ENL week 15 Round-up

LONDON, UK – If you were to look at the results of the games across the ENL this weekend, you could possibly assume it was a dull and predictable two days. Scratch under the surface of the statistics however, and you may be pleasantly surprised at how many talking points there were.  
 
Bottom of the table Peterborough Islanders announced the signing of Fraser Hendry during the week, in a move that significantly improves their roster. Sadly though, that nemesis of most club secretaries; ‘the paperwork’, didn’t go through in time for him to face Wightlink on Saturday.
 
If Wightlink were feeling smug at the Islanders misfortune, they soon had nothing to smile about themselves. The Reynolds brothers Joe and Luke

had to leave the ice after the first period when the referee discovered they were not even on the game sheet. This was after Luke had scored a goal for the Raiders, which was then chalked off as a result!
 
In the end the Raiders won convincingly, skating away with a vital 7-1 road win. John Sarno defied his critics with a hat trick for the visitors, who really needed this win after some patchy form.   
 
Haringey must be making some improvement under the ownership of Nick Rothwell’s consortium, as they finally made it to Cardiff, after cancelling the previous fixture due to a lack of players. The Greyhounds even chartered a rare team bus to the game, and it certainly paid a dividend of sorts as they restricted the home side to a 10-4 victory. Cardiff held a 4-2 lead going into the third before the Greyhounds ran out of steam and capitulated in the third. Scott Beeson continued his good form of late for the visitors with another goal. It is not often one can describe a 10-4 defeat as a good result, however in this case I would imagine the Greyhounds players and fans will be reasonably pleased.
 
Whilst I know I have mentioned him a few times lately, Greyhound Dave Richards did raise a wry smile on my face, after he responded to some criticism about him on Haringey’s official website. Ever the professional, Richards defied his online critic by posting his own riposte, describing himself (in no particular order) as a team player, an entertainer and most interestingly, an absolute nightmare to play against. He then went on to summarise that in these aspects of the game, he is ‘second to none’.
The big game of the weekend took place at the Gillingham Ice Bowl on Sunday. Invicta faced a Chelmsford side that they had only narrowly beaten seven days previous, with a last gasp goal from Andy Smith. The Chieftains were missing big defenseman Rudi Dzurko and first choice goalie Andy Moffat for this big derby game. I have to be honest and say I thought the Dynamos would win this game comfortably, however full credit goes to the Chieftains who actually took a two goal lead through Adam Copland and Darren Brown. The Dynamos hit back though, and secured a point with goals from imports Nolan Boike and Peter Vaisenan, to give a final score of 2-2. The game was attended by nearly 900 supporters which certainly bodes well for ENL hockey.
 
I spent Sunday in Oxford, where we (Streatham Redskins) faced a tough game against the much improved City Stars. Despite my Northern roots, Oxford ice rink always feels like home to me and I have many happy memories of the place and all the people there. A good set of guys in the room and a friendly bunch of supporters make the club a great place to play.
 
The 12-1 victory for the Stars was as convincing as it looks. We just couldn’t cope with speed and skill of the likes of Alan Green and Juraj Rusic, and the Stars have three very good forward lines. Both sets of fans contributed to a phenomenal atmosphere and the Redskins fans didn’t stop singing and drumming all the way through. When you get beaten that badly, it is always good to know that the fans are still right behind you.
 
With the Stars in command, goalie Glen Jackson delighted the home fans with various dance routines between whistles. Busting shapes to tunes like ‘La bamba’, ‘The twist’ and more randomly ‘Americano’ by Holly Johnson, the goalie known as Mad Dog by his team mates certainly kept the crowd entertained. As a suggestion, I would like to see the Oxford DJ play Thriller by Michael Jackson, just to see if Jackson dares moonwalk across his crease. Obviously not against us though.
Referee Ken Riddell showed a ruthlessness that seems to be common amongst referee’s this year when it comes to visor violations. Countless players have been given ten minute misconducts this season, for not pulling their visors down far enough over their face. I do think the call on Oxford’s strongman defenceman Nick Eden was a tad harsh however we all got a stark reminder of why the rule is in place earlier in the game. PoorPerry Richardson took a puck in the face, that had it been an inch higher could have seen him go the way of Kelly Youngblood (Dean Youngblood’s brother with the glass eye).
 
One other thing that made me smile was Richard Hardy’s pant covers continually falling down beneath his backside, giving him an air of UK rapper Dizzee Rascal, as he skated. I know some people from the Home Counties have an identity crisis, but I do think that Mr Hardy’s attempt to get down with the London boys is misguided, and won’t improve his skating.      
 
We have now suffered two heavy back to back defeats and face another tough test at home to Chelmsford next week. I am putting on the skates for the first time this week and hopefully I am not too far away from a return to the line up.
 
I don’t think an ENL player has ever made a GB team, howevercongratulations must go to Angela Taylor of Lee Valley Lions, Laura Saunders of Haringey Greyhounds and Laura Price of Streatham Redskins who have all been selected in the GB women’s team to face France in Dunkerque on the 21 & 22 December. I wonder if they will recreate World War II by returning home in a small boat across the channel. It would make a good story if nothing else.
 
Thanks for reading and stay safe.
 
Carrsy
Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com