Raiders continue surge, topple Dynamos

ROMFORD, UK – Frankie Harvey’s hat-trick led the Raiders to another important win over a top-3 team on Saturday as they beat the Invicta Dynamos 9-6 for their sixth straight league win. The game marked the fifth consecutive league outing in which a Raider has scored a hat-trick, Juraj Huska’s four-game run of trebles finally broken as the home side outgunned and outmuscled their opponents. Invicta started brightly, firing five shots on Michael Gray’s goal in the opening thirty seconds, a measure of pressure that led to Daniel Fudger’s opening goal as he jammed the puck past Gray for a deserved 1-0 lead. Defenceman Tyrone Miller teed off from the blueline to tie things up within a minute, before AJ Smith forced the puck past Dynamos’ goaltender Andy Moffat after a scramble in the crease. It was perhaps the most open twenty minutes of hockey played at RVW this season as both sides went for it early on, the Dynamos controversially tying the game on an Andy Smith shot that appeared to come back out off the crossbar. Liam Chong’s shorthanded goal in the final minute only added to building frustration for the home side as the officials seemingly lost control of a game that threatened to boil over. Tim Smith’s short-side wrister in the opening minute of the second period staked the Dynamos to a 4-2 lead before three goals in the space of seven minutes had the home side up 5-4; JJ McGrath, Juraj Huska and Danny Marshall all scoring for the Raiders. Despite the goals and the undeniable entertainment of a very open game, the poor officiating of the first period spilled over to the second as both teams stayed on the ice after forty minutes to protest their case. JJ McGrath dropped his gloves in an open challenge to the Dynamos bench before Callum Fowler tied the game with a wrist-shot that snuck through Gray from the right circle. Huska returned to the game after being hit hard from behind late in the second period, setting up Frankie Harvey for his first of a dominant third. Harvey tapped home from in front after Huska worked space along the boards to feed a gorgeous cross-ice pass to the far post. The Raiders continued to get the better of any physical altercations, pinning the Dynamos defence in their own end for large swathes of the third period. Ex-Dynamos forward Anthony Leone had a penalty shot saved before Harvey netted his second of the game, cutting inside to his backhand and beating Moffat from the top of the crease for a 7-5 lead. Andy Smith’s second of the game pulled the visitors to within one, but it was scant salvation for the Dynamos as Harvey completed a fine hat-trick with a rising wrist-shot off the rush just twelve seconds later. Billy Phillips last-minute strike, his first since returning to Romford from Slough, put the gloss on an excellent team performance for the home side as they edged ever-closer to Essex rivals Chelmsford in third place. Contact the author – alex.nunn@prohockeynews.com