(Image permission: Chud Photography)
LANCASHIRE, UK – Nottingham Lions host Hull Pirates in Moralee D1 on Sunday hoping to follow up last week’s spirited performance against Blackburn Hawks.
The Lions took the Lancashire side to overtime before losing out to Kieran Brown’s second goal of the game, although their display highlighted the improvements they have made during the course of the season.
Nottingham were fancied by many people to be relegated this year, but defender Adam Andrews believes they have deserved to retain their D1 status.
“Staying in the Moralee was our main focus this season – we knew it wasn’t going to be an easy task with a limited budget,” he said.
“What we had in our favour was a great development system to call on that allowed us the depth we needed to ensure we could compete for sixty minutes every night.
“The club and players are pleased to have secured a place next year, but the hard work doesn’t stop and our attentions turn to building and improving for next season.
“There’s no doubt we can compete at this level when you look at some of the results this year. We’re happy with the plaudits we’ve had from around the league and the only way is up.”
Sunday’s game against Hull will undoubtedly be tough, with the visitors batting to secure the regular season title.
Hull head into the weekend three points behind Sheffield Steeldogs with two games in hand, but Andrews insists that the Lions will do their utmost to derail their title challenge.
“Hull seem to be a bogey team for us from a weather perspective, as it always seems to snow around the time we play them,” he added.
“They are pushing for the league title with Sheffield, so we expect a hard fast-paced game against a good squad with depth and talent.
“We won’t make it easy for them – we may be safe, but we are always looking to cause an upset.”
Elsewhere, the Player of the Month awards for February have been confirmed.
Sheffield Steeldogs’ goalie Dmitri Zimozdra secured the D1 award after backstopping his team to six wins last month. These included two victories over Hull to take the Steeldogs into the National Cup Final and a league success over Telford Tigers.
Zimozdra posted a .948 save percentage (219 saves on 231 shots) in the month with one shut-out.
Ryan Kemp of Bradford Bulldogs picked up the award for D2. The forward bagged two hat-tricks in six games, totalling 12 goals and four assists in the month.
After rejoining Bradford from Deeside Dragons, Kemp has notched 32 goals and 18 assists for the Bulldogs at better than a goal-per-game pace.
WEEKEND FIXTURES
Moralee D1
Saturday
Hull Pirates v Blackburn Hawks
Sheffield Steeldogs v Whitley Warriors
Sunday
Blackburn Hawks v Sheffield Steeldogs
Deeside Dragons v Telford Tigers
Nottingham Lions v Hull Pirates
Solihull Barons v Solway Sharks
Whitley Warriors v Billingham Stars
Laidler D2
Saturday
Blackburn Hawks 2 v Hull Jets
Bradford Bulldogs v Coventry Blaze NIHL
Deeside Dragons 2 v Widnes Wild
Sutton Sting v Sheffield Senators
Sunday
Altrincham Aces v Hull Jets
Coventry Blaze NIHL v Deeside Dragons 2
Sheffield Senators v Bradford Bulldogs
Sutton Sting v Blackburn Hawks 2
Telford Tigers 2 v Widnes Wild
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