On the 9th of February, UPLAX men’s 'freshers' headed to Bristol and played against UWE (Bristol), and for many Plymouth players this was their first real game after playing only a few weeks!

"We’re extremely proud of our freshers, who went to UWE this weekend and played (for majority) their first game. They showed their skills and how much they had improved from never having picked up a stick to scoring goals and having impressive defence. This friendly match was extremely successful and provided new joiners the opportunity to get involved and show off what they’ve learnt so far.

As soon as the whistle blew, the freshers immediately put in an extraordinary graft. Watching these players confidently pass the ball around while running up the pitch and dodging on players without hesitation was a gorgeous sight to see. This led to a screamer of a shot by fresher Tom Bonser, who joined a couple of months back, with the most beautiful goal I have ever seen which put UPLAX into an immediate lead. The intensity of the freshers’ work only grew throughout the game as they started to understand more of the game, which resulted in them diving straight into (head first for some) hefty ground ball scraps and body checks.

Although this game ended in a loss for us, it also felt like a win. The freshers kept their heads up throughout the entire match, and you could always hear laughter from at least one of these lads somewhere on the pitch. These players fully deserved the opportunity to play in this friendly, and it was incredible to see how much they have improved in a matter of weeks/months. We can’t wait to see what else they do and to see them hopefully win their future 'friendlies'!"

I feel honoured to captain these lovely bunch of lads. - Sam Durbin (2nd Team Captain)

Find out more about UPLAX and join the club here!