Parrish hails record breaking Smith

GILLINGHAM, UK – When the then, newly appointed Invicta Dynamos coach Kevin Parrish’s phone rang in 2004, he would have had no idea that the player on the other end of the line would have such a major impact on the next seven seasons of senior hockey at the Gillingham Ice Bowl.
Fast forward to 2010, and the Dynamos fans were up on their feet applauding a familiar sight. Arms aloft, the Mo’s number 26 reeled away from the Swindon net to be smothered by delighted team mates. In the context of the one sided game the goal meant very little, but those inside the building knew they were witnessing a small piece of Dynamos history.

 
By finishing his breakaway goal in familiar fashion, the enigmatic Andy Smith cemented his place at the top of the all time scorers list for the Kent based Dynamos with an impressive 319 goals and 291 assists in 220 games for the club.
“Its a massive achievement to lead a team in all time points” admitted Dynamos Head Coach Kevin Parrish. “Andy came into the set up at the same time I started my coaching career at Invicta. I had near enough a full roster at the time when I had a call from Smithy asking if he could come and play for his local team again (Smith had been playing at Guildford)”
“I asked people about him and the feed back I got was 100% positive, the trouble I had was trying to fit him in to the roster. He came up to the first session we had and ten minutes into it the number 26 was his. He had unbelievable speed, hands and an eye for the goal I hadn’t seen in a British player in a long time”
Smith went on to score 29 goals and 28 assists in his first season with the team as the Dynamos went unbeaten in the 2004/05 regular season, and lifted the league title ahead of Oxford City Stars. Every season since, Smith has been a near permanent fixture in the top three scorers in the league as the Dynamos have enjoyed consecutive league titles to the present season.
 
Despite the trophies and the personal accolades, Smith has frustrated with a seeming lack of ambition and at times commitment, with occasional hiccups at the business end of the season being attributed to the Dynamos best player, arguably going missing.
“Lots has been said about Smithy over the seasons that his commitment hasn’t always been the best” explained 35 year old Parrish, a former Dynamo player himself. “I think Smithy will be the first to put his hands up and tell you the same. But he was young and going through life changes”
“Over the past three seasons Smithy has shown that he has matured not only as a hockey player, but as a person as well. This summer was a massive turning point in his life with the birth of his Daughter Ellie”
Following the Swindon game, Parrish presented the proud new father with a bottle of champagne on the ice in front of the Invicta faithful. It was a poignant moment to mark a fantastic achievement and it was only right that the pair were captured on film given that they have shared six League championships, two Play-Off championships and two National championships together.
   
“Presenting Smithy with the champagne was a special moment for me” said Parrish. “I’ve seen him get his first point right up to the leading point, and what pleased me the most was the response from his team mates”
“Most of the team is new and never played with him before, but every guy knew what it meant to him and it showed after the break away goal was scored, the whole team left the bench to go and celebrate with him”
With the important milestone reached, Parrish and Smith must now focus on securing yet another league title amidst tough competition. The Dynamos sit in second place, three points behind leaders Wightlink Raiders, but with four games in hand. Aside from a few fixtures, the competitiveness of the league has proven a different prospect from past seasons in which the Dynamos would normally lose only a couple of games over the whole year.
With fourteen games gone, the Kent side have already drawn twice and lost one game, a stat that would have been unthinkable in previous seasons such has been the team’s dominance at this level.
“The league is so strong any team on any day could beat anyone and that shows with some of the results this season” said Parrish. “I still read some forums and I feel that the ENL doesn’t get the respect it deserves. Ok its not up there with the likes of Guildford, Basingstoke, Manchester and Milton Keynes, but play two imports on two with some of the bottom teams of the EPL with the top four in the ENL and I’m sure some great hockey will be seen, with a few upsets on the way”

Whilst the likes of Smith may be a familiar figure to Parrish and the Dynamos fans, this year’s roster appears markedly different from past seasons. Long serving players Grant Baxter, Anthony Leone and AJ Smith headed for pastures new with Romford Raiders, Shane Kemp, Jack Tarczycki and Joe Johnston returned to Streatham amongst other departures leaving a busy summer of recruitment for the Dynamos management.
“A lot of new faces came into the club and it was time to make that change” explained Parrish, now in his eighth season with the club. “We needed to grow with the league and take into account the calibre of players the other teams were recruiting. Speed was needed, and with speed younger legs had to be found. I didn’t think that I would be looking at 14 changes however”
Although the season is still young, some of these changes already appear fruitful. Aside from the usual bucket load of goals from Smith, young Callum Fowler and Liam Chong have shown that they will contribute heavily up front in terms of points this season.
The two Canadian imports Dan Calitri and Daniel Borges have begun to settle into life in England, and gritty Welshman Cory Watkins has endeared himself to the Ice Bowl faithful with some chippy displays.
 
A lack of familiarity can often bring new challenges to any hockey coach and the new recruits have given Parrish a fresh impetus, not to mention a fresh approach to handling team affairs.
“We are a young side now and my coaching style has had to adapt” admitted Parrish. “Before I was the type of coach to go in and throw bottles, smash sticks and give guys the hair dryer treatment. That just wouldn’t work with our team this season. They need guidance and a pat on the back”
“I think the main thing this season is to keep the boys playing with a smile on their face to get the most out of them. I’m enjoying working with these guys, they want to learn and you can see that they are striving to play at the highest possible level”
The Dynamos now face two road games in succession with a trip to Milton Keynes this weekend followed by what should be a relatively simple fixture in Swindon just under a week later.
Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com