ISLE OF WIGHT, UK – The Wightlink Raiders returned to winning ways with a 6-1 win over the Milton Keynes Thunder. After the horrors of the previous weekend when the Raiders lost their unbeaten home record to the reigning champions Invicta Dynamos, and were then forced to concede the match at struggling Haringey when the kit van failed to make it to the rink on time, this was a welcome return to form. However the Raiders were forced to wait as the face off was put back an hour as the officials were delayed in reaching the rink. The Raiders dominated the match from the opening face off and only a fine performance by the visitors’ goaltender Mark Woolfe kept the score from reaching double figures. In the first period alone the home team outshot the Thunder by 29 shots to 6. On 14:59 the Thunder’s Connor Goode was given a match penalty by referee Francois Belanger for boarding Raiders skipper Danny Hughes. The Thunder could not see out the resulting powerplay and Kent Johnson made the breakthrough on 15:33. Player coach Jeremy Cornish added a second before the period break as the scoreline began to reflect the Raiders superiority. The second period continued in the same vein with the home team in control but being thwarted time and time again by the outstanding Thunder keeper. Only one more counter was added again by Jeremy Cornish and that was cancelled out by Connor Hubbuck who netted the Thunders only goal of the game. In the final period the constant pressure being exerted by the Raiders eventually began to pay dividends. Jeremy Cornish completed a hat trick for the second consecutive match. Kent Johnson also added to his tally before Steve Gosset completed the scoring with a superb unassisted strike. This was a must win match for the Raiders and the home team always had too much for the struggling visitors. The form of Jeremy Cornish who finished the match with 3+2 is welcome bonus from a player who is much better known for his tough play than his points scoring. The Raiders man of the match was given to Kent Johnson who is now starting to show that he could be as prolific a scorer for the Raiders as he was for the Island’s second team the, Tigers, last season. Mark Woolfe was deservedly given the award for the Thunder. On Sunday the Raiders travel to visit the Chelmsford Chieftains. The Essex team have been widely tipped as contenders to be champions of the ENL1 south and this will be another serious examination of the Raiders credentials in this division. Contact the author on dave.logan@prohockeynews.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.