London Devils celebrate twenty years

LONDON, UK – It was just another busy Friday night in popular London restaurant ‘Bodeans’ with the tables full of chattering people drinking beer and tucking into wings and ribs. On closer inspection however, the walls were decorated with hockey jerseys and the plasma screens played a slideshow of pictures of hockey players skating around the globe.
 
Nigh on fifty hockey players and their partners showed up to celebrate twenty years of ‘London Devils’ hockey, cementing the organisation’s place as one of the UK’s longest operating hockey clubs.

 
“We are all aware that we’ve got a good thing going with our club, but to see so many show up – including guys who had flown in specially for it, was nothing short of amazing” admitted 37 year old Frank Walshe speaking after the event.
 
“It gave a whole new perspective on how people feel about the club, in particular after they have left the club.   To a man, they all said it was the thing they missed the most about London. Imagine that – missing an ice hockey team in London”
 
“We had alumni fly in from Canada, USA, Russia, Norway, and Czech Republic – it was brilliant”
 
Formed in 1991 the Devils may have grown from humble beginnings however a quick scan of the league clubs playing in the country at the time reveals that only fifteen of the twenty five teams competing still exist with the same name, and of those, at least three teams were mothballed for five years or more within the timeframe.
 
Such longevity could not be imagined in the early days of the club, as the Devils and their founder Pete Duncan often struggled to attract players to their fledgling recreational hockey club based at Alexandra Palace ice rink in North London.
 
“I’ve heard the stories of the early days of scrounging around to try to ensure that we had ten guys for a session” explained Walshe, a Toronto native who joined the club himself twelve years ago.
 
“One of our founding members, Mike Lay, recently told us a story of how he used to hire his equipment from another hockey player for £2 a week until he managed to get his own full set together”  
 
“Over the years though, the numbers grew and the quality improved greatly. Things now are managed by a committee of six of the current members, so all duties are shared and decisions are made through consultation”
 
This consultation usually takes place over lunch within the confines of club flagship sponsor Bodeans, whose owner Andre Blais combines running four busy central London BBQ restaurants with an occasional shift on the blue line as a defenseman for the team.
 
Bodeans has supported the Devils for the past five years and has become a popular hangout for hockey followers across the city as a place to sink American beers and watch NHL games.
 
With fifty eight members encompassing twelve different nationalities currently registered (the latest from Japan), and a similar number of alumni located around the world following time working in London, the Devils continue to grow as a club that allows bankers, carpenters, chiropractors, soldiers, sign makers and various other groups of people that would probably never mix socially, to strap on their hockey kit and play the game they love.
 
Providing at least two sessions a week plus games, the Devils are in action on a regular basis and their hockey links abroad mean that they have played in tournaments far and wide, with Iceland, Hong Kong, Ukraine, Russia and Slovakia just some of the many countries they have ink stamped in their passports from.
 
The overseas tours are a highlight for many Devils members and the club has represented the UK at the World Pond Hockey Championships in New Brunswick, Canada for the past four years.
 
“The overseas tours are organised by one of our main guys – and because of the network of Devils Alumni around the world, we often have a “man on the ground” in the places we visit” admitted Walshe, who appeared along with his team mates on Hockey Night in Canada on his trip to the afore mentioned World Pond Hockey Championships in 2009.
 
“We still encounter a number of challenges like any other club but these days they’re mostly time-related – we all have families and full-time jobs so helping run a hockey team can be a bit of a stretch”  
 
“We manage quite well though – through the help of all of the members.   Oh, actually the biggest challenge is trying to get one particular London Devil to the rink on time – if you’re reading, you know who you are”
 
The English capital has never really embraced league hockey at a high level with both London Racers and London Knights consigned to history in recent times, however with a high immigrant population, and some coming from hockey hotbeds of eastern Europe and North America, the city has always had a strong level of recreational hockey participation.
 
The popularity of the sport and demands for ice time are competitive in a city with a small number of ice rinks, however with a new temporary rink ready to open in Brixton and the Devils spiritual home of Alexandra Palace still gleaming from a multi-million pound refurbishment it could be argued that hockey in London will soon have the facilities to meet the expectations of the hockey community.
 
“It’s great that the facilities in London appear to be on an upward turn” said Walshe, who describes the Palace as the most unique ice rink he has seen.
 
“We are aware that hockey will always be a niche sport here and public skating sessions will have priority over us.   However, the new Palace ice is great, and we’re looking forward to seeing the new facility in Brixton. We should also mention that the guys at Lee Valley Ice Centre have always been brilliant to us and could not have been more helpful”
 
The Devils recently expanded to include a football team who have already competed in a tournament in the Czech Republic and play every weekend in Kentish Town. The club appears to be getting stronger and stronger and Walshe believes the secret to it’s success is straightforward.
 
“We make it fun for people, and they’ll remember how they felt as a kid playing hockey” he explains.
 
“Eventually it becomes self-sustaining – an entity on its own.   There will be a day when there are no “original” Devils from 1991 in the team, and I too will retire one day but there’s no doubt in my mind that the club will still be rolling along – it’s got a life of its own now”
 
With a firm financial footing, a keen sponsor and membership constantly high, who would bet against the London Devils sitting down to celebrate their 30^th birthday in ten years’ time.
 
Contact the author: david.carr@prohockeynews.com