Vipers face daunting weekend

NEWCASTLE, UK – Newcastle Vipers face a tricky weekend away from the Arena as Coach Wilson’s side face a punishing schedule of up to 5 games in a 3 day period. Newcastle begin their hectic schedule with a game away at the Belfast Giants on Friday evening, the following night Newcastle travel to the Midlands to take on Paul Thompson’s Coventry Blaze. Vipers then head over to Sheffield to take part in the inaugural Hockeyfest tournament where they face the Edinburgh Capitals in the quarter finals.
Last season Newcastle often appeared jaded and out of sorts when they had a packed schedule however as Coach Wilson had assembled a much younger quicker roster this season it is hoped that this weekend’s demanding schedule will not have such an impact on the Vipers.

It is possible that any of the 8 teams involved in the first 20/20 tournament in the UK could walk away with the cup which gives clubs such as Hull, Edinburgh and Newcastle a realistic chance of collecting some silverware. Both Newcastle and Edinburgh will feel they can overcome the other in their quarter final clash which should mean that the fans of both teams are set for an interesting encounter.
However Vipers have a lot of hockey to play before they can turn their attention to the hockeyfest competition at the Sheffield Arena. Coach Wilson will be keen for his side to continue to impress in the Elite League after an encouraging start to the campaign. Vipers have surprised the majority of UK hockey fans with their strong start to the 2009-10 season as the Tyneside based side sit 2^nd in the Elite League standings after around a month of competitive action.
If Newcastle could pick up a 2 point haul from their 2 tough away games I would imagine Coach Wilson and his staff would be quite happy with their efforts as both the Odyssey Arena and the SkyDome are tough arenas to visit. Vipers will be eager to inflict another defeat on the Giants after Newcastle recorded a recent 2-0 victory in the north east. However achieving a positive result in the Midlands against Blaze would be superb as Coventry looked a very strong side when they visited Tyneside last weekend. Paul Thompson has assembled a well rounded squad once again and with offensive players such as Greg Chambers, Greg Owen, Adam Calder, Russ Cowley and Derek Campbell on his roster every offensive line Blaze send out is packed with quality.
This coming weekend could see the Vipers season go from strength to strength if Newcastle can pick up some positive league results before doing well in Hockeyfest. However back to back league defeats in Elite League action and then a quarter final exit against the Edinburgh Capitals would be a huge blow to the whole Vipers organisation.
Contact Chris.MacKenzie@prohockeynews.com