Some of the greatest champagne hockey of season was played on Tuesday, and if that is building block to start the season on, Eds will be pushing for promotion again and Dan Quarshie will have so many women throwing themselves at his feet he will be taking up amateur mountaineering to get through his day to day life.

After long discussion the Ed's opened with a tactically inspired 2-2-2(-2) formation - the last two playing for the opposition - with Alan Rees playing a characteristically northern role in midfield. Never has hockey been a more perfect demonstration of the textbook as the opening five minutes - ball speed, positioning, communication - Ed's had it all. Having demonstrated that skill to the on-looking judges, the flair began to open up, Ed Cotton cutting some mesmerising shapes up front, Tim "Brian Habana" Weekes consistently destroying his man for pace, and Doug Elvidge popping up like an unwanted (from Edinburgh's view) gopher to link into to stunning one-twos. With a healthy many-goals-to-one lead (S.Feet demonstrating that that moniker is still entirely appropriate), the team broke for half time.

The second half was, all in all, a more epic encounter, with honours shared between Ed's and Edinburgh. The natural creative flair of all Ed's players shone through and produced some fascinating formations. Rees has his fitness nicely tested as the lone striker in a novel 5-0-1 formation, before the team generously moved him to defence for a rest, immediately switching to a 1-0-5 formation to keep the opposition on their toes. The latter meant that a hush ran around SW18 as the quirinian figure of The Great Price stepped forward to top of the diamond, wielding his stick, to equal which the tallest pine hewn on Norwegian hills were but a wand, and bellowing "for Nursey, Edwardians and St George". He claimed he scored four, of which there were few that countered, the truth lost in the mists of the past.

We then watched Rooney trip over and face a ball into a goal, which was nice.