The most recent encounter on the pitch was a stellar performance against Newbury Royals, a strong team, whom Putney rallied to beat 13-6. Kate Morland and Amelia Pemberton were on particular form in the attack, Daisy Fox produced an incredibly relaxed goal against the England goalie, about which she was probably the most surprised at all, and stalwart Alex Carnegie Brown switched from umpiring to goal-keeping within a matter of minutes, producing her usually imperious form from the back of the pitch.

Not to mention of course the likes of Leah Templeman, Rusty Cashman, Amy Jordan, Justine Hunt, Imogen Sarre, Alicia Hockless, Nic Piggott and the rest of the burgeoning Putney ranks.

The previous week's match, against Blues, was cancelled due to puddles on the pitch, but the week before that, Putney had fielded two sides in the South Clubs and Colleges tournament.

Braving the extreme cold which descended on Caterham, the second Putney team were unable to advance beyond the group stages, but Putney's first team hurtled into the semi-finals. Unfortunately they were stopped in their tracks by an overly determined Hatch End side, but it remained an encouraging day nonetheless. Special thanks to Susan Van der Linden for her support on the day and on the pitch as an umpire.

With fixtures coming thick and fast, Putney's next two appointments are against Harpenden and then the rescheduled fixture against Blues.

Onwards and upwards!