The Fly 2026 Week 1 Round Up: Sixes at Stockport
The Fly 2026 provided two days of shocks and changes in the opening weekend at Stockport Lacrosse Club, the oldest continuously running club in the world.
As the Fly visited Stockport Lacrosse Club for the first time, the oldest continuously running club in the world celebrating 150 years this summer, we were treated to nail-biters, overtime winners and new rules shaking up the competition
For the sixth edition of the The Fly we saw a new rule introduced for the very first time – the GameChanger – a single two-minute period for each team where goals are worth double.
With the latest stipulation, in addition to the immense quality of the squads and coaching staff, it made for an eye-catching first weekend.
MEN
Hustle topped the table after a perfect start to their 2026 campaign, beating all three teams in dramatic fashion, with Tom Bracegirdle leading the charge as top goalscorer with 13 to his name.
The most notable of wins was their first, turning round a five-point deficit to beat Rise in overtime, Grunde Otnes scoring the decisive goal in a rapid attack from the restart.
2024 and 2025 winners Forge made a steady start to their title defence, closing out their fixture list with the largest winning gap of the weekend, as they beat Rise 21-11.
Nick DeCaprio netted six times in that match, taking his talents to second in the top goalscoring chart with a tally of 12, a feat that proved his worth as Nathan Hunt’s first pick of the draft.
Rise suffered the most up-and-down weekend in the men’s division, as they registered just one win amongst their tight defeats to both Forge and Hustle.
All-time top goalscorer Alex Russell shone again in his side’s only victory against Swift, scoring four times to make sure Rise didn’t leave the weekend empty-handed in his return to yellow colours for the first time since the inaugural 2021 edition.
No.1 pick William Baxter proved his worth in goal for Swift repeatedly in the opening fixtures, but time ran out for his side to rectify last year’s fourth-place finish, as they ended the weekend bottom once more as the only men’s team without a win from their first three games.
Despite Baxter’s performances, Swift’s campaign so far has been overshadowed by the agonisingly close nature of each loss so far, something they will need to turn around in two weeks’ time in London.
Men’s Results
Forge 15-13 Swift
Hustle 17-16 Rise (OT)
Swift 16-17 Rise
Forge 17-18 Hustle
Forge 21-11 Rise
Hustle 18-16 Swift
WOMEN
Swift Women couldn’t have had a more opposing two days to the men’s side if they tried, ending the opening weekend in first place with a 100% record.
Similarly to the men it was their first pick who was the stand-out performer, Minty Loxton scoring 13 times, including eight in the 22-15 win over Rise to finish top of the scoring chart.
After landing in three out of the last four finals without victory, Hustle made another start to The Fly worthy of recognition in their bid to finally take the title.
Freya Moody’s seven-goal game in the win over Forge was the highlight of their weekend, only falling short at the feet of Swift in a run that will otherwise have filled Bryony Minetti and her side with confidence.
Unfortunately for Rise they fell to a weekend as inconsistent as the men’s team. Loxton’s emphatic game caused them to fall to back-to-back losses on opening day, a start far from ideal for a side still looking for their first title.
They did manage to overcome Forge with a 14-10 win on the Sunday, led by 2021 All-Star Ellie Jones, who netted four goals as Rise finished third in the standings heading into London’s finals.
Forge completed a weekend of shocks when they finished their opening three games without a win. Following on from their four consecutive The Fly titles, Kate Nelson-Lee’s side couldn’t get going in Stockport.
In their first two matches, GameChangers from Swift and Hustle were too well-timed for Forge to keep up with the scoreline, causing a frustrating weekend to come to a demoralising end.
Women’s Results
Forge 8-11 Swift
Hustle 13-10 Rise
Swift 22-15 Rise
Forge 13-14 Hustle
Forge 10-14 Rise
Hustle 7-12 Swift
FINALS WEEKEND
The four teams will now make the trip down to London for Finals Weekend across 30 and 31 May at Blackheath Rugby Club.
As the top two seeds from the opening weekend, Hustle Men and Forge Men will face-off in the first semi-final with a direct place in the final up for the winners.
With the double chance format giving the losers of the SF1 another opportunity to make the final later in the day all eyes turn to the Play-In game to discover their opponents.
Beforehand, the third and fourth seeds Rise and Swift will meet in the Play-In to remain in contention for the Championship and face the SF1 losers for a place in the final.
On the women’s side it will be Swift who face off with Hustle in semi-final one, with Rise set to play four-time champions Forge in the third vs fourth seed Play-In tie.
Leo Downes
The Fly