PETERBOROUGH, UK – The Peterborough Islanders ice hockey club are delighted to welcome back Richard Wheatley as a team coach for the coming season. Wheatley helped coach the team for part of the 2009/2010 campaign, and will work alongside Player Coach Ross Mackintosh for the 2010/2011 season.
“I am very happy Rich will be joining us for another season,” Mackintosh said. “Rich brings with him a wealth of knowledge of both the sport and the local hockey scene, and having him on board to help coach the team will allow me to concentrate more on my own game as well.”
Wheatley also expressed his happiness at returning.
“It was an honour to be asked back, and I am pleased to be back,” Wheatley said. “Ross and I have worked together with the South Eastern Conference junior team over the past 12 months and have built up a good understanding which I feel bodes well for the coming season.
“We are looking forward to putting the team together and moving forward. We want a team that can grow and become stronger, and we believe we can find the right mix of youth and experience to achieve our goals. It’s an exciting time to be part of the Islanders setup.”
Wheatley was also hopeful the team could work closely with the Peterborough junior setup this season, which has previously produced Great Britain internationals Craig Peacock and David Clarke.
“We’ll be looking to work with the Peterborough Phantoms under-18 team,” Wheatley said.
“We want to bring through local talent and give some of the young stars of tomorrow a taste of senior hockey in the UK. We had great success last season with players like Zandy Cleaves and we’ll be looking to build on that this year,” added Mackintosh.
The Islanders are currently awaiting news on their 2010/2011 schedule, with the EIHA likely to announce the fixtures in the next couple of weeks. The city side will be tested against a number of teams this year, including Basingstoke, Isle of Wight based Vectis Tigers and Cardiff.
Contact the author: rob.mcgregor@prohockeynews.com
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