So, on a bright but chilly morning Wacs set out at the crack of sparrows to brave the Snake Pass bound for Sheffield. An unusually quick traverse of Glossop meant we were soon headed up the big hill with Kinder Scout looming large on the right. It was a magnificent sight as the snow covered hills all around shone brilliantly in the strong early morning sunshine. As the traffic was light and the road in good fettle we soon hit the Ladybower reservoir where the ghosts of the Dambusters are still palpable. As we passed the ice topped water and gazed out at the dam you could imagine the magnificent drone and sight of the Lancaster bombers coming in low at 60 feet to drop their lethal bouncing cargo onto the water's surface. With Eric Coates's stirring theme tune from the 1954 film of the event, booming through the stereo system, we were well set up for the foreboding task ahead.
We arrived in Abbeydale in good time for a somewhat pricey but welcome sausage balm and coffee before taking our places on the touchline.
Nick, Casey and Oliver were on duty and Wacs mustered 11 players.
Crucially missing today were keeper Jeswin and big defense man Iain.
Sheffield had a 16-man squad with three big lads including their number
56 who at a confirmed 13 years of age was 6'2" tall. That fresh hilltop Yorkshire air certainly has growth promoting features.
The first quarter was a cagey affair with both sides patiently building their attacks but without troubling the keepers unduly. Ground balling was poor by both sides as the surface was a little sticky as the sun melted the top frost. Sophie was between the sticks and made 2 good saves before Jay opened the scoring with a great driving run and shot from an assist from Will. The quarter ended with Wacs deserving of the 1-0 lead. In the second quarter Sheffield changed their tactics an began to feed the ball continually to their big number 56 who was able to dominate the Wacs defense and burst through almost at will. He scored 4 and his mate added another as the Wacs defense struggled to contain the physical threat and we turned around trailing 1-5.
In the third quarter Rommel took over from Sophie in goal and Sheffield continued to make all the play through their big attacker who grabbed 3 more and his mate another. Wacs kept going though and were exerting good pressure and getting their shots away, but the Sheffield keeper was pretty useful and made several good saves to keep the score to 1-9 at the whistle. In the final quarter Sheffield used their big threat less and that allowed Wacs to get back into their stride and begin to dominate the game. Will grabbed his second goal ever in the U14's from a Jay assist who then added his second after a strong run and shot from a halfway line clear. Sheffield also managed 1 before the game ended 3-10 to the home team.
So Wacs had a good first and fourth quarter, winning both, but were unable to contain the physical power of the Sheffield attackers in the middle of the game. Whilst Sophie and Rommel played well in goal, the absence of Jeswin did mean that some of the goals would probably not have happened and the defense would have been more organised with him behind them. Despite the dispiriting nature of being rolled over by the big lads, Wacs never stopped trying and enjoying the game. Casey didn't want to nominate a player of the day today as no-one was particularly outstanding.
So although it was a disappointing result, the Wacs players and supporters really enjoyed the trip out today and the journey back was equally magnificent apart from the inevitable crawl through Glossop town centre. Next week Wacs are at home to face the might of Brooklands A, and keen to avoid a repeat of the drubbing we received on the green carpet back in December.

Playing today were: Liam Brennan, Rommel Burke, Thomas Collins, Cian Conway, George Cornwell, Will Cornwell, Ben Leahy, Jay Moore, Sophie Shingler, Kieran Tudsbury & James Williams.