuttles between the two D’s in the heat. Their hard work was eventually rewarded when Driffield took the lead in the first half. A short corner sweep from Charlotte was deflected into the net by Bry, sending the bare 11 into delirium and briefly making the five Leeds substitutes look considerably less smug.

Sadly, Leeds equalised before half time, but Driffield went into the break knowing they had worked incredibly hard and were very much in the game.

Some interesting umpiring followed, including a green for Miss Dinsdale-Young after a pick. Despite the very audible clunk of the ball hitting her stick, it was apparently her leg. “Are you joking?” = green card. Asking if the umpire was blind five minutes earlier? Apparently fine.

The second half was where the laws of physics, fitness and having five substitutes finally caught up with us. Leeds’ fresh legs proved too much as their pace on the break began to show, and despite continued hard work from every single player, the goals unfortunately started to pile up. Final score: 6–1.

Despite the scoreline, there were plenty of positives to take. With no substitutes, brutal heat and a strong Leeds side, the work rate from the whole team was genuinely excellent. The scoreline definitely doesn’t tell the full story, particularly given Kat’s heroics in goal and the amount Leeds had to work for their chances.

And now for the important part: teas.
Unfortunately, Leeds’ post-match offering left a lot to be desired.
The chips were dry, slightly green and frankly raising more questions than answers. The bread came with butter that appeared to have been frozen solid, making spreading it an upper-body strength exercise in itself. The sauce selection consisted exclusively of BBQ sauce, leaving those who wanted literally any other condiment to simply reflect on their choices.

Teas: 2/10.

The bar did provide some much-needed redemption, although with most of us driving home, we were tragically unable to make the most of this.

A tough day, a lot of running, questionable umpiring, questionable chips and one very depleted squad — but plenty of fight from the 11.
Onwards and upwards.