On a cold morning at the Leys where parts of the ground in shadow still hinted at a tinge of frost, there was a real risk of the team having to start in skins as the game shirts were stranded at Maison Graveling and, before Becca could muster a police escort to secure a safe passage on her errand of mercy, dress code was strictly harlequin, with a fetching variety of multicoloured undershirts teasingly topped off with skimpy blue training bibs. This sartorial diversion clearly failed to divert March, who started the game as though they were more interested in a cakewalk than a catwalk.

It was a good thing that Steve Parker, who is rumoured to sleep in his iconic 55 shirt if not actually his entire kit, was unaffected by this crise de couture as the first five minutes saw him forced into making three key saves which spared South's blushes in the face of an aggressive opening on the visitors' part. A block on the post, a left-footed reach and a stick-away wide of goal were all necessary defences against a keen set of forwards who also managed to hit the post, miss the goal and fail to convert an unchecked cross before seven minutes were up. Having weathered the storm, Parker was able to take a bit of a breather for a while as South gained some measure of composure in both defence and attack.

Rob Garrett, who covered miles from a deeper position than normal, was first to get a shot on goal, a reversed effort that was easily dealt with, after which Al Sinclair, put away by Eliot Read on the left, surged into the D to win a short corner. The first-time strike from Chris Baker was stopped by a defender's stick and the follow-up short saw Garrett, on the slip, tackled when he'd reached about 1½ in the old one-two. Garrett then forced his way into the circle where Baker, seeing the goalie on the dive, slipped it neatly underneath him but agonisingly wide of the left post. Following solid work on the left from newcomer Dave Stock and equally worthy build-up play by Leo Tomita, Garrett did well to make two further opportunities on the reverse side but one was wide and the other was kicked away.

March won their first short on fifteen minutes, a neat left slip which was correctly read and nicely smoothed away upfield through Garrett and Baker, who set Sinclair up for a narrow-angled flick which bulged the side netting, unfortunately from the wrong side. Matt Readman, a steady hand on the tiller in the sweeper position but not afraid to jump into the attack when occasion afforded, sought out Russell Johnson on the right wing, then Sinclair put through Garrett, who was driven wide by the keeper and held up long enough to have his eventual shot saved; Garrett immediately returned the favour, passing to Sinclair, who was finally tied down Gulliver-like as he dragged three defenders with him.

As the game entered the final ten minutes of the first half and South continued to have problems in finding the width that might get them round the back of a robust defence, March began to turn the tide a little and, spurred on by vocal urgings, forced a long kick out of Parker and excellent tackles out of Read, Chris Graveling, Readman and Tomita. It was South, though, who were nearer to breaking the deadlock as Sinclair's tip-on from Read was kicked clear and Garrett's shot, from a cross by Johnson following smart work from James Cobbe squeezing up the left, also found the keeper. South's third short just before the whistle, craftily engineered by Cobbe, looked promising after creating space but, at the last moment, the ball malevolently magnetised itself to the skipper's ankles, leaving the scoresheet unsullied after thirty-five minutes.

A natty quick-change routine to a sporty little short-sleeved number seemed to energise South further after the break as scoring chances came thick and fast in the first fifteen minutes. Johnson, enjoying a productive spell, crossed to Baker, whose shot was stopped on the line, a fate which also befell Sinclair's attempt coming in from the right. Garrett then made a direct central run, laying the ball off to Johnson for a decent shot which was saved by the keeper, who then tackled Garrett to his right to scotch a fine opportunity created by Baker's incisive through ball. Shortly after, Sinclair, set free by Tomita, artfully persuaded a March defender to concede a fourth penalty corner, from which Read delivered a powerful strike that was diverted away.

March continued to press when they were able and the defence were not underworked. Readman brought off a remarkable periscope-style stop with his stick above his head, deserving the advantage that umpires Riches and Evans awarded, before Johnson evaded the keeper to win South's fifth short, a slip to Graveling which was thwarted on the post after a scramble. Suddenly, though, March were through the middle with a diagonal pass that slid off a defensive stick and Parker, maintaining focus after a long period of inaction, made a crucial block from an awkwardly bouncing ball as the forwards rushed in. Otherwise, the South back line remained calm, with Graveling calmly imperious in the tackle, Readman relishing his extra duties and John Benedikz, who hardly put a foot wrong all afternoon, getting a particularly cultured reverse pass away under pressure. Further shots from Garrett (wide) and Readman (saved) emphasised South's dominance in the March half of the field but, despite persistent threats from Read, Sinclair and Baker, the latter playing further forward in an effort to add attacking punch, the ball just would not fall for the decisive breakthrough.

Around ten minutes from the end, March, who never tried to slow the pace, applied pressure in the South zone and there were some sticky moments as the defence looked boxed in. Tomita and Read had to be firm in the D, while Baker, Garrett and Johnson, after much effort, eventually managed to break out. But March won their second and third shorts after sixty-three minutes, the first a tricky bobbler that was squashed, the second involving a spectacular air shot which nearly launched its author off his feet. This paradoxically led to a swift regrouping from the March forwards and an unexpected shot which just evaded the left-hand post with virtually everyone caught going the wrong way.

In a nervous last five minutes, March broke dangerously down the left and forced their way into the circle, where Parker was reassuringly on hand to stonewall the danger, whilst South had a chance of their own when a rebound from Baker's shot narrowly eluded Readman following up. A safe ending was then ensured by Graveling, who consigned the ball firmly to the wings as the curtain fell.

South will undoubtedly be disappointed to take only a point from a team who remain winless this term, but March had a number of experienced campaigners and rather belied their position in the table. Well-backstopped, their defence was uncomplicatedly effective, but South will regret not making more of their fifteen to twenty scoring chances, which included five short corners. On the credit side, the chances were made in the first place and, importantly, the defence, though lacking the parentally pre-empted Jim Thorpe on this occasion, performed very solidly once more. South still boast the second-best defensive record in the league and, with keeper Parker on fine form and a core of three experienced, versatile defenders supported by a number of very able deputies to call on, this remains a major strength.

South hope that next week's game against Nomads, who are clearly no pushovers despite the odd adverse result, will see the twine twanging again - at the right end of the pitch, of course.