WEEKEND
PREVIEW
NIHL
NORTH DIVISION 1 MORALEE CONFERENCE
Saturday
26th November 2016
Blackburn Hawks vs. Solway Sharks
Sunday
27th November 2016
Whitley Warriors vs. Sutton Sting
Billingham Stars vs. Blackburn Hawks
With
two NIHL North Cup games taking place this weekend, as both Solway Sharks and
Billingham Stars encounter Blackburn Hawks in the competition, Whitley Warriors
will be the only team of the Northern Trio to play a league fixture as they
take on Sutton Sting for the second time this month.
 |
Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
|
First
to ice this weekend are Solway Sharks who make the trip to Lancashire to
confront Steven Duncombe’s Blackburn Hawks for the first time since their 5-3
cup defeat at the Ice Bowl in September. With this the Sharks’ only defeat
across all competitions this season, the side will be cautious against their
opposition on Saturday, particularly as they do not ice in front of a home
crowd on this occasion. In their previous game against Blackburn, alternate
captain Ross Murray was the first to open the scoring whilst summer signing
Rick Bentham and two-way forward Jordan Buesa also found themselves on the
scoresheet for the Dumfries outfit. However, since this fixture, Bentham made
the switch back to defending champions Blackburn Hawks and, as a result, this
game will prove to be an interesting reunion between the two sides as the
forward takes on his former teammates. Recently, the Sharks have been difficult
to beat, with Murray opening the scoring in Solway’s double header last weekend
whilst captain Struan Tonnar was also in fine form in front of goal to bag six
goals, five of which were delivered against Telford Tigers. By contrast, the
Hawks have found it difficult to contend this campaign,
losing four of their last five games across all competitions.
 |
Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
|
Agonisingly close
cup clashes against Billingham Stars and Whitley Warriors over the last fortnight saw
the Hawks miss out in the latter stages of these games; first in a penalty shootout to the Stars and then to a penalty shot
which sent the Warriors on to achieve a 7-6 victory in regulation time, following Blackburn’s
comeback. Developing as a team and growing ever closer to gaining points,
Duncombe’s men will turn their attentions to this latest cup fixture in the
hope that they can record a victory against the Sharks to go within one point
of top spot, especially now that the Warriors are looking over their
shoulder. Solway, on the other hand, have the potential to stretch their lead
at the top of the table to seven points should they claim a regulation win but,
with contests such as this one proving so close of late, the points really are
there for the taking. Looking ahead to this fixture, Head Coach Martin Grubb
told NIHL Northern Trio: “We will be going into this game on the back of a good
weekend and it is important to make sure we can continue to do the little
things that are making us successful right now. We know the Hawks are a team
who have quality throughout their line-up and we will need to execute our game
plan to give ourselves a chance to win along with winning the battles and
taking our chances. It will be a good game I’m sure and we look forward to it.
Also, myself, the players and the club wish to pass on our condolences to the
family of Bobby Dixon who will be missed by the NIHL hockey family.”
 |
Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
|
Icing
on Sunday, Whitley Warriors will host Sutton Sting, having just played the side
two weeks ago in a game which was edged by the Hillheads outfit, the side claiming a narrow 4-2 victory to hold
onto fourth place whilst Simon Butterworth’s men remain just outside of the
playoff positions. With this game so close, it was clear that both sides were
fairly evenly matched throughout and scoring was particularly difficult for the
home side who were faced with tenacious shot stopper Dmitri Zimozdra as well as
the Sting’s compact defence. Triumphing over Billingham Stars last weekend,
Sutton claimed a 4-3 victory against the Teessiders, having been three goals up at
the end of the first period. Gradually beginning to show their might, the side
will undoubtedly be a force to be reckoned with once more as alternate captain
Ryan Johnson, former EPL forward Lloyd Gibson and youngster Joseph Colton set
out to make life difficult for David Longstaff’s line up.
 |
Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
|
Meanwhile, Whitley
Warriors will also apply their own blend of power, pace and punchiness to the
game with captain Dean Holland planning to continue his recent good run of form.
Having accumulated eight goals and six assists in the Moralee Conference to
date, Holland also excelled in last Sunday’s cup game against the Hawks,
scoring twice during normal play before completing his hat trick with a penalty
shot in the dying seconds of the third period. Also working hard recently to
earn more ice time is Warrior Lawson Glasby who, signing for Whitley in the
summer, has made a great impact, already tallying four league goals and
influencing play with his excellent work rate. With both teams possessing
players of a high quality to make this game as intense as their previous clash,
this game will certainly be one to watch, particularly as a win would send
Sutton level on points with the Warriors, whereas victory for Whitley would see
the side edge away from their closest competition at present. In preparation
for this game, player-coach David Longstaff shared: “It should be another tough
game as we needed an empty net goal to ensure we won more comfortably last time. They
have a goalie who can win games on his own at this level so it’s always a hard
game against Sutton. Obviously, after losing Bobby [Dixon] this week to cancer
I’m sure the lads will be trying to show their best.”
 |
Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
|
Last, but not least, Billingham Stars prepare to take on Blackburn Hawks who travel
north for their second cup game of the weekend following their home clash with
Solway Sharks on Saturday. Currently bottom of the NIHL North Cup table, defending champions
Billingham Stars will be disappointed with their current position after winning the silverware in the competition last season but will equally hope to get back
on track with a win, having already recorded three cup wins from a possible
four against the Hawks. So far, Stars Dennis Boström and Michael Elder have
caused the most damage against Blackburn this season, the former burying five
goals past the side whilst Elder has three to his name.
Whilst Billingham’s firepower is made up of several skilled forwards, including top points scorer Chris Sykes, assist specialist Callum
Davies and goal scorer Dennis Boström, the Hawks also boast a great deal of
talent in their squad with forwards Rick Bentham and Aaron Davies proving tricky
opposition, defenceman Nick Oliver contributing to the Hawks’ offence where
possible and former Tiger Philip Mulcahy demonstrating a good work ethic in the
face of adversity. With both teams showing their strengths of late, though
results have not always gone their way, it is clear that both will engage in another
enthralling battle to ensure they claim points in the closely contested atmosphere
of the North Cup. At present, just five points separate the fourth placed
Stars from competition leaders Solway Sharks, meaning a regulation win could
bring Billingham within two points of top spot should the Dumfries outfit lose
out to the Hawks on Saturday. On the other hand, maximum points for Blackburn could see the
side go ahead of Martin Grubb’s men should they claim success across both NIHL North
Cup games this weekend. Looking forward to this clash, Star Chris Sykes
expressed his thoughts on Billingham’s upcoming encounter: “It’s back to the
cup at home against Blackburn again. Last time, it went to penalty shots and
was a great game for all of the fans. Hopefully, this will be another game like
that one but without the nerves of penalty shots would be nice. Blackburn have struggled
this season and we’ve got the upper hand against them at the moment, and at
home I feel like we benefit from the smaller ice against them. We will work on
a few things in practice this week and get to grips with what we are planning
to do to be ready for Sunday.”
 |
Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
|
On
another important note, Billingham Stars will also be holding their
annual ‘Air the Bear’ event, hoping to collect soft toys, games, gift sets and
other presents for children who will be in hospital over the Christmas period. If
you would like to help the Stars with their collection, please bring the item
you wish to donate along to The Forum on Sunday.
For
those fans hoping to attend a game this weekend, Solway Sharks travel to
Blackburn Ice Arena for a 5:45pm faceoff with the Hawks on Saturday, before the
Lancashire outfit arrives at The Forum to take on Billingham Stars from 6:30pm in
their second consecutive NIHL North Cup clash of the weekend. Meanwhile, away
from the cup competition, Whitley Warriors will encounter Sutton Sting at
Hillheads from 5:00pm on Sunday where fans will hold a minute’s applause before
the game to celebrate Bobby Dixon and the positive impact he had within the ice
hockey community.
Can’t make it to a game? Below are the listening details for NIHL Radio.
Can’t make it to a game? Below are the listening details for NIHL Radio.
NIHL
Radio Listings
Saturday
26th November
5:45pm
on NIHL Radio 1
Blackburn
Hawks vs. Solway Sharks
Sunday
27th November
5:00pm
on NIHL Radio 1
Whitley
Warriors vs. Sutton Sting
5:45pm
on NIHL Radio 2
The
Dragons vs. Solihull Barons
6:30pm
on NIHL Radio 3
Billingham
Stars vs. Blackburn Hawks
For more photos from IceHockeyMedia, please visit: http://www.icehockeymedia.co.uk/.
No comments:
Post a Comment