EPL Week 20 round up

SWINDON, UK – After the weekend’s games Milton Keynes’s Barry Hollyhead moved up the Top Netminders’ chart to number three with a near 92% save rate. Bison Davey Lawrence moved up a tad too so now above the magic 90% line while Manchester’s Steve Fone slid to number ten. Overall team netminding is a different matter with the Flames currently on top. Also with the Flames Neil Liddiard and Bison Chris Wiggins both entered the bottom rungs of the Top Ten British Penalty Receivers, but at around half the penalty minute total of top man Leigh Jamieson of the Lightning. The Top Ten British Points Scorers chart is dominated by Manchester’s Tony Hand and Adam Walker, while Aaron Nell of the Wildcats has now entered at the bottom. Not a lot of change in the overall Points Scorers chart, apart from Martin Masa of Guildford entering at the foot. A aron Nell is also back in the overall Top Ten Goal Scorers chart, but at an improved joint number seven with Phoenix’s Adam Walker, Jets’ Peter Pljacek, and Bison’s Steve Moria.

And there’s more because Nell is also at joint top with Adam Walker of the Top Ten British Goal Scorers chart. On the assists front, Flames Lukas Smital has entered the overall chart and Jets’ Dan Davis has replaced Adam Walker. Onwards and in a rare midweek game the Lightening beat the Phantoms 3-0. Also mid-week British forward Shaun Thompson rejoined Basingstoke Bison from Hull for his third spell at the club, and a few days later Romford netminder Joe Myers was released and immediately snapped up by the Jets. Not much else made the headlines this week, but the weekend games made up for it with a couple of great results. First off the Flames on Saturday gave the Phoenix a good seeing-to at home reinforcing their current wobbly period despite the return of Andre Payette from his 2-game suspension. And then Sunday, the Flames destroyed Romford winning by nine goals. The Phoenix did little to enhance their reputation the following evening when held to a 5 to 4 win over the much weaker Bees who actually managed to level the scores twice. Slough, meanwhile grabbed two more wins, first with a twelve to one annihilation of visiting Romford, and then an impressive away win at Sheffield.Top placed Lightning also continued on their merry way with two wins, first comfortably at Swindon and then at home to Basingstoke. Bison, though, now with new signing Shaun Thompson, but mainly in the form of four goals from Ondrej Lauko had managed to dissect the Scimitars on Saturday. So no real surprises at the top of the table, but the Wildcats had a rare away win with a 4-2 victory over the Phantoms. Peterborough boss Doug Irwin, or should I say now ex-boss because he was sacked yesterday, was replaced by his assistant coach Tim Peacock, who had a far from promising start to his coachship with the worst home game of the season. And talking of coaches, Wildcats’ boss Ryan Aldridge, fresh from being out in the cold following his eight-game ban, stayed benchside in collar and tie having announced he is giving up skating to concentrate on coaching. Aldridge also announced there would be no more signings at the Swindon team this season meaning the roster will stay at fifteen rather than an original eighteen. In a similar vein Bees boss Claude Dumas demanded more from his home-grown talent stating that with the player-signing deadline this weekend, his team cannot rely on their top Czech forwards, Jaroslav Cesky and Michal Pinc.So with the dust settling from the weekend’s games and all the top teams winning we are left with a seven point spread across the top four teams with the Lightning still enjoying a four-point buffer with the Flames and Phoenix both on fifty-two points in second. Mid-table the Phantoms and Scimitars are now partners on 35 points and lower still the Wildcats have latched on to eighth place Bees making the final play-off spot still wide open. Can’t wait to see what next weekend brings!
 
Contact the author Bill.Collins@Prohockeynews.com