LONDON, UK – The battle at the top of the league intensified but there was still time for action in the Cup and possibly the courts in the NIHL Britton Conference.
Phantoms moving on up with a four point weekend (Lucy McGill)
It was a tale of two towns during the week with the euphoria building in Romford in stark contrast to the worry building in Basingstoke of the future of their rink.
In Essex the Raiders faithful began the countdown to their first home game against Cardiff Fire in a couple of weeks by selling out the seating section of their new facility. At the time of writing there are still standing tickets available, but a full house is a certainty.
In Hampshire the hockey community launched a petition to keep a rink in Basingstoke, but interestingly all was silent from the biggest team in the town, the Bison themselves who, like the rink, are operated by Planet Ice. The petition is available to sign here.
Two NIHL players effectively had their seasons ended through injury as Swindon’s Jordan Kelsall and Streatham’s Adam Wood were both ruled out with major leg damage.
For Kelsall it comes at a crucial stage in his career and in the middle of a season he has been turning heads. A two way contract between Swindon and the Elite League Nottingham Panthers was a great start to 2017/18 for the teenager, followed by World Championship action with GB U20s and some key goals for the Cats. At 27 years old, Wood is at a different stage in his career, but after showing superb commitment to the RedHawks this year, commuting from Cardiff to London it will be a long road to recovery for the defenseman who has adapted well to life on the blue line this season in South London.
Weller-Evans mobbed by Swindon fans
It’s hard to truly put into the words the personal impact of such injuries, especially mentally and we wish both players a quick and healthy recovery.
In a rare move in NIHL hockey, the Peterborough Phantoms went public on their intent to take legal advice after they were eliminated from the NIHL Cup. In an interview with the Peterborough Telegraph, Phantoms boss Dave Lane said:
‘We’ve already appealed the decision of the LMC to Ken Taggart and await the outcome. I was left with no choice other than to take legal advice on the matter. We feel seriously aggrieved by the LMC decision, which has placed us at a disadvantage and denied us the chance to qualify.’
‘If we are knocked out of the competition due to our own performance on the ice, I can live with that. But I cannot stand for us to be eliminated in this way.’
As stated last week in Pro Hockey News, it looks highly unlikely that any appeal would be successful given the timing and fixture congestion, however it will be interesting to see if the Phantoms look to apply for any financial compensation instead and where that money would come from.
Swindon launched possibly the greatest NIHL competition of all time as they teamed up with Britz Fish and Chip Shop to offer one lucky winner two free meals per week for a full year!!
You can enter by retweeting the Wildcats tweet from 19th January and following the instructions. Check out the menu by clicking here – if anyone knows what a pea fritter is, please let us know as it sounds rancid (no offence to the chef).
The Banners on the Wall podcast featured an interview with Jacob Ranson who entertained listeners with tales from North America, Sweden and his tour of NIHL clubs. Sadly host Anthony Russell kept strictly on topic with no wild tales of saunas or frat parties probed.
You can listen to the podcast here.
Thursday action review
As far as branding is concerned, the ‘Autumn Cup’ is certainly struggling given it has yet to be won and it’s now late January.
Swindon qualified for the final thanks to a penalty shoot-out win against Peterborough Phantoms in East Anglia. The Phantoms had led 3-2 until the final few minutes thanks to goals from Glenn Billing, James Ferrara and Ed Knaggs, but a late equaliser from Chris Jones, added to a brace from Aaron Nell to send the game into overtime.
Wildcats goalie Renny Marr was the hero for the Cats as he saved Owen Griffiths final penalty shot and sparked scenes of celebration from the Cats players and fans. Highlights from the game can be viewed HERE
The final between Swindon and either Hull or Basingstoke will be played sometime in February so at least the trophy will be lifted in Autumn – if you are watching the live stream from Argentina.
Saturday action review
Alan Lack made a welcome return to the London Raiders line-up as he recovered from his horrific facial injury with a face cage on for protection. It was a good night for all in gold and blue as they leapfrogged their opponents Bracknell Bees in the standings with a 6-3 win.
Lack returns to a 4 point weekend (John Scott)
Juraj Huska led the way with a hat trick for the Raiders to add to a brace from Brandon Ayliffe and a lone goal for Jake Sylvester. For the Bees Josh Martin, Shaun Thompson and Alex Barker got the goals.
The Raiders were actually outshot in the game and once again had Michael Gray to thank for another solid performance between the pipes. Who says some time away from the game can’t work wonders?
Invicta Dynamos ended a three game losing streak with a 5-1 home win over Cardiff Fire. It was kids go free night, which swelled a home crowd who watched Ashley Jackson fire in a hat trick to seal two much needed points for the Mo’s. Jaroslav Cesky and Callum Fowler were also on target for the hosts with David Manning popping up to score the consolation for the Fire.
The 482 Days media team were in attendance at the game in Gillingham after earlier causing a near riot in The Copperfield in Gravesend, by impatiently using their hands to scoop up carrots from the carvery rather than wait in line for a ladle. Even in a Crown Carvery this is a clear no-no.
Gregory shakes his hips in Telford (Rick Webb)
Streatham travelled up to Telford facing an uphill task in the 2nd leg of the Cup Quarter Final trailing by three goals. Rather than capitulate, the RedHawks redeemed themselves earning a 4-4 tie but it wasn’t enough to stop the Tigers advancing to the semi-final stage where they will face Swindon.
Brodie Jesson, Rick Plant, Scott McKenzie and Jonathan Weaver were all on target for Telford with Aidan Doughty bagging a hat trick for Streatham to add to a lone goal for Ryan Webb.
One man who had a more painful evening than most was Streatham blue-liner Chris Cooke who decided to block a Jonathan Weaver clapper and won bruise of the week as reward. Any players who feel they have a bruise of equal nastiness or worse should always email us at the address below.
Swindon may have enjoyed their shoot out win on Thursday night but with the games coming thick and fast, it was their turn to lose out on penalties as Basingstoke clinched two big league points in Hampshire. Yet another low scoring game involving the Bison ended 1-1 after regulation and overtime with Ryan Sutton scoring for the hosts and Edgars Bebris for the Cats.
Cooke takes one for the Streatham team
Dean Skinns was the hero for the Bison with none of the Wildcats able to beat him in the showdown, while Dan Davies sent the home crowd happy with the winner. The win ended an emotional night in which the Bison had worn black armbands in memory of Coach Doug Shepphard’s recently passed mother Beth.
The final game of the evening took place in Milton Keynes where the Thunder were despatched 6-1 by league leaders Peterborough Phantoms.
Hat tricks from Ales Padelek and former MK man Glenn Billing did the business for the visitors, after Gareth O’Flaherty had given the Thunder a first period lead.
Thunder netminder Tom Annetts had a busy evening facing 60 shots in total but once again turned the majority away to continue his good form this year.
Sunday action review
Peterborough completed a four point weekend on home ice as they beat Invicta Dynamos 4-2. The King brothers Euan and Damien faced each other at opposite ends of the ice, with the latter the busiest between the pipes.
James Ferrara hit a brace for the Phantoms to add to efforts from Nathan Salem and Darius Pliskauskas, while Mason Webster scored both goals for the Mo’s.
The result was important for the hosts as Swindon beat Basingstoke 4-2 in front of a packed Link Centre boosted by a decent travelling support following the Bison.
Chris Jones, Phil Hill, Aaron Nell and Luc Johnson were on target for the Wildcats with Stuart Mogg and Dan Davies the scorers for the Bison. The result gave Swindon a big boost in their efforts to catch both the Bison and the Phantoms in the league title race and certainly put the (wild) cat amongst the pigeons – taxi already en-route.
Both MK and Bracknell faced each other at the Hive knowing that one of them would add a much needed win to their recent form.
The two teams could not be separated in regulation or overtime at 2-2 with Grant McPherson and Jamie Line putting the Thunder ahead twice only for Shaun Thompson and Callum Best to reply for the Bees.
In a tense showdown it was Callum Best who held his nerve to score whilst team mate Danny ‘Nordman’ Milton kept out the MK shooters to seal the Bees first win in two months.
The results of 482 litres of booze
In the final game of the day Streatham IHC and London Raiders went head to head south of the river knowing that the race for 4th place was heating up. The Raiders secured a four point weekend with a 2-1 win thanks to goals from Juraj Huska and Olegs Lascenko. Michael Farn got Streatham’s consolation.
Two scraps towards the end of the game added to the action as Jacob Ranson and Jordan Gregory dropped the gloves with JJ Pitchley and Matt Turner respectively.
The 482 Days team took a night off from attending an NIHL match, possibly due to the burnt hand injury to their management. In any case, the night in the office was certainly not spent without the company of a bottle of red wine, as their tweet late in the evening proved. Answers on a postcard as to what they are talking about.
Results
Thursday 18 January 2018
Peterborough Phantoms 3 Swindon Wildcats 3 (Swindon win on Penalty Shots – Autumn Cup)
Saturday 20 January 2018
Invicta Dynamos 5 Cardiff Fire 1
Telford Tigers 4 Streatham IHC 4 (Tigers Qualify for Cup Semi-final)
MK Thunder 1 Peterborough Phantoms 6
Basingstoke Bison 1 Swindon Wildcats 1 (Bison win on penalty shots)
Sunday 21 January 2018
Streatham IHC 1 London Raiders 2
Peterborough Phantoms 4 Invicta Dynamos 2
Bracknell Bees 2 MK Thunder 2 (Bees win on Penalty Shots)
Swindon Wildcats 4 Basingstoke Bison 2
Contact the author: david.carr@prohockeynews.com
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