Fireworks fail to light up dark times

LONDON, UK – With fireworks lighting up the sky across the UK, the NIHL had to compete for attention with some on-ice explosions and drama of its own.

Bison edge RedHawks (Rick Webb)

The week began with the desperately sad news that former Bracknell Bees defenseman David Gaborcik had died after falling from a balcony in France. The blueliner had iced for the Bees in 2016/17 and was icing with Dunkerque Corsaires this season. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and team mates at this time.

The Bees also announced that Finnish defenceman Niko Suoraniemi was leaving the club following the arrival of Swedish utility man David Millner.

“David brings speed and skill to our line-up” said Coach Doug Sheppard after handing Millner his debut last weekend.

“I was impressed with his game considering he didn’t play last season. I really liked his work ethic and only see improvement once he knocks off the rust. I would like to thank Niko for his efforts and wish him the best for the future. He was very professional and had a great attitude. With David previously playing two seasons on defence he really ticks all the boxes.”

Mo’s step things up

Invicta Dynamos stunned their supporters and wider UK hockey fans by announcing they needed crowdfunding to continue their season in the league. The Kent based club offered a range of options for fans who were able to donate, including VIP packages and a golf day with Coach Kev Parrish and defenseman Arran Strawson (no mention of a bacon sandwich included after the 9^th hole).

The news was quite rightly met with support, but also concern as the Dynamos are now the second team in the league to put out a cash appeal and we’re only just coming to November.

The Mo’s have lost three key players since the beginning of the season, all who would have been on decent incentives and none have been replaced, which makes the scenario all the more worrying given the team should technically now be under budget, not strapped for cash.

The appeal had raised the target of £5,000 at the time of writing and will likely pass this milestone. If there is one thing you cannot accuse UK hockey fans of, it’s not rallying around a club in need. The Dynamos fans are also some of the most passionate in the country so this public appeal will certainly work in the short term at least. What happens next is more intriguing/worrying for the league structure below the Elite league.

Carlon departs (Lucy McGill)

To continue the sombre mood in NIHL 1, fellow strugglers MK Thunder announced that their Captain and talisman Tom Carlon had decided to step away from the game for personal reasons. The Thunder need all the quality they can get in their ranks and the loss of Carlon is undoubtedly a body blow for Coach Lewis Clifford and the team.

The announcement was made with good grace by the Thunder, but it does stretch a squad that had won just one of their first ten games.

“I’m overwhelmed by all the nice comments and messages” said Carlon on Twitter.

“Hockey has been my life since the age of 5, it’s given me so many opportunities, friends and experiences. So thankful to everyone who’s made it such a special and enjoyable ride along the way.”

In Essex, Raiders Coach Sean Easton admitted that he had been disappointed with his sides’ start to the season in an interview with the Romford Recorder.

“Our season so far has been disappointing from a results point of view, we have had a couple of games where we were dire and lost” admitted the 32 year old.

“We’ve also had a few games where we have looked good but lost. The message after our week off will be to refocus and start again – new season, blank sheet.”

Cornish looks for firepower (Fusional)

In contrast, Streatham Coach Jeremy Cornish has enjoyed a stronger start to the season with his team, but hinted at some frustration after the RedHawks were edged out by Bracknell in another one goal defeat.

“The players want to improve and win games and I think we’ve shown that this year we are a much improved team and will be challenging around the top of the table” explained the big Canadian in his column.

“I also think it’s worth mentioning that I am always looking to improve the team and out of the four losses we have had this year three of them have been decided by one goal. We need a little more help up front and I’m going to do what it takes to improve the team and get us into a position where we are winning these close games.”

The EIHA published an update on the efforts to put together a proposal for one single governing body for the sport in the UK. The joint steering group revealed the names of those involved, in a press release on Halloween. NIHL South fans will notice some familiar names including dog loving league manager Richard Carpenter and former Oxford City Stars GM/DJ/wise owl Gary Dent.

Friday review

The Autumn Cup semi-final 1^st leg between Peterborough Phantoms and Swindon Wildcats took place at Bretton Way, with the hosts edging a hard fought game 4-3.

The win made it ten on the bounce for Slava Koulikov and his team, who had to come back from 2-0 down to seal a slender one goal advantage before the 2^nd leg.

Tom Norton scored two for the Phantoms including a cannon from the blue line, to add to goals from new signing Martin Susters and Glenn Billing. Swindon goals came from Chris Jones, Aaron Nell and Toms Rutkis.

You can watch all the highlights HERE

Saturday review

Swindon showed no sign of fatigue as they despatched Invicta 8-0, thanks largely to hat tricks from Toms Rutkis and Edgars Bebris. Wildcats other scorers were Max Birbraer and Aaron Nell, while Tyler Perre grabbed a 15 shot shut out.

Cats bounce back

In Basingstoke, the Bison edged out Streatham 4-3 thanks to an overtime winner from Player Coach Ashley Tait. The Bison’s other goals came from Dr Russ Cowley, George Norcliffe and Richard Bordowski.

Streatham’s goals were scored by Adam Wood, Ziggy Beesley and Leigh Jamieson.

A bucket collection was taken at the game and raised over £300 for the Dynamos fund, which pretty much sums up the response from the hockey community.

NIHL Media outlet 482 days took a night off from their usual coverage, however their company vehicle was allegedly spotted selling rockets to kids in the layby just off the A40.

Sunday review

Invicta hosted their first game since announcing their ‘Save the Dynamos’ campaign, with Bracknell Bees the visitors to Silverblades.

The game started in controversial fashion as official Deana Cuglietta took the unusual move of calling an anthem misconduct, as Mo’s forward Joe Allen was adjudged to have let the blue line too early.

Poor behaviour during anthems in NIHL 1 is not uncommon so perhaps this is part of a new crackdown across the board? As with anything, consistency is certainly key.

Giles gives fans a lift

The Bees went on to win 6-1 thanks to goals from Scott Spearing, Zach Milton, Ed Knaggs, David Millner, Brendan Baird and Aidan Doughty. The Dynamos consolation came from none other than Ryan Giles with a rocket from the point.

Mo’s Harrison Lillis and Bees’ Ryan Watt dropped the gloves in the first period to add to the storyline and you can watch it here.

Up in Peterborough, the Phantoms completed an enjoyable weekend with a straightforward 3-1 win over the Bison. The hosts took the points thanks to another goal from Tom Norton, added to efforts from Nathan Pollard and Petr Stepanek.

Michal Klejna scored the consolation for the Bison, who found Phantoms netminder Jordan Marr in fine form, turning away 25 of their shots.

The final game of the weekend took place at the Thunderdome as MK Thunder started well but faded as the game went on, losing 5-1 to Swindon.

Chris Jones fired in a hat trick for the Wildcats to add to goals from Edgars Bebris and Aaron Nell. For the Thunder it was Michael Stratford with the consolation.

The results leave the Bees top but the Wildcats and Phantoms chasing hard with games in hand.

Results