The Native Americans believe that Lacrosse is a game given to them by the gods. Lacrosse is the perfect game and it was given to the Native Americans because they were the perfect people.
To follow through the logic, those of us who have the privilege of playing Lacrosse receive a similar blessing to the Native Americans who we are able to watch compete (at least when they can get their affairs organised!) as the Iroquois Nationals.

I enjoy the fact that the good will of the gods manifests itself in a number of ways. One of these is that it never rains on Timperley Lacrosse on a Saturday morning. Playing may be curtailed by waterlogged pitches but I struggle to remember when we were actually rained on. So it was with a real sense of foreboding that last Saturday I made my way from Skipton along the M65 with the rain beating down and my windscreen wipers working their hardest. Could even the ATPs deal with this deluge?

I should have realised that Saturday Lacrosse would survive, despite the weather forecasters predicting 200mm of rain in 24hours. The nearer I got to Timperley the better the weather got and when I arrived the outlook was good and we went have a great morning of Lacrosse – one of the best.

Starting off with the POP/LAX session it looked initially as if the weather outlook would discourage attendance but by 9am there were well over 50 players and coaches on the ATP.
We had a very successful morning of Junior Boys Lacrosse. The U16A travelled to Sheffield to play one of the games traditional powerhouses and came away with an impressive 14-6 victory. Equally impressive was a competitive performance from the U16B who despite a 1-5 loss away to Wilmslow showed that they are growing in stature.

The U14 took a while to get their game heads on but eventually emerged with a convincing 12-7 win.

The U12 A were for once at near full strength and enjoyed a 12-4 win over Poynton B who were short handed so were “loaned” number of players by Timperley .
The performance of the day was by the U12B who fielded a full squad for the first time and travelled to Didsbury to take an impressive 6-4 win over an older side.
Saturday was an impressive day of women’s Lacrosse. Perhaps surprisingly the Timperley pitches survived the weather and hosted two games against a strong Edinburgh University side who took on first Timperley and then Manchester Univ taking two wins in excellent games.

Timperley women showed their real spirit and steel by hosting in, the afternoon, Heaton Mersey and in appalling conditions taking a convincing 16-5 win to keep their title drive on course.
Timperley Men’s team following last week’s postponement were this week without a game. The A team entertained Norbury 1st team at Stockport Road whilst the B team travelled to Norbury to take on Norbury B. Both games ended in defeats, the A losing 11-15 and the B going down 10-18. Timperley were competitive in both games which is encouraging.

There was only 1st team action for Manchester University with both the Men’s and Women’s teams entertaining Premiership favourites Durham. Despite both teams giving perhaps their best displays of the season the loaded Durham teams went back to the North East with the points.

SENIOR LACROSSE
Timperley Women v Edinburgh Univ (H) Lost 11-16
Timperley entertained a very strong Edinburgh Univ. who were on tour. With Manchester Univ. Playing Edinburgh following their game with Timperley the Stockport Road side were only able to field 13 players.
The early start was a bit of a shock to the system and although not at their best Timperley gave Edinburgh a good game but went into half time trailing 6-10. A head injury to Amy Burns meant no subs for the rest of the game. A positive half time talk saw Timperley up their game. Their defence was more cohesive and the team supported each other all over the pitch. The second half score was 6-5 in Edinburgh’s favour giving them a 16-11 win.
Although she could not make the trip Edinburgh are coached by former Timperley player and LDO Ailsa Stott, who now shares the Scotland Captaincy with Timperley’s Emma Economou .It was good for Timperley to be able to host Ailsa’s team.

Timperley Women v Heaton Mersey (H) Won 16-5
After a short break a soggy and cold Timperley took the field against Heaton Mersey in a League game. With the weather rapidly deteriorating Timperley started nervously. Mersey scored first and the game was end to end with the score tied at 3-3 after 20 minutes.
Timperley were giving a real team effort and with Jourdan Jackson-Fayle and Steph Hallowes began to control the draws Timperley began to dominate the game. In attack Lauren Cheyne, Nicola Swallow and Georgia Greenhalgh began to control the ball and with Laura Stockton commanding in defence Timperley went into half time leading 8-3.
With half an hour left the pitch was beginning to look like a lake but Timperley’s team spirit was palpable. Emilly Hall was dominant and Emma Economou worked tirelessly in midfield and although Mersey managed to get a few knockdowns and tried to get the ball into their attack Helen Shepherd, Becca Northeast and Fab Johnson were picking up loose balls and playing solid defence backed up by a fantastic performance by Emma Cattermole in goal.
A very tired, wet but happy 12 girls left the field (pool) with a final score of 16-5 to Timperley. With many of the older players missing the team gave everything with our 3 U18 players putting in confident performances.
Timperley goals came from Emma Economou (5) Lauren Cheyne (4), Nicola Swallow (3), Georgia Greenhalgh (1) and Jourdan Jackson-Fayle (1)

Timperley Men’s A v Norbury (H) Lost15-11
Timperley A team gave their best performance of the season so far when they entertained Norbury 1st team at a very wet Stockport Road.
For much of the game a Timperley win seemed on the cards as they did not lose a period
1st 3-2
2nd 3-3
3rd 4-3
Going into the final period Timperley led 10-8 but a disastrous final period saw the visitors take it 7-1. Whether it was lack of mental strength or simply running out of steam it was a disappointing end to a very encouraging display.
For Timperley Fraser Dalgliesh had a great game in goal and is improving rapidly. There were outstanding performances from Andrew Brickell and Myles Anderson who scored 5 and 4 goals respectively.
Captain Rick Cain was on the whole encouraged by the team performance. “If I had to sum up why we lost I think it was down to missed opportunities and the inability to pick up the ground ball (especially in the defensive half)
All in all it was a much better performance and we were the closest we have been to the first win of the season.”
Timperley scorers were Andrew Brickell 5 Myles Anderson 4 Josh Roden 1 Rick Cain 1

Timperley Men’s B v Norbury A (A) Lost 10-18
Timperley B team obviously found the journey to Norbury a testing one. They started slowly and trailed 2-6 at the end of the 1st quarter and 2-10 at half time.
Timperley got their game into gear in the second half tying it 8-8 to see a final score of 10-18.
For Timperley Seb Philips and Pat Sugden both had excellent games. University student Maz Alneami was outstanding in attack with good support from the experienced Lee Warburton and Jon Hammond
Timperley goals came from Jon Hammond (5), Maz Alneami (4) Lee Warburton (1)

JUNIOR LACROSSE
Timperley U16 Boys v Sheffield (A) won 14-6
It was an early start to Saturday morning as the U16 Boys headed to Sheffield to face the Steelers in what is always a competitive fixture.
Sheffield had a very capable face off man and with Timperley missing Pat McGowan gaining possession from the faces would be a challenge. To say the pitch was big was an understatement –it was huge and with only one sub Timperley needed to play in the ascendancy and then control the game
After a good training session on Wednesday the boys carried it forward playing solid defence, creating quick transition and moving the ball well and taking an early lead with the 3 attack men sharing the spoils with the midfield working hard between the lines. Sheffield kept themselves in the game but Timperley gradually extended their lead with Chris Jurkowski making some important saves in goal.
Now it was all about game management –something Timperley have worked on. Long scoring possessions helped limit tiredness especially on such a large pitch. The team carried this out to a tee and played well in the process. Some real progress has been made in the last few weeks and Timperley ended up winning 14-6. The goals came from the attack, but it was the hard work of the midfield and defence which really made the difference.
A good result all round.
Timperley scorers were JD Bulmer (5.1) Will Greaves (3.2) Ed Loveland (3.1) Marius Robinson (1.4) Louis Humblet (2.0)

Timperley U16 Boys B v Wilmslow (A) Lost 1-5
This was a game of two halves in the sense that our defence played really well and looked solid in keeping Wilmslow down to 5 goals; the flip side was that we struggled in the attacking half of the pitch. It was not that we did not have the ball; in fact we probably outplayed Wilmslow in the midfield by creating a lot of turnovers. The effort from the team cannot be faulted and we played a nicely aggressive game. If we retain possession in the attack we can start to put into practice the ideas we work on in training.
This was only the third game the B team have played and by losing Chris Jurkowski to the A team they have lost their leader and most effective player. However that is the nature of running two teams as players move around and find their level at U16.
Timperley scorer Joe Schaefer (1)

Timperley U14 Boys v Wilmslow (H) Won 12-7
The U14 displayed their best and worst characteristics in one game this weekend. At the end of the 1st quarter it was 1-1 although it was clear that Timperley were the better team. After a strong team talk the second quarter started but the team talk clearly did not work as Timperley played some of their worst Lacrosse of the season allowing Wilmslow to take a 4-3 half time lead.
A very strong half time team talk from substitute coach Sam Hirst set out what was needed in the second half. Finally the real Timperley team turned up and we enjoyed a much improved performance. Defence was tight, we stopped chasing sticks as much, the movement on the fast breaks and attack was a joy to watch. With 9 goals, 6 assisted and only 3 conceded it gave the boys a good 12-7 win.
Once the team finally learns that a focussed training session on Wednesday much improves the chances of a better performance on a Saturday the happier the coaches and management will be.
Timperley scorers were Harry Alty (5.0) Will Hirst (2.3) Dan Flisk (2.2), Ewan Ginger (1.2), and Chris Walker (1.0) Jack Lee (1.0)

Timperley U12A Boys v Poynton B (H) Won 10-4
Timperley fielded their strongest team of the season but unfortunately Poynton turned up short handed which meant Timperley loaned the visitors 3 players in each quarter. (Noting that Poynton A demolished Brooklands 26-1 it might have been better if they had gone to that game shorthanded!)
The first quarter was fairly easy for Timperley as the only resistance came from a strong Poynton keeper. 2 goals from Jim Hartley saw Timperley finish the quarter with a 2-0 lead. It was much the same in the second quarter with goals from Cai Alty and Joe Tomlinson increasing Timperley’s lead to 4-0. In the 3rd quarter Timperley played some of their best Lacrosse with 3 goals from Matt Fazal and Cai Alty (2) whilst loanee Jim Hartley got Poynton on the score sheet.
Timperley took a 7-1 lead into the final quarter which was much closer with Timperley scoring goals from Jim Hartley , Owen Shuttleworth and Joe Tomlinson but Poynton scoring 4 (one from Cai Alty.)
The Timperley defence continues to improve with Joe Edwards and Alex Moulden giving good performances and George Jenkins continuing to improve in goal.
Timperley goals came from Jim Hartley (3), Joe Tomlinson (2) Cai Alty (3) Matt Fazal (1) Owen Shuttleworth (1)

Timperley U12B Boys v Wacs (A) Won 6-4
The result of the weekend was a first win for the U12B team. Equally important was the fact that the team travelled with a full squad.

MANCHESTER UNIVERSITY LACROSSEManchester Univ faced a real test when they entertained Durham Univ Men’s and Women’s teams at Stockport Road.

Manchester Univ Men’s 1st team v Durham Univ (H) lost 12-19
Keeping up with recent tradition it was a slow start for Manchester, going down 0-8 early in the first quarter. This and a time out seemed to give the team and a time out seemed to give the team the kick up the backside it needed to wake up and play.
After that the game took on a different turn. Durham are always lethal in attack and they held the ball and moved it well but some excellent defending and goal keeping kept them at bay. Spells of possession and some good off the ball movement saw Manchester start to create chances. In the second quarter Manchester looked a different team. They started winning the majority of the loose balls and holding possession well. The score in the quarter was 3-3 leaving the half time score at 11-3 to the visitors.
The start of the third quarter saw Manchester score 4 unanswered goals. Excellent movement forced Durham to take the game seriously. Durham made use of their experience and talent scoring a number of goals on the break and from outside shots bringing the score to 15-8 at three quarter time.
In the final quarter Durham started to creep away with the score, picking up goals on the break or from man up situations. The final score was a very respectable 19-12 to Durham –one of their closest games in recent times. It is worth noting that 12 is the most goals Durham have conceded since BUCS records began in 2011.
Manchester can take many positives from the game as they head into the business end of the season and some make or break games.

Manchester Univ Women’s 1st team v Durham (H) Lost 5-15
Manchester and Durham’s women’s 1st teams put on an exciting display of quality Lacrosse when they clashed at Stockport Road.
In an exciting first half Manchester gave as good as they got against the Premiership favourite and at half time Durham just had their noses in front leading 5-4.
In the second half despite a strong defensive display from Manchester Durham capitalized on some excellent fast breaks to take a 15-5 victory. It was a morale boosting display from Manchester whose midfield was very competitive.
Manchester’s MVP was Liv Wimpenny and the goals came from Jenny Hobbs , Liv Wimpenny and Ellie Johns.

Manchester Univ Women’s team v Edinburgh University (H) Lost 9-19
It was a busy day of top class women’s Lacrosse on Saturday as after playing Timperley Edinburgh University then had a short break before taking on Manchester Univ . The University side were not at full strength but still managed to give the visitors a good game .

U19 AUTUMN FLOODLIT LEAGUE
Sunday saw the second night of this season’s Floodlit League and again it was a night for the Mongrels .
The organisers have done the best that they can in making the best of a bad job but there does seem to be a measure of injustice that those clubs who cannot raise proper teams should end up getting more Lacrosse for their dollar than bone fide club teams.
On the night there were a couple of close games Rochdale /BE taking a 8-5 victory over Heaton Mersey /Wacs and Wilmslow /Mellor edging past Cheadle Hulme /Cheadle 7-6
Next Sunday sees the first night of Conference A competition with Stockport/Norbury taking on Sheffield Steelers in the 6.15 game and Brooklands facing Timperley in the 7.45 game.
In Conference B Mersey/Wacs take on Wilmslow /Mellor in the 6.15 game and Cheadle/ Cheadle Hulme face Rochdale in the 7.45 game
It would be great to see a good crowd coming down to Timperley to support the Blues.

ENGLAND V INTERNATIONAL ALL STARS
The England v International All Stars managed to avoid the worst of the foul weather and the fans were treated to a great game of Lacrosse. The England team featured Timperley’s Mike Armstrong, Tommy Kirkland ,and Tim Blower all in the starting 10 alongside Josh Roden (ex TLC LDO) and Tom Bracegirdle (TLC Junior currently at Sheffield Hallam University also in the starting 10).
England started the game strongly gaining an early 3-0 lead, however, they were struggling to capitalise on the face off. There was plenty of fast-paced action and goals as the All Stars worked their way back into the game. Timperley’s star Canadian attackman Brian Gillis led the All Star offence with 4 goals.
At the half time break the game was finely balanced with England holding a 6-3 lead.
In the second half England found a few more gears and as they started to edge out a winning margin , their training paid off as they took a 13-6 win with Timperley’s Josh Roden netting 3 and Mike Armstrong grabbing a goal late on .
For many of the Timperley contingent who watched the game, it capped off a great day of Lacrosse. Over a dozen Timperley juniors got the chance to spend the whole day with the England squad, firstly attending the camp run by the players, they then got to eat and chat with the team before watching the game from the England bench. Hopefully one day we’ll see some more of our club junior’s progress to step into the international arena.

UPDATE ON GRADY
A Timperley player who we have very high hopes of rising through the ranks to the top levels of the game is Grady Jackson –Fayle .
Grady has worked his way through every level of junior Lacrosse at Timperley and last season he was a starter on the clubs first team. Having toured the US with the English Knights team in 2013 he has earned a place to study (and play Lacrosse!!) at Lake Erie College in Painsville Ohio.
Speaking to Grady’s parents , Lynne and Bruce he is thoroughly enjoying the Lake Erie experience 3 months into his course. The Lacrosse training is intense – not the level he is used to in the UK! He is currently training for 3-4 hours a day five days a week which includes fitness, running, lifting and game play –but Grady is loving this level of training.
Unfortunately he has fractured his fifth metatarsal and is having to have a small operation this week which will keep him sidelined for a couple of months but there will be no rest as the coaches already have a training programme in place for him as soon as he leaves hospital !! (need to get Nicky Ascott into harness!)
A message from Grady from across the pond. He misses the guys at Timperley and sends is best wishes for good luck to both the Junior and senior teams for the rest of the season.
As Bruce and Lynne say he is having a great time and living his dream.
Grady is eligible for selection for the England U19 team for next year’s U19 World Championships in Coquitlam , Vancouver and hopefully he will be one of a number of Timperley players who will make the final squad.