LONDON, UK â As summer finally called it a day across the UK, the Britton Conference did its best to brighten up the mood.
In Bracknell the excitement was building as it was announced that the Mayor would be dropping the puck before the Hornets match against the Junior Raiders at the weekend.
If you didnât realise Bracknell had a Mayor before reading this column, then youâre welcome. Every day is a school day as former NIHL coach Warren Rost used to say â and how we wish he was the Mayor, but sadly not.
One person buzzing with excitement was Hornets Coach Mark Saunders, fresh from his sideâs 3-0 shutout of the Thunder in Milton Keynes the previous weekend.
âHopefully itâll be a busy rink at the weekendâ said Saunders in an interview with Chasing the Puck.
âWeâve had a good following so far with our away games. I expect our guys to come out flying. We need to start punching some holes in the win column and start chalking up some points and thatâs definitely possible if we carry on playing as we did on Sunday.
âItâll be a fast game, itâll be a high skilled game, neither team plays crash-and-bang hockey. Weâve got some guys coming back into the line-up so weâre hoping for some slick hockey and weâre all looking forward to it!â
If Saunders, was a happy man, so too was Slough coach Lukas Smital, who took to Twitter to praise referee Mr Sevruk.
âSunday we had for the 1st time Mr Sevrukâ posted Smital, keeping things formal.
â(He) controlled the game, communicated throughout the game which is something Iâm not familiar with – brilliant.
âLate in the game, called penalty against us, came over, and explained why he had to make the call. Very professional and knowledgeableâ
High praise indeed from the Jets coach, who we suspect was aiming that tweet not just at Mr Sevruk!
Lee and Nicola Allen en-route to the hockey
Long-time readers will remember us mentioning Invicta Dynamos fan and volunteer Lee Allen who has been raising money for Water Aid by running over 10km every day for the last three years. We should clarify that the money is for the official water charity and not simply to fix the shower in the away changing room in Gillingham, which is famed for its lack of power and cool temperatures â when itâs not fusing the lights.
Anyway, by anyoneâs standards Leeâs challenge is a lot of running even if you do have the scenery of the garden of England to keep you inspired. Lee reached day 1000 of his challenge this week and appeared on ITV news. Even better, he now features in Pro Hockey News so give him a follow on his twitter @Lee365run and donate to Water Aid.
Suspended Streatham utility player Adam Wood hailed his team mate Vanya Antonov during the week, as the unbeaten RedHawks looked forward to games against Invicta and the Junior Raiders.
âWe have such a good mix of everything needed to be a winning teamâ said Wood, who picked up his ban against Slough in the season opener.
âI just wish Vanny (Antonov) would live up to the hype now, heâs been pretty insignificant so far – haha. Itâs horrible picking up a suspension this early in to the season because I want to be on the ice with this team every opportunity I have.â
Cardiff Fire may have had a tough start to life in the Britton Conference, however they released quality video highlights of their narrow loss to Solent Devils, and Invicta Dynamos did likewise of their overtime loss to Slough. Great work from all involved.
Saturday review
As promised, Mayor Cllr Pauline McKenzie dropped the puck at the Hive ahead of the Hornetsâ eventual 8-2 win over Junior Raiders.
Josh Ealey-Newman opened the scoring after just a minute on his way to a hat trick for the hosts, and he was joined by Michael Stratford who also scored three. Steve Osman made up the tally with a brace, while the Raiders consolations came from Callum Burnett and Joe Allen.
Hannah Kirsty Photography
Despite the mayoral presence Ben Ealey-Newman and George Cell dropped the gloves to show that no medallions can stop the dancing.
Slough continued their spell at the top of the league with a convincing 6-3 win over a injury hit Oxford City Stars.
It was Sean Norrisâs turn to take front and centre stage ahead of his partner in lamp lighting Sam Talbot. Norris bagged two goals, Talbot got one, as did Harry Harcup, Dan Rose and Liam Underdown. Oxfordâs goals came courtesy of Mike Whillock, Matt Lawday and Josh Florey.
Streatham hosted Invicta in the Cup at Streatham Arena in front of a raucous crowd.
The RedHawks skated out 7-4 winners in a game that boiled over in stages with Rupe Quiney ejected in the second period for roughing.
Player Coach Adam Carr fired home his second hat trick in as many games adding to goals from Brandon Miles, Danny Ingoldsby, James Warman and Conner Smith â his first senior goal for the club.
Moâs player coach Anthony Leone led from the front with two goals for the visitors, with Owen Dell and Filip Sedivy also on target.
Sunday review
The RedHawks followed up the win with a 5-1 victory over the Junior Raiders in Romford.
Michael Farn fired in a brace for Streatham with Adam Carr, Brandon Miles and Danny Ingoldsby all on target. For the Raiders it was Steve Dunnage with the consolation.
Invicta edged out Milton Keynes Thunder in a back and forth game in Gillingham. The visitors pushed the Moâs all the way before succumbing 6-3.
Elliot Farrell takes the belt
Elliot Farrell, Arran Strawson, Filip Sedivy, Ryan Giles, Juraj Huska and Anthony Leone took the points for Invicta, with Ryan Gadeke, Sam Prosser and Iain Peters on target for the Thunder.
Slough cemented their place at the top of the league with a 6-1 road win against Cardiff Fire. It was honours even this time between Sean Norris and Sam Talbot as they scored two each, sandwiched between lone efforts from Dan Rose and Liam Underdown. At the time of writing we are unaware who scored the consolation for the Fire.
Next weekend itâs a crunch game at the top as the Jets host Streatham and then travel to Chelmsford Chieftains the following day.
Results
Saturday 28 September
Streatham IHC 7-4 Invicta Dynamos (Cup)
Slough Jets 6-3 Oxford City Stars
Bracknell Hornets 8-2 Junior Raiders
Sunday 29 September
Junior Raiders 1-5 Streatham IHC
Cardiff Fire 1-6 Slough Jets
Invicta Dynamos 6-3 MK Thunder
Contact the author: davidcarr_2@hotmail.com
