Rink campaigns, Vikings and a Chelsea smile

LONDON, UK – A rink closure is every hockey club’s worst nightmare and sadly it is the turn of the Isle of Wight this time round. Aside from the doom and gloom there were positive stories of collaboration, a couple of celebrities and a new menu.

Ryde Arena closure make s the news

There was one story that dominated the news in NIHL South during the week and sadly it wasn’t a good one. Rumours of the closure of Ryde Arena turned out to be true with Planet Ice announcing that the venue would close its doors on March 25^th.

“If the rink is taken away, where will people go to enjoy a Saturday night of speed, skill, and aggression” asked former Raider Kieran Annis on the Yoppul website.

Rink users rally in protest

“What other regular sporting event on the Isle of Wight attracts this many spectators week in and week out?”

“I might be biased – I played for the Raiders for 5 years – but the crowd during our games was something that isn’t replicated in many other rinks across the country. We have had a very strong, loyal fanbase over the years, and it would be such a shame to lose it all”

“This doesn’t just mean supporters of the sport of ice hockey, but the players themselves”

“The majority of the Raiders actually live on the mainland, so for them it’s not the end of the world – but for the players throughout the system, whether this be the Raiders, Tigers, recreational players, or any of the 5 junior clubs on the Island it is”

At the time of writing a group of individuals had been set up to look at ways of saving the rink and Raiders Sports Therapist Victoria Coles organised a petition that we would urge any reader to sign HERE

There is also a game arranged between Raiders past and present for the 4th March with more details to follow.

There was tangible excitement in the Twittersphere as referee Stefan Hogarth tweeted a pic of himself with none other than Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech following the EPL game between Guildford and Bracknell on Wednesday.

Cech was unfortunately without the black helmet he wears on the pitch otherwise it could have been a much better photo.

Anything the EPL can do, the NIHL can of course do better and Invicta Dynamos whetted everyone’s appetite for their game on Sunday by revealing that the guest of honour would be world darts champion and legend Andy ‘The Viking’ Fordham.

Short of the Dynamos getting the KLF to re-form and play a live gig during a warm up at one of their games, it is difficult to see how they could trump this latest celebrity appearance at Silverblades.

The Invicta Burger – a marketing dream

With morale dipping in Kent, the ice rink management decided to lift everyone’s spirits by renaming one of their signature dishes after the hockey team.

The family favourite Olympia burger deal was tweaked by the resident chef and with just three key ingredients, namely bacon, cheese and salad (all for just an extra pound) the Invicta burger was born.

The extra focus on the food menu was unfortunately at the expense of the ice, as three large dark patches appeared on the pad and the lighting dimmed at one end.

London Raiders good form was brought to a halt last weekend as Bracknell skated away with a somewhat surprising win from Lee Valley Ice Centre.

“It was a frustrating game as we never got going. Defensively we were scrappy and our forward play was far too predictable” said Raiders Coach Alan Blyth in an interview with the Romford Recorder.

“We were caught flat footed and you cannot afford to do that against a strong Bracknell team”

“We didn’t move the puck around as well as we can do and we will be putting that right for this weekend’s clash on the island.”

“It will be a tough game as the ice surface is much smaller so therefore the intensity will be at its greatest. We know that they have a great net minder and their forwards are a real threat every time we play them. Their defence is an area that we will be looking to exploit”

Lets go and burst the Hovercraft!

In the absence of Bruise of the Week we had to trawl the archives to fill some space so imagine our delight when pics from Wightlink Raiders post game party a couple of weeks ago, winged their way to our inbox.

Teletubbie of the week goes to Craig Tribe for looking so resplendent in purple.

It is fair to say that if you enjoy reading about the NIHL then last week was a good one to log on to Pro Hockey News with not one, not two, but three NIHL related interviews to add to the usual weekly round-up.

On Monday London’s Chris Douglas revealed he was dust as a defenseman before changing to be a goalie. On Tuesday Chelmsford’s Dwayne Newman revealed some gambling insight from the pool hall and on Thursday MK’s Jamie Line admitted that being small has its advantages.

When it comes to hard hitting news there really is only one place to visit.

Saturday

Cardiff Devils have had a tough season but when you experience the lows, it makes the high’s all the more pleasurable. The Welsh side pulled off an impressive 3-3 tie with table toppers Chelmsford in the Big Blue Tent.

Oliver packs his selfie stick for post game cellies

Cardiff could have taken all three points had it not been for a late equaliser by Matt Turner to add to his earlier effort and goal from Danny Hammond.

Jamie Hayes led from the front with two goals for Cardiff and Owen Bradshaw scored the other.

MK Thunder let slip their recent good form by losing 4-2 on home ice to Solent Devils.

The Thunder were 3-0 down after only thirteen minutes but recovered a little to make the scoreline a respectable one.

George Norcliffe bagged two for the Devils with Shaun Rudkin and Ralfs Circenis also on target. Both of MK’s goals came from Alex Whyte.

Wightlink were without star forwards Jaroslav Cesky and Alex Barker for their home clash against London Raiders and they paid the price as the visitors won 6-3.

Alan Lack and Jacob Ranson scored two each for London with Vaclav Drabek and Ricky Deacon also on target. Jeremy Cornish, Aaron Edwards and Damon Larter scored for Wightlink.

Cornish and Lack dropped the gloves in the second period and this was followed by another fight, this time between Nick Compton and Jack Cooper.

Why eye wee man

He may have been moved up a league this year but former Chelmsford blueliner John Connolly cannot escape a mention in Pro Hockey News for his Saturday evening experience.

Casualty on BBC 1 has always been a great motivation to stay out of the house on a Saturday evening, but whilst Connolly missed watching the dreary TV drama, he sadly did not escape the real thing after blocking a shot with his face for MK Lightning. Best wishes John from all at Pro Hockey News and thanks for sharing the snapchat snapshot with our source.

Sunday

Just as Cardiff were enjoying a relaxing night off with a bottle of red wine and a cheeseboard, Oxford City Stars tore the form book to shreds with a road win in Solent.

Nick Oliver capped off a great personal week with two goals for the Stars, to add to an Oscar winning performance in Eastenders live as Ian Beale a few days earlier. Josh Florey also scored two for the Stars to add to a goal from Josh Oliver.

Mitch Murray, Andrew Magee, Drew Campbell and George Norcliffe scored for the Devils, who pulled Chico Cole at the end for an extra skater to try and tie the game.

The result ends an unwelcome run of seven games without a win for the Stars and takes them two points above Cardiff.

Skaife saves Stars (Kev Slyfield)

Invicta Dynamos got a much needed boost as they downed Streatham Redskins 7-2 at Silverblades.

Streatham started the brighter but two goals from former import Michal Oravec and lone goals from Andy Smith, Callum Fowler, Anthony Leone, Juraj Huska and Arran Strawson did the business for the Mo’s.

Sean Scarbrough and Robbie Brown scored for Streatham who were left wanting the dark patches on the ice to swallow them up by the end.

The biggest cheer of the night was of course for the Viking as he presented the man of the match awards to acclaim from both teams and supporters.

The final game of the evening saw Chelmsford avoid another potential banana skin as they beat MK Thunder 5-2 at the Riverside.

Martin Piecha scored a brace for the home side with Ryan Giles, Ross Brears and Danny Hammond also on target. Tom Mboya and Nidal Phillips scored for the Thunder.

The results leave Chelmsford at the top of the table, but next weekend it is cup semi-final weekend as Invicta take on Wightlink over two legs and Streatham face the same against Chelmsford.