LONDON, UK – Whilst the players of MK Thunder and Streatham Redskins sat toasting the fixture computer this weekend, the rest of the league’s players were forced to skate off any Christmas excess.
 

Cardiff faced a resurgent Bracknell Hornets, with new signing Lee Cowmeadow in their line up. Not only does Cowmeadow possess one of the coolest surnames in British ice hockey, but he can play a bit too. A glance at his hockey CV suggests he enjoys moving house more than your average prisoner on the run. In no particular order he has played for Cardiff, Blackburn, Milton Keynes, Chelmsford, Romford, Guildford, Fife, Slough and Swindon amongst others.
 
Bracknell travelled to Wales brimming with confidence but found Cardiff a tough nut to crack. An early goal for the Hornets put the Devils on the back foot but they bounced back, and it was the effervescent Alan Armour who sealed the 3-1 victory with an empty netter at the end. The Hornets were missing Canadian defenseman Blair Dubyk, however the Devils were also light on defense with Brent Pope and James Manson both missing. Despite these absentees both teams played an extremely tight defensive game and Cardiff will be delighted with the two points.
 
An eagle eyed Wightlink official emailed me last week, to point out that James Udell was not suspended for the Raiders trip to Invicta. Maybe they can thank me for confusing Invicta coach Kevin Parrish, into thinking he was facing a weakened squad.
 
Wightlink did actually start with a weakened team but only because player coach Jeremy Cornish was delayed reaching the game. By the time he did step onto the ice his team were 3-1 up, after taking full advantage of an early five minute powerplay. John Sarno the main beneficiary of Tim Smith’s high sticks’ penalty, with two goals.
 
Despite the tight first period ending 3-3, the Mo’s took full control as the Raiders ran out of steam. By the end of the game, Nolan Boike had bagged four goals, but it was hat trick hero Andy Smith who picked up the man of the match award in the 8-4 win for the home side. Apparently Mark Williams and Jeremy Cornish had words but to Cornish’s credit he didn’t get involved. I have said before that Wightlink need Cornish on the ice rather than sitting penalties/serving suspensions, regardless of what some fans say about his ability. Sarno failed to build on his good start to the game as he was kicked out for abuse of official. I would imagine the home fans gave him a rapturous send off on the way to the locker room, bearing in mind his antics last season.
 
Wightlink now have the perfect opportunity to bounce back at home next week, as they face struggling MK Thunder. It is a game they should win comfortably if the form guide is anything to go by.
 
The ‘Stormin’ Norman Pinnington to Haringey rumour resurfaced last week. Norm trained with us last season when I was playing at the Palace, and he is still in great shape and would be an excellent addition for the Greyhounds. I suspect owner Nick Rothwell will have to flash the cash if he wants to secure his man though.
 
Pinnington isn’t the only player linked with the Greyhounds recently, but they didn’t unveil any new players in their line up for the trip to Oxford. After a close first period, the City Stars moved up a gear and won the game 7-1 courtesy of two goals from housewives favourite Dean Francis and one goal each for Shurmer, Elliott, Abu Saada, Taylor and Oliver. Haringey’s only goal came from new signing Adam Grey.
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The main talking point of the game was not the impressive performance from the sparkling Stars, but the antics of Haringey’s Dave Richards.
 
Love him or loathe him (and for most people it’s the latter), he certainly gives me something to write about every week. This time it was Oxford’s Mike Lucas who got hold of the cheeky Londoner and managed to get a couple of punches in, to the joy of the partisan crowd.
 
Shortly afterwards, a tired Richards had his gloves off again, but this time against Andy Cox who is a cracking player, but not a fighter. Coxy apparently did quite well in the bout. The Oxford fans enjoyed giving Richards dogs abuse not only within the rink but also online where they described him as a waste of space and spineless amongst other things. There was even a YouTube link of Lucas’s triumph circulated across the net before the end of the night. Not many ENL players provoke that kind of reaction.
 
An expected, yet convincing win for the City Stars, however keep an eye on Haringey over the coming weeks. Rothwell is rumoured to be making moves in the transfer market, and from what I hear, the Greyhounds will be strengthened significantly over the coming weeks (probably just in time to play the Redskins). I have also heard that the team get free pizza after every game, and my former Oxford team mate Mark Krater did jokingly ask me the other day, if I was considering a return to the Haringey as a result of Rothwell’s new post game policy.
 
Peterborough Islanders travelled down the M11 to face a Chelmsford side desperate to bounce back after last weekend’s poor results in Bracknell and Streatham.
 
By all accounts the standard of play was lacklustre and the game dull. The Essex side won 6-2 with Darren Brown securing the Man of the match award, with two goals.  Simon Wren was the Peterborough hero again, as he produced save after save to keep the score respectable for the Islanders.
 
The Islanders need to add more bodies before deadline day if they want to stage a remarkable comeback and avoid relegation. As for Chelmsford I would guess that this win was not as convincing as they probably hoped it would be, after a few poor results lately.  
 
It wouldn’t be Christmas without a Christmas story so I thought I would indulge in a trip down memory lane (not again I hear you shout), to finish this week’s round up.  
 
It was the cold Boxing day of 2002, when I drove from County Durham all the way down to Essex to play for Haringey Racers against Romford Raiders. The 500 mile round trip contributed to probably one of the worst days I have had in hockey.
 
It took five hours to get there and I snapped both my sticks (three hundred pounds worth) early on, and was forced to buy a spare from a team mate after the club refused to get me a replacement; ‘Go have a look in the shop’ was the helpful advice.
 
To add to the misery we lost 17-2 or something ridiculous like that and half the team didn’t show up. My only chance of the game came with around five minutes left. In a rare burst of speed I got clear of the Raiders defence but predictably as I reached the net, the pass was at my skates rather than my stick blade, so under pressure I volleyed the puck past the goalie and into the net with my boot. The referee was not fooled and washed out the goal to the delight of the Romford faithful, who despite the scoreline where as abusive as ever, shouting all manner of insults through the netting. To add to my pain, the announcer quipped; ‘wrong sport mate’ across the PA to reduce the home crowd to hysterics.
 
As I travelled back up North to continue my holiday with family, I wished I had just pulled a sickie and saved myself the £400 the whole affair cost.
 
There will be more glamorous tales from my halcyon EPL days over the rest of the season but for now I will leave you with a quote from the legendary Jacques Plante, who clearly never had to deal with the Romford DJ:
 
“How would you like a job where, every time you make a mistake, a big red light goes on and 18,000 people boo”
 
Thanks for reading and stay safe.
 
Carrsy
Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com

LONDON, UK – My enthusiasm for a road trip has never faltered despite my otherwise hatred of long distance bus travel. Put me on a National Express coach to Inverness and I will hate every mile, however put me on a hockey bus for the same journey and I will be counting down the days in anticipation.

In my first year of senior hockey I had the pleasure of travelling up and down the UK with Billingham, who because of their location in the North East of England, had to travel big distances for away games. It was these road trips that introduced me to the mad zany world of the hockey bus. I don’t know whether it was the trip to Trafford when the team were setting their body hair alight for fun, or maybe the trip to Solihull where the senior players sat on the roof of the bus, smoking, whilst dangling their legs through the open sun roof, as we travelled down the motorway, that really made these trips special. The trip to Swindon was amusing if only for the fact some players filled a slot machine with fireworks then when the service station manager showed up, one player pretended to be blind whilst the other acted as his guide dog. They kept it up for at least twenty minutes but the police were called and we nearly missed face off. By the end of the season we had to travel down to Chelmsford on possibly the worst bus I have seen outside of Eastern Europe, some of the seats had no covers and were basically metal mesh. They were the only bus company that would transport us, and this after poor John Rogers (the owner) had to beg for help after all other bus companies in the North East refused. We lost the game down in Essex but we didn’t return empty handed, as the team ransacked a garage of pornographic magazines and buckets of flowers on the way home, much to the delight of waiting wives and girlfriends who all received a fresh bouquet as the bus finally parked up in Billingham. Funnily enough that Billingham team made the play offs that season and did quite well with all things considered. Proof that you don’t have to be mad to play hockey, but it does help. Twelve years later I boarded the bus to Peterborough with the Streatham Redskins armed with a copy of the Independent newspaper and some Maltesers. More evidence that my days as a hockey player are numbered or indeed that I am very boring. The bus was the usual mix of card schools, hockey chat and of course the obligatory American comedy movie playing on the TV. The anti climax hit me as the bus rolled into Peterborough ice rink and the players all rushed off to get their kit. It was another game spectating from the bench for me and I have to say that as soon as I stepped into the rink, I just didn’t want to be there. It was too depressing not being able to play. As for the game, the Redskins played rather well. We had three decent lines and bossed the game from start to finish, winning 7-1. I have to say Peterborough were very poor, and they are certainties for last place this year in my opinion. They started to lose the plot towards the end of the game and with all due respect they have a look of a recreational team about them this year. What has happened to the promising juniors and the successful team they had a couple of years ago? We on the other hand, had seven different scorers which was good to see. New signing Kent Johnson impressed and was awarded man of the match. The journey home was a muted affair despite the win. The supporters club amazingly provide a buffet for the journey home and we all sat back munching mini pizza whilst watching ‘Borat the Movie‘. Clearly that’s the way these Londoners roll and that’s probably why they get nice comfortable buses with facilities rather than a shed on wheels with no toilet. Sunday was branded as ‘Judgement Day’ by the Chelmsford Chieftains who rekindled their rivalry with the Invicta Dynamos at the Riverside. It was the chance for gritty Scot Dean Birrell to lead his hard working Chieftains side to victory over pin striped Kevin Parrish and his ‘galacticos’ Dynamos’ side. As I predicted last week, it was Invicta who narrowly won and took the spoils with a last gasp winner from Andy Smith making it 3-4 to the Kent side. Dzurko and Giles dropped the gloves to add to the excitement for the 700 plus crowd. It would have been better for the league if the Chieftains had won, but it now looks like the Dynamos juggernaut is on course for another league title. In Cardiff there was more drama as the recently bolstered Oxford City Stars came to town. In a game that could have gone either way, it was the Welsh side that sneaked a 5-4 victory with Gareth Dixon getting the man of the match award. Oxfords goalie Glen Jackson was taken to hospital injured, so hopefully he will be ok. Returning from his loan at Swindon, Juraj Rusic was awarded man of the match for Oxford. The Stars will be bitterly disappointed with this defeat as they look to catch up to Cardiff and Chelmsford in the pack behind Invicta. New Greyhounds owner Nick Rothwell celebrated Haringey’s first win in a long time as they beat Peterborough 8-2 at Alexandra Palace, to round off a miserable weekend for the Islanders. Scott Beeson scored a hat trick for the Greyhounds who now have a few tough fixtures ahead. It will be interesting to see if their players fancy road trips to Cardiff, Invicta and Oxford over the coming weeks. One other point of note was Haringey’s Dave Richards pre match ‘Heads up’ warning to Peterborough’s Steve Maile via social networking site Facebook. Nothing came of it in the end, but Richards did find himself sitting a ten minute misconduct at one point. After the previous night’s win, we capitulated at home to Bracknell Hornets. The Hornets are a very good team but no team should be losing 12-1 in their own barn. A bad day at the office with more questions being raised about officiating. It is a tough job wearing the stripes but I think the teams are unanimous in the opinion that the standard of refereeing has dropped this season. Whether this is due to an influx of new officials I am not sure. There are some good referees around and hopefully things will improve over the next few weeks. We will be looking to bounce back next week as we visit my old team Oxford. It is another one of those fixtures that I would love to play in but hopefully my patience will be rewarded soon. Thanks for reading and stay safe. Carrsy Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com

LONDON, UK – I noted in last week’s column that the league was at a crossroads. Seven days after penning the warning, disaster struck in more than one rink this weekend. The impact of the fallout remains to be seen, however it seems difficult to draw positives from the current state of affairs.

This obviously places me in a difficult position of trying to be objective in my text, whilst at the same time, limit the damage to the credibility of the ENL. The primary motivation of writing this column has been to boost the appeal and coverage of our league along with the teams and players that compete in it.   Sadly there is no way of describing this weekend’s events other than farcical. Of the seven fixtures scheduled this weekend, only three were played, and two of these were heavy one sided affairs between badly matched teams. Cardiff and Chelmsford provided the only real highlight of Saturday as they battled out a closely contested affair in Wales. At 3-3 after the second period the Chieftains took the lead, only for the Devils to hit back and then win the game 5-4 courtesy of a screamer from Steve Fisher. This goal prompted angry scenes which spilled over into the handshakes. Regular readers of the column will be unsurprised to hear that both goalies (Mike Brabon and Andy Moffat) had a go at each other, but it was the Chelmsford stopper who earned a whopping ten plus game plus match from the referee Riddell. Moffat will probably be due a ban of at least three games for that indiscretion, so Chelmsford coach Dean Birrell will have to test Ben Clements between the pipes over the coming weeks. Streatham’s decent run of form came to an abrupt halt on the Isle of Wight as we took a pasting from the Wightlink Raiders. The home side were rampant as they hit nine goals past the Redskins with Louis Lockwood’s consolation goal the only reply. Former Solent defenseman Alex Murray played as a makeshift forward for the Raiders, and his two goals and two assists earned him the man of the match award. Nolan Boike must be wondering what type of league he is playing in, following the Invicta’s 14-0 road win at Peterborough. The Islanders latest capitulation on their home ice was good news for the American as he notched four goals for the Mo’s. Andy Smith refused to let Boike grab all of the headlines as he posted an impressive 2+5.
Bracknell Hornets were left seething as Haringey failed to put out a team for their fixture in Berkshire. It is unclear what has happened to the Greyhounds as they subsequently cancelled Sunday’s fixture against Invicta. It was probably for the best as I would have banked on Boike and company enjoying another large point haul. In all seriousness though, Haringey are in serious trouble. Rumours of financial problems, added to player walkouts, mid season coaching changes and the fact their website was hacked by some Brazilians (no I’m not joking), all adds up to bad news. It remains to be seen how the league deal with the cancelled fixtures. It is well known the league hierarchy don’t hold Haringey in their list of favoured clubs so don’t be surprised to see their expulsion soon. Sunday also saw Streatham and Milton Keynes enjoy a cosy afternoon watching the Eastenders’ Omnibus, as their fixture was cancelled due to a fault with the ice plant at the Thunderdome. The only game that did go ahead on Sunday was in Chelmsford, as the Chieftains took on the Oxford City Stars. In another cracking game involving the Essex side, the Stars came from 4-0 down to tie the game only for Jerry Pavlus to score the winner two minutes from time. Chieftains enforcer BT Williams dropped the gloves and took on Stars skipper Darren Elliott (who is not a fighter) and then Richard Wojciack fought Chieftains starlet Aaron Connolly. A tidy win for the young Chelmsford forward and as their announcer said “Something to tell your friends about at school tomorrow”. A good win for the Chieftains to bounce back from the defeat in Cardiff the previous night, however they are going to need to be more consistent if they want to keep up with their friends from Kent. Not a good weekend for the league and now a busy few days for the EIHA. I am not sure what the best way to deal with the situation is, as all clubs will be affected whatever decision is made. Hopefully Jan Bestic can get the Greyhounds’ house in order and keep Haringey afloat. If he does, then the players need to take a hard look at themselves and the coach needs to scout for replacements. Thanks for reading and stay safe. Carrsy Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com

LONDON, UK – I have to start this week’s column with a confession. You see I cannot go to the bathroom without some sort of reading material to pass the time. Some call it disgusting; I prefer to think of it as multi tasking and it has been a peculiar habit of mine since I was a child. Like anyone interested in British Hockey, I have bought the Ice Hockey Annual by Stewart Roberts every year religiously since the late eighties. It was these small books that I used to read cover to cover whilst sat on the throne, reading about the many clubs and characters across the British ice hockey leagues. One of the great things about these pre-internet books is that you can see who is still playing now, and who you have played against over the years. Take the Peterborough Islanders outstanding goalie on Sunday, Simon Wren. He was actually playing senior hockey in 1992 for the Norwich and Peterborough Pirates in the old British Premier league when I was playing pee wee hockey for Durham. I have played against the Islanders Ross Mackintosh for the past six years but only when I leafed through the 1998/99 annual did I realise that he was in the Chelmsford team that beat my Billingham team in the play off semi final that season. He was their top scorer that year whereas I was a face caged rookie just pleased to be on the bench for the Teesiders. Despite their age it was clear from our game against the Islanders that both players are a cut above their team mates. Wren was immense in between the pipes and Mackintosh has the skill and poise that many players would love to have. They are from a bygone age and whilst Mackintosh can be a cheap dirty irritant at times, he is a class player who would walk in to most ENL line ups. Streatham should have buried the game early on but with Wren on top form we huffed and puffed to a 3-1 victory. Bearing in mind we were written off as relegation certainties at the start of the season, I will take the two points regardless. The previous night we had taken a weak bench to Cardiff and the hosts rightly took full advantage by spanking us 21-3. The only winners in games like these are those that pad their personal stats and I am afraid the losers are the paying fans who turn up to watch. When Cardiff looked at our team in the warm up, their eyes must have lit up, although that still doesn’t explain why Brent Pope felt the need to fire a puck down the ice towards Roman Culik as the two teams were leaving the ice. Do you really need to intimidate a clearly weak team when you have the skills and experience of Mr Pope? Also playing on Saturday were the Wightlink Raiders hosting Bracknell. The Raiders are seemingly in disarray since the ‘Palacegate’ incident and they desperately needed the two points against a Bracknell side still buoyed after last weekend’s victories over Invicta and Haringey. The Raiders are short up front and this situation was exacerbated by the departure of Kent Johnson earlier in the week. Jeremy Cornish did however bring in defence man Luke Reynolds fresh from a season in the AHL (No, not that one, but the Australian Hockey League), and the coach has also ordered extended training sessions in a bid to turn things around. Sadly the Raiders went down again on home ice with Bracknell’s Craig Tribe getting a hat trick in a 6-3 win for the visitors. I assume Wightlink do have a budget to play with so it will be interesting to see what changes Cornish makes to his squad over the coming days.   Milton Keynes ran Chelmsford close in the Thunderdome, with the visitors hanging on for a 6-4 win. Ross Brears scored two for Chelmsford and Tom Roles got two for the Thunder. Jacob Heron missed a penalty shot to add to the Thunders frustration. On Sunday the Thunder travelled down to Kent to take on Invicta but took a weakened bench. The Dynamos only iced one import in the absence of Johan Stenvall and boy did it show. Only the ten goals for the home side and none for the visitors in a game that saw Andy Smith and Elliott Andrews get two each for the Mo’s. Not to worry though, Kevin Parrish is set to add a new import to his stuttering top of the table team ready for the return leg next week. I read with interest the season review of Invicta in the aforementioned 1998/99 Ice Hockey Annual. Eleven years later the statement would still be relevant and indeed their line up included a much younger looking Elliott Andrews and Kevin Parrish: “The frozen backwaters of Kent once again echoed to the sounds of a noisy and contented arena as a successful team put the Medway towns back on the ice hockey map’ Alexandra Palace is rarely a contented arena; however with the home side 3-1 to the good after the second period, the long suffering Haringey fans must have felt the team were on course for two points. Sadly the Greyhounds hit penalty trouble, allowing the Oxford City Stars a 4-0 third period to seal the game 5-3. Sergei Smollenko must be tearing his hair out as his side took 95 minutes in penalties including a match penalty for Liam Doyle who may need a new stick after taking out his frustration on the Grade two listed building. The most exciting game on Sunday was at the Riverside ice rink where Chelmsford took on Cardiff. In a game that gave the league some much needed credibility after some one-sided affairs, both teams ground out a close fought 2-2 draw. Cardiff’s Alan Armour seemed pretty pleased with his side’s performance: “Although I don’t think either team really hit top gear, I think we will be happier with a point than them. Particularly as we had to kill some big penalties late in the game and if not for some woeful finishing and some great saves by bubbles (Brabon), they could have taken both points. I think we surprised them as I think they assumed they would beat us at their place quite easily, “Both Chieftains goals were on the power play and they do play that very well utilising their big import D man in the middle, but I think 5 on 5 we were the more comfortable team. We certainly play much faster skilled but still physical hockey. Obviously it helps when we don’t take penalties and manage to roll through our 4 lines!” Forget Sheffield Steelers v Nottingham Panthers, as next weekend the real derby of British hockey faces off down at the High Road. South v North in the capital’s only ice hockey derby match featuring Streatham Redskins and Haringey Greyhounds. Past games have seen bench clearances, fans fighting players on the ice and even a rare David Carr goal albeit for the Greyhounds! I will leave you this week with a quote featured in the 98/99 Ice Hockey Annual to show you that ENL Hockey hasn’t progressed too much. This one comes from then Peterborough Islanders coach Elwyn Dawkins: “It was annoying to suddenly find that some players couldn’t make it. It’s no good British players complaining about overseas players coming in and then not showing a full commitment themselves. It’s about making priorities. I have a job and family too, but I have to make time for hockey” Thanks for reading and stay safe. Carrsy Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com

LONDON, UK – There are some things in life that just cannot be explained. One such mystery is why in 2009, with such advances in technology, it still takes weeks to break in hockey skates. More mysterious or indeed spooky was the fact that the winning raffle ticket at our game this Halloween weekend against the Milton Keynes Thunder was number 666.

The mood was upbeat in the Redskins locker room prior to the match and this was understandable given our 2-0 victory in Milton Keynes last week. Rousing pre game speeches by the coach Barry Spours and captain Ed Koral were tempered by a bizarre cry from forward Richard Hardy who urged the team to; “Send Milton Keynes packing, back to their grid system and good night clubs”     If Hardy is a closet MK fan he certainly didn’t show it as he put in his best performance of the season alongside the brilliant pairing of Louis Lockwood and Peter Molnar. With a brace each, the Redskins first line was the difference between the two sides and the quality of the goals scored must have impressed the Streatham faithful and coach Spours. The highlight reel would certainly feature Molnar’s coast to coast effort where he finished into the top corner on his backhand, Louis Lockwood’s mid air volley for the first goal and finally Richard Hardy’s full length swan dive and subsequent slice over stranded Thunder goalie Mark Woolf for goal number six. So Milton Keynes Thunder return home after losing 6-4 but at least they have good nightlife in their city to drown their sorrows. In much the same way that many people won’t fly on Friday the 13th, I wouldn’t be too surprised if Invicta’s goalie Shane Kemp is unavailable for selection when Halloween comes around next year. Only mystical witchcraft could explain how an innocent shot off the plexi glass by Bracknell’s Matt Ovenden, took a freak bounce and ended up in the net, although less superstitious fans may point to poor rink maintenance. Poor Kemp was pulled by Kevin Parrish straight after the goal and the former Streatham goalie will be having nightmares about it I’m sure. The Witchcraft not withstanding, Ovenden’s third period strike sealed Invicta’s first loss of the season and gave the chasing pack hope of gaining ground in the league title race. Two of the aforementioned chasing pack faced each other in Cardiff on Saturday, with the home side taking on the Chelmsford Chieftains. With Cardiff looking comfortable at 4-1 up in the third, Chelmsford coach Dean Birrell must have weaved some magic as the Chieftains rallied to tie the game 4-4 courtesy of late Ross Brears goal. Danny Hammond also notched a hat trick for the visitors who must have been ecstatic with their comeback. On Sunday, Chelmsford completed a satisfying weekend by thrashing the Wightlink Raiders 8-1 in Essex. Hammond scored two more goals to make it five for the weekend and the often maligned Jerry Pavlus bagged a hat trick. It spells worrying times for the Raiders who are slowly slipping out of the title race with some suspect form on the road. Invicta bounced back with an 11-2 demolition of bottom side Peterborough Islanders in Kent. Peter Vaisenan notched four for the home side who were never in any danger of losing this game. The only surprise was that the Islanders managed to score two goals. Oxford City Stars caused the weekend’s second major surprise when they beat Cardiff 7-4 at Oxpens Road. The much anticipated return of Oxford old boys Alan Armour and Andrew Shurmer in Cardiff colours helped boost crowd numbers for this fixture, but it was their long time team mate and former colleague Grant Bailey who stole the headlines with an empty net goal to seal the win for the City Stars. Voted the leagues most hated player last season in an unofficial internet poll, Richard Wojciack (or Wo-jerk as he was dubbed at the time) scored two goals to show his value to the home team. Other scorers for Oxford included new signing Ken Forshee, Dean Francis, Darren Elliott and utility man with the tan Mark Krater. Cardiff will be unhappy at not taking advantage of Invicta’s dropped points over the weekend but they have too much quality in their line up to be ruled out this early. I said at the start of the season that consistency will be Oxfords biggest problem and it is proving to be true. They have lost close fought home games against Chelmsford and Wightlink yet have managed a victory in Bracknell and now a home win over the highly fancied Devils. Head coach Simon Anderson has a tough but not impossible task to lead the Stars to a top four finish. Bracknell made it a four point weekend with a convincing 9-2 victory over Haringey at Alexandra Palace. Hornets pair David Wride and Blair Dubyk faced their former team for the first time since quitting the Greyhounds and despite the one sided score line, this was a bad tempered affair. Greyhound’s marquee signing of the summer Perry Richardson got kicked out of the game to add to coach Sergei Smollenko’s woes. A close friend of mine remarked recently that I was turning into a bit of a misery so I thought I would save my final words this week to dish out some praise. First in line is the referee of our game on Sunday Mr Meekison. I thought he did a good job and was consistent throughout. Secondly I would like to praise the non stop drumming and chanting from the Streatham fans at the game. They have had to watch some pretty heavy defeats on the road recently so it was great to see their loyalty rewarded by the teams display. It was also important that the club put on a good show in front of some local politicians who were in attendance following the ‘Save Streatham Ice rink’ appeal. Lastly I would like to thank all the players, supporters and officials from across the league for their well wishes regarding my injury. The consultant has said December/January should be the time I can put a skate on again. I really can’t describe how happy that will make me. I would like to apologise to any one who has tried to email me following my request last week. The link has now been fixed so you should be able to contact me again. Thanks for reading and stay safe. Carrsy Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com

BRACKNELL, UK – If you type Bracknell in to a popular search engine you may stumble across some less than complimentary observations. ‘A wasted town full of chavs and scummers, it’s even worse than Southampton’ moans one website oblivious to the fact that such creatures inhabit most towns and cities across the UK and also that Southampton probably isn’t that bad. One new arrival to the Berkshire town is Canadian defence man Blair Dubyk. The Saskatoon native is no stranger to hard graft both on the ice and off it: “I worked two hours north of Fort McMurray, Alberta as a welder’s helper on a natural gas pipeline. I had to stand on a 2×2 platform handing the welder tools for five hours in minus 55 Celsius. Because I couldn’t walk around and warm up, I started to shrug my shoulders as I got cold. When I finished the weld, it took two hours of warming up before I could lower my shoulders, and for three weeks after I had a tingling sensation in my shoulder and right arm. The doctor said I had temporary nerve damage due to shrugging my shoulders so tight for so long”. Dubyk made his first appearance in the ENL for the Haringey Greyhounds last season in what turned out to be a disappointing campaign for the North London outfit. Despite offers from several teams over the summer, Dubyk opted for the switch to Bracknell and certainly hasn’t regretted it: “Coach Cox has made the switch from Haringey to Bracknell easy; in fact the whole team has made it easy. I am one of the “older” guys apart from Mark McCoy, so some of the younger guys have been asking for my Canadian expertise, like how to perfect the delivery of bone crushing open ice hits”. Despite building a strong roster the Hornets have struggled for consistency in the opening fixtures and are currently standing in fifth place with seven points. Dubyk admits that some tough fixtures and a growing injury list have not helped their cause: “We haven’t had the easiest first eight games, playing five games against three of the strongest teams in Chelmsford, Invicta, and Cardiff. Injuries have plagued the team with Grant Rounding, Jason Falsetta and Dom Hopkins all missing games. Craig Tribe returned from vacation, took a high stick in his first game and ended up with zippers”. Despite the shaky start Dubyk is confident of a strong season ahead for the Hornets:   “Invicta are once again a well oiled machine. Though I don’t think they are as strong as last year, and have stiffer competition with Cardiff and Chelmsford. I think Invicta will be much like their payroll, on top! I think we’ll be right in there with them and in the top three”. The Hornets face a tricky tie against Oxford in their next game and then a relatively easy fixture against struggling Peterborough. Dubyk and his team mates will be hoping the injury concerns ease and that no more zippers* are needed for any of them. Thanks for reading and stay safe. Carrsy * zippers are stitches apparently   Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com