BRISTOL, UK – It seems a lifetime ago that apocalyptic predictions of 2012 forced NASA to publish an article on the internet entitled “Why the world didn’t end”.
Ready to come home (FlyFifer photography)
The ancient Mayan prophecy that spawned a Hollywood blockbuster may have failed to pass, but for a hockey team in the west of England their Chichen Itza didn’t survive the predicted doomsday.
Almost seven years have passed since the Frogmore Street rink in Bristol closed its doors for the last time. However the city’s league hockey team, the Pitbulls, are still competing in the National Ice Hockey League. After a short spell based in Swindon the team are currently playing ‘home’ games at Oxford – a mere 140 mile round trip from home.
“When you have something taken from you, it often makes you want it more, and also more determined to fight on” explains long serving player Mike Hargreaves, who along with his team mates is now in his seventh season playing on the road.
“The ethos of the club has always been one of a little family where players and supporters all have a strong bond and share a drink after games or go for meals as a group.
“If anything, our situation has helped with that, as we’ve had to rely on each other to keep going, sharing rides at times and finding sponsors. The light at the end of the tunnel is of course the new rink. A great city like Bristol deserves a new rink and we’ve had to be patient.”
2012 protests failed to save Frogmore Street
The old rink closed in 2012 despite protests supported by high profile figures like Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean. The city centre venue had opened in 1966 and in truth, was most notable for its association with locally based Olympic champion figure skating star Robin Cousins rather than hockey.
The Pitbulls brought league hockey back to the city in 2009 after an absence of sixteen years, but despite building a strong local fan base and playing their part in sprucing up the tired rink into a venue more appealing for supporters to watch their games, the team and fans were left heartbroken as the building was closed then demolished to make way for student accommodation.
Late last year updated plans were finally revealed by the Bristol Post for a new rink at Cribbs Causeway in the city. The news was met with understandable joy not only from the Pitbulls, but many hockey fans across the UK who had followed the team’s rollercoaster ride on the road of recent seasons.
“The land is cleared and there are diggers and workmen on site pretty much every day” says Hargreaves, who has also iced with Swindon Wildcats, Wightlink Raiders and Oxford City stars in a career spanning twenty years.
“What we understand is that it should hopefully be open before next season, however we’ve heard that quite a few times over the last seven years.
Shone amongst the goals (FlyFifer photography)
“In the developers defence, I’m sure it would have been open by now if it wasn’t for the company that was going to run the attached ski slope going into administration (from what we’ve heard).
“It meant they had to go back to the planning stage and it put the whole project behind schedule. Of course we are all excited about coming home, we can’t wait to bring the sport we love back to the city we love for the second time.
“The most ironic thing is, Richie (Mike’s brother) and I were playing for Oxford when we decided that we’d had enough of travelling to play home games, yet the last couple of years we’ve found ourselves playing home games back out of Oxford again.”
The current squad of Pitbulls find themselves in 10th position in the Wilkinson Conference of the National Ice Hockey League and while the bigger picture is always in focus, the team has a competitive roster.
Talisman Steven Osman returned after a spell in the league above and is backed by a core of long-time Pitbulls including Jamie Newton, Adrian Smith, the Shone brothers Olly and Sam plus the bearded Finn Janne Virtanen. The recent 6-4 “home” win over Peterborough Phantoms snapped a three game losing streak, in a fifteen team league that recently became the bottom tier of the British hockey system.
“We are doing ok this season, but not as high up the table as we would like or expect our team to be” admits Hargreaves.
“We are not the sort of people to try and make excuses about our current situation and all our boys’ sign up to the Pitbulls knowing that we have different challenges to your average team.
“I would like to see us be more consistent in games and play for the full sixty minutes, as we’ve been guilty of switching off for short spells and allowing teams back into the game.”
Pulling in crowds to pay the bills has been an obvious challenge for the team but thanks to efforts from charismatic brother Richie, who also happens to be GM, and club stalwarts like Team Manager Graham Goodman, the home fixtures at Oxford haven’t all been played in front of empty seats.
“We have an unbelievable bunch in our Supporters club and they all possibly need their heads checked” laughs Hargreaves.
Tight knit team spirit (FlyFifer photography)
“I think they are what keeps us motivated, as no one wants to play in an empty building. I don’t know if it’s because Bristol is England’s Mediterranean or if there is something in the water here, but they all seem to find a positive reason to come each week.
“Be it that the train journey is a good way to get an extra few beers in, or it’s just gets them out of doing some DIY, the supporters show up week in, week out.
“We had a group of Bristol kids randomly appeared at our last home game. When I bumped into them at the services on the way home, I asked them how, what, who, why and their answer was that they’d got hooked playing NHL on the Xbox and while chatting to a Swedish person online, he told them that they can’t be hockey fans, until they’ve watched a live game and so they found us and came. We may not be in Bristol at the moment but we certainly represent it with pride”
Fast approaching 40, Hargreaves knows only too well that he is past his twilight years, and if the timetable goes to plan, he should be able to retire after skating at least one more season in his beloved home city.
Mike ‘Spring chicken’ Hargreaves
“Compared to Alan Armour (Cardiff) and my brother, I’m still very much a spring chicken” he says with a wry smile, while thanking PHN for reminding him of his age.
“If I’m truthful, I don’t feel old (in sports terms) and it probably helps that the Wilkinson Conference has a less demanding schedule. On a personal level, I feel my game this season has been steady and I don’t think I’m quite a traffic cone on ice yet, or at least I hope not.
“The boys would probably disagree and take great delight in letting me know when I have a minus shift.
“I remember having a conversation with Luc Chabot (former Solihull, Whitley and Ayr forward) and taking the mickey out of his age. His response to me was ‘when I think I’m too old, I’ll convert to playing defence and prolong my career by ten years’. Well this season is my tenth since converting to defence, so how many more years do I get if I become a goalie?.”
We all know what happened after 2012 away from the hockey bubble, and for those that believed the Mayan predictions, gave up their possessions and headed to the hills it was a long road back. The Pitbulls stayed calm, kept their team going and hopefully 2019 is the year that they finally can say… we’re home.
Message from the Pitbulls: Every year the team does their bit for charity and this year our Pitbulls family was hit with the news that our very own Grant Richardson had been diagnosed with cancer. He underwent treatment in the summer and missed the start of the season. So because of this we chose Cancer Research, after speaking to Grant and making sure he was ok with it first. All our purple special shirts have Grants number 19 on them to show our support, and on the back instead of own and loan, we have in memory of, or supporting whoever the owner of the shirt has chosen. We have a just giving page setup for donations, you can find a link on our Pitbulls website or Facebook page and just in case anyone reading this would like to donate. Also our shirt manufacturers Dunamis sports are making the jerseys at cost price, so that all profit on shirt sales can go to charity.
Contact the author: carrsy2@gmail.com
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