Image permission: Keith & Jenny Davies
LANCASHIRE, UK – Solihull Barons shocked former EPL side Hull Pirates with a battling 7-6 overtime success at Hull Pirates in Moralee D1 on Saturday.
Marcus Maynard’s goal with 53 seconds remaining secured the victory for Solihull. Daniel MacKriel’s team came down to earth with a bump the following day as they fell 4-3 at Deeside Dragons.
Hull bounced back from the defeat with a hard-fought 5-3 win at Nottingham Lions – James Archer (2) topped the scoring for the Pirates.
Iain Bowie’s fine start to the season continued as he scored twice in Solway Sharks’ 3-1 home victory against Whitley Warriors.
Bowie bagged another double including the deciding goal as Solway came from behind to record a 4-3 overtime win at Billingham Stars in the NIHL National Cup.
Blackburn Hawks started the weekend with a 3-2 cup success at home to Billingham and followed up with a 3-2 league win after overtime at Whitley – Lewis Baldwin grabbed the decider against the Warriors.
Jason Silverthorn and Jonathan Weaver were on target for Telford Tigers in their 2-1 cup win against NIHL South side Basingstoke Bison.
Widnes Wild maintained their unbeaten record in Laidler D2 with a 4-1 home win against Telford Tigers 2.
Jakub Hajek’s overtime goal sealed a 3-2 victory for Altrincham Aces over Sheffield Senators. Sutton Sting started life in D2 with an 8-2 success at Hull Jets – Joe Colton hit a hat-trick.
Bradford Bulldogs won 4-3 at home to Blackburn Hawks 2, while Coventry Blaze fell 7-4 at Telford 2 – Karol Jets (3) led the Tigers’ scoring.
PHN’s top two talking points
Barons take the plaudits despite mixed weekend
Solihull’s weekend didn’t fully go to plan after slipping to a defeat at Deeside, but no-one can take away their fine win and performance at Hull the previous day.
There’s been plenty of discussions about the impact the former EPL teams would have on the NIHL following the collapse of their league, but the early signs are good.
The expected blow-outs haven’t happened so far and while there’s no doubting that Hull, Sheffield and Telford will be amongst the D1 front-runners, the Barons have shown what is possible.
Reports of Deeside’s demise were greatly exaggerated
Scott McKenzie’s team bounced back from a miserable first weekend to edge past the Barons on Sunday and show it was foolish to write them off.
Netminder Graeme Bird was the catalyst for the victory, posting a 92.11 save percentage.
The Dragons deservedly preserved their D1 status last term and Sunday’s success indicates they won’t give it up this season without a fight.
Moralee D1
Deeside Dragons 4-3 Solihull Barons
Hull Pirates 6-7 Solihull Barons (OT)
Nottingham Lions 3-5 Hull Pirates
Solway Sharks 3-1 Whitley Warriors
Whitley Warriors 2-3 Blackburn Hawks (OT)
Laidler D2
Altrincham Aces 3-2 Sheffield Senators (OT)
Bradford Bulldogs 4-3 Blackburn Hawks 2
Hull Jets 2-8 Sutton Sing
Telford Tigers 7-4 Coventry Blaze NIHL
Widnes Wild 4-1 Telford Tigers 2
NIHL National Cup
Blackburn Hawks 3-2 Billingham Stars
Billingham Stars 3-4 Solway Sharks (OT)
Telford Tigers 2-1 Basingstoke Bison
You must be logged in to post a comment.