Cambridge’s impressive defensive resolve could not withstand a relentless Durham outfit that consigned the Women’s Blues to a fourth consecutive BUCS defeat. Under ominous Wilberforce Road skies, Durham’s calibre triumphed 2-0 over Cambridge’s containment tactics, with the home side still yet to notch their first goal of the season.

The visitors looked to seize the initiative from minute one, forcing Cambridge keeper Serena Cole into two early saves and slapping a penalty corner narrowly wide. In a stark contrast of approaches, newly promoted Cambridge looked to sit deep and absorb the initial onslaught, but increasingly found themselves fenced in behind their 23-metre line with no obvious escape route.

Having successfully frustrated Durham in the first quarter, Cambridge’s defiance came undone in the 20th minute after a clinically executed move from a penalty corner — the visitors slipping left and slapping the ball to the back post, where Amelie Hales coolly tapped it home. Once off the mark, Durham’s high-press, high-intensity hockey continued to offer no respite for the Light Blues.

Yet whilst Cambridge remained unable to find any kind of attacking foothold, their disciplined defending prevented Durham’s possessional dominance from yielding any further rewards. Ironically, the closest Durham came to obtaining a two-goal first-half cushion came in the immediate aftermath of Cambridge’s best attacking move yet, after the host’s scarce departure from their rigid low block left them exposed to a lightning Durham counterattack. Perhaps in a fitting metaphor for the opening 35 minutes, Durham’s seemingly inevitable goalward charge was curtailed by the half-time whistle – the visitors dominant, but thwarted in their pursuit of a substantial lead.

During the break, the Durham players’ bouncy demeanours and good-natured high fives seemed to defy the bitter November air, while Cambridge remained locked in an intense huddle. Nevertheless, the tactical wisdom imparted to the hosts initially proved successful, with Cambridge’s subsequent midfield overload nullifying Durham’s attempts to pass their way into the scoring area following the restart.

The cagey atmosphere was eventually set alight by Lizzy Pocknell, who managed to rip the Light Blues’ defensive wall apart with some dazzling stick skills. Easily the match’s standout performer, Pocknell almost doubled Durham’s advantage on numerous occasions, including a wicked reverse stick effort from distance that pinged off the crossbar. As the third quarter entered its dying moments, Durham finally managed to find the back of the net, the visitors niftily robbing the ball from an attempted Cambridge one-two, driving down the right-hand side and crossing the ball to a waiting Katie Rimmer, who completed another back-post tap in.

Now finding themselves staring down the barrel of a two-goal deficit, Cambridge began to play more expansively, especially after gaining a numerical advantage when a Durham defender received a yellow card for some choice words with 12 minutes remaining. The game’s final stages bore witness to some stellar hockey from Cambridge; the hosts combining an effective shutdown of Durham’s passing lines with increasingly direct play when in possession, enabling them to begin fashioning some promising positions higher up the pitch.

Come full-time – superficially – the picture remained as bleak as the Wednesday evening murk for the Light Blues. After a game in which they never looked like troubling the scoresheet, their winless, goalless start to BUCS lingers on, with the highs of last season’s phenomenal unbeaten league run perhaps feeling increasingly distant.

Even so, Cambridge’s tightly marshalled defensive display and stubborn resistance of one of university hockey’s class acts should provide some rays of hope, amidst a steep learning curve in the top flight.