DURHAM, UK – Billingham Stars enjoyed a remarkable first campaign back in competitive hockey as the Teessiders were able to life the ENL North (Division 1) title ahead of a clutch of established teams including the Whitley Warriors, Blackburn Hawks and Telford Titans.
Stars number 1 netminder James Flavell kept a record of the final few weeks of the season to provide us with an insight into how his side were able to come out on top.
“After a great start to the season we were holding a 7-point advantage with a game in hand over our closest rivals at the Christmas break. In the weeks that followed we struggled to really get things together. Frustrations grew as we were unable to find the net. Each game was turning into a battle and it was tough to drop points when we were putting everything into our games.
“Our advantage over our rivals was cut significantly after a string or bad results and the league was thrown wide open again for the likes of Blackburn, Whitley and Telford.
“Of course, part of this issue was that other teams were beginning to play some of their best hockey. Blackburn were seemingly unbeatable during the first couple of months of the year and Whitley were showing their character in grinding out some great results.
“With a good pre-season, we had started our campaign at full speed with a slight jump on other teams. We had a lot of players battling for spots so training sessions were high tempo and come the weekend, our 4 equally matches lines would go on to cause problems for other teams.
“With a spell of injuries in our line-up matched with the improving play of other steams, the closing half of the season would be much tougher. We would be unable to string the same sort of results together however we did remain front-runners with a clear sight on the title.
“With a weekend off before facing the Warriors for what was sure to be a critical encounter, the Stars took to Hollywood Bowl for some team building. I managed to tear my Levi’s to a state beyond repair before we hit the town to celebrate our bowling prowess. Coach Stephen Foster wasn’t in such high spirits after the top seed was unable to make an impact on the bowling scoreboard, squeezed out by a younger and more handsome bowling prospect Stars number 13 (James himself).
“Back on to the ice – The build up to the away clash with Whitley (on March 4th) is what the league is all about, with players and fans anticipating another great encounter. Having played for the Warriors for the past two seasons I always look forward to facing them. Full of the usual derby grit and with Whitley in good form in second place, the result was crucial to both team’s pursuit of the title.
“We came out flying in the first period and went 2-0 up. A timely goal towards the end of the 1st for the Warriors stunted our momentum though and as the game went on the Whitley played a strong part in what turned out to be a fair result. Losing the 2-goal lead was definitely a big knock at the time though and to most of us it felt like a loss.
“The tie meant neither team had really made a huge impact on the title race; the final 4 or 5 games for each team would decide things. Many of the Stars took up regular Poker sessions in order to stay fresh on the eve of the final few games.
“Highlights of the poker included Adam Robinson comically losing his rag following a dealer’s mishap by James ‘Crazy Hands’ Moss. Training sessions during these few weeks were key. We knew that we needed to respond to the occasion and the focus was on putting in some great performances when they mattered most.
“The 11th of March brought the return of the Sheffield Spartans to the Forum. In what was probably one of the most entertaining games of the season as both teams put on a great display. With the majority of the early play in our favour it was surprising that Sheffield went ahead after Olli Barron capitalised well on a rare opportunity for the Spartans.
“The next time I would see some action would be during some great play on the Sheffield powerplay as they grabbed a couple of quick goals with some excellent play by Nick Manning and the effective screening of Andrew Turner. With a late surge by the Stars we were able to seal an important victory though to give us some momentum before our visit to Ice Sheffield the following week. This would prove vital as we would take a 4-1 win the following Saturday as we were accompanied by some excellent travelling fans.
“This left us needing at least a draw going into the following night’s game against Trafford to claim the League Title with one league game still remaining. Trafford had narrowly missed out on a play-off spot so we were hoping the Metro’s wouldn’t be overly interested in the outcome. They came out flying though, and ready to prove a point about their progress made this year.
“The first period ended 0-0 with lots of pressure by the Metros in front of yet another great crowd at the Forum. The second would see Trafford take a 2-1 lead, this included a blistering one-time finish by Trafford’s Max Drakely catching me deep in the paint.
“We were heading into the last period with one thing in mind; win the period and we take the league title. It wasn’t until the closing stages of the game that we eventually got another past Tom Macdonald who was in fine form in the Metros net. Captain Paul Windridge provided a lovely set up to Ritchie Thornton who finished high on the short side for what held out to be the league title-winning goal.
“Celebrations continued long after the game with many of the fans joining in on the action. Champagne, beers and cigars flowed seamlessly into a justifiably rough start to Monday morning. Overall, we played with great consistency over the season and came back strong when we needed to most. Great support by fans both home and away allowed us to play our part in some thrilling games. Well done to the management, coaches, fans and players!…and Jed, the bussy.”
Many thanks to James for taking the time out to keep this account of the final few weeks of the campaign. We wish him and his side all the best for the up coming play offs.
Images courtesy of Colin Lawson @ http://www.icehockeymedia.co.uk/
Contact the author – chris.mackenzie@prohockeynews.com
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