ENGLAND – Having ended last season hopeful that NIHL North could make progress with the former EPL clubs in its midst, the 2018/19 campaign highlighted perfectly why that viewpoint was totally and utterly barmy.
Hull Pirates, Sheffield Steeldogs and Telford Tigers once again battled for the Moralee D1 title, while the rest of the league mostly made up the numbers.
The Pirates deservedly claimed top spot after beating their two rivals on the final weekend, but the season highlighted the need for change moving forward.
The creation of a new national division will hopefully give the trio of clubs a suitable level at which they can operate, while allowing the ‘original’ NIHL clubs to flourish in a set-up that best suits their current circumstances.
Hull’s success during the regular season was just reward for a run-in that saw them defeated just once in their last 16 league matches.
Beating their rivals in their last two games was the cherry on top of the cake and player/coach Jason Hewitt deserves plenty of praise for guiding his side to the title.
Subsequent successes in the regional and national play-offs made it a treble for the Pirates and they can look forward to a bright future in the new division.
Unlike last season, Sheffield came up short in crucial matches against Hull and that proved to be the difference.
However, success in the Northern Cup added more silverware to their trophy cabinet and the Steeldogs have made plenty of friends for their attitude towards the NIHL during the last two years.
Telford had been tipped by many people to win the title, particularly when it was announced that Doug Clarkson was returning to the club.
The Canadian racked up plenty of points for the Tigers, but his departure for ‘personal reasons’ at a key part of the season hit the Shropshire outfit hard.
Solway Sharks once again proved best of the rest in D1N, winning 22 out of 36 matches to claim fourth place.
Head coach Martin Grubb continues to do an excellent job in Dumfries and they are sure to be a force to be reckoned with next season.
Whitley Warriors recovered from a slow start to claim fifth, powered largely by the goalscoring efforts of NIHL North Player of the Year, Ben Campbell. Hanging onto the former Guildford Flames forward will be crucial to their hopes of success next year.
Solihull Barons ended the regular season in sixth place despite winning just four of their last 18 league games. The Barons remain a club with plenty of potential, but whether they can unlock it remains to be seen.
Blackburn Hawks had a miserable campaign by their recent standards, although Robin Kovar’s arrival at the club did help to spark a minor late-season rally.
Sutton Sting deserve plenty of praise for taking on the challenge of playing in a higher division after winning D2N last season and they will be better for the experience next time around.
Billingham Stars struggled, but with a batch of promising youngsters coming through the ranks the outlook should be brighter for the Teesside outfit.
Nottingham Lions finished rock bottom and without a point, but they remain committed to playing at D1 level and will hopefully improve in the new set-up.
The new national division could certainly lead to some clubs enduring a nervous summer. The addition of Leeds into the structure raises question marks over the futures of numerous players who have played in D1N this season.
The likes of Billingham, Whitley and Blackburn may be amongst the clubs affected and it will be interesting to see how their rosters are impacted next term.
Despite this, NIHL North can now look forward to a positive future following the departure of the former EPL clubs.
Goodbye Hull, Sheffield and Telford – it was fun (sort of) while it lasted.
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