The first competitive event of the year welcomed some new faces to the Spencer starting line up: Dave Eisenstat, Andy Davis, Joe Darkins and new LDO Matt Vetter all made their first appearance in maroon and proved that they will be superb additions to the squad for the coming season.

After a good bonding session on the Friday night and a short sleep on the floor as the hotel room had been taken over by Yanks, the day started a little slowly with a 3-2 defeat to Norbury. A further defeat to the eventual finalists Heaton Mersey didnt help the confidence but kick started our gradual improvement which continued throughout the tournament.

The next game pitched us against a good Cardiff side who fought hard and managed to earn a draw against us with a last ditch equaliser. Hitchin were up next in a good game which also proved to be a tight affair. Another 2-2 draw the result.

The two final games had us playing against two top northern premier division teams both of who showed their class and came out winners by the odd goal or two.

On paper 0 wins, 2 draws and 4 defeats doesn’t look good, but the improvement throughout the tournament showed the promise of the Spencer side. A sharpening of the stick handling and an extra bit of fitness picked up during the remaining weeks of the pre-season should see Spencer battling for the Southern Premier Division crown.