WEEKEND
PREVIEW
NIHL
NORTH DIVISION 1 (MORALEE)
Saturday 4th November 2017
Solway
Sharks vs. The
Dragons
Sunday
5th November 2017
Whitley Warriors vs. Hull Pirates
Billingham
Stars vs. Solway Sharks
Fixture:
Solway Sharks vs. The Dragons
Date: 4th November 2017
Venue: Dumfries Ice Bowl
Faceoff: 7:00pm
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Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
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After
failing to pick up a single point in last weekend’s double header against Telford Tigers and Whitley Warriors, Solway Sharks will play host to The Dragons on
Saturday with the aim to overcome their recent disappointment in some of their
league performances to demonstrate their usual quality on the ice. Facing The
Dragons on the opening weekend of their 2017-18 campaign, the Sharks were able
to record a landslide victory over the Welsh outfit, winning by thirteen goals
to two as their team of twelve skaters broke down the home team’s defence to
triumph comfortably. Whilst penalties proved an issue for The Dragons in this
fixture, with both defenceman Craig Lutkevitch and French player-assistant
coach Mickaël Brodin collectively racking up sixty one penalty minutes, the Sharks were far more disciplined to leave Deeside with maximum
points; alternate captain Ross Murray, forward Connor Henderson and defencemen
Marek Charvát and Kyle Horne all with two goals each whilst the team’s top
points scorer Iain Bowie claimed a hat trick besides notching four assists. As
a result of their dominance in this clash, the Sharks will once again set their
sights on goal this weekend, aware that, if they can achieve such a score line
on the road, they should be able to match it with a win on home ice.
Losing
player-coach Scott McKenzie to Telford Tigers on Monday, The Dragons need a positive
result this weekend to kick-start their season. Now sitting at the foot of NIHL
North’s Division One with a worse goal difference than Nottingham Lions, the
Welsh outfit have claimed just one league victory from ten games; their only
success a 4-3 win over Solihull Barons who have also endured mixed form this
season. Following the departure of their current top points scorer, The Dragons
will now focus on the first game of their latest double header as they make the
trip to Dumfries, the side hoping they can cause an upset against the Sharks
who will look to avoid complacency against the tenth-placed team. With two
points potentially making a huge difference to The Dragons as they
look to move away from the automatic relegation place, Solway Sharks will also
be in great need of a boost following last weekend’s losses as they endeavour
to climb the league table and make a positive start on Saturday with a view
to accomplish a four-point weekend.
Looking forward to this game, Sharks’
Head Coach Martin Grubb shared:
“After
two defeats last weekend, we need to be ready to play against The Dragons. We
know they will be desperate to perform in their first game without Scotty and
we need to make sure we come to play in all three zones for sixty minutes and
be much better than last weekend.”
Meanwhile, considering this challenge
and reflecting on what has been a difficult week for The Dragons, forward Geoff
Wigglesworth told NIHL Northern Trio:
“The fixture against Solway is a massive test for us.
Getting beat by a big margin last game, we need to tighten up all over the ice
and help our goalie out a lot more. We have been working on our play this week
to try and cope with the quality that Solway have. It’s a massive test for us
and all the boys are looking forward to a hard night in the Shark Tank but,
with the right tactics, we could cause an upset. Moving on from Scott’s
departure, we just need to stick together, freshen everything up with new
plays and work hard for Mike [Mickaël Brodin] who is taking over for now. We
know Scott has left a massive hole but what’s done is done. We’re grown men
and we will pull together and fight until the end as we want The Dragons to
survive and keep top-standard hockey coming to the Den. On a final note, can I ask that as
many fans as possible make it down to the rink on Sunday and be our sixth man
on the ice. Your support will help us massively and we need your backing at
this difficult time.”
Fixture:
Whitley Warriors vs. Hull Pirates
Date: 5th November 2017
Venue: Whitley Bay Ice Rink
Faceoff: 5:00pm
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Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
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So
far winning six of the ten league games they have played this season, Whitley
Warriors find themselves in fifth place with thirteen points as they prepare to
play host to Hull Pirates on Sunday, having yet to face the former EPL outfit.
Currently tied on points, although the Pirates have two games in hand on the
Warriors, Hull are only just ahead of David Longstaff’s line-up in fourth place
and will therefore aim to distance themselves from the Hillheads outfit with a
road win this weekend. Whilst the Warriors have so far suffered defeats to
Solway Sharks, Blackburn Hawks and Telford Tigers, Hull have equally endured
some mixed form. So far winning five of the eight league games they have played, the
Pirates recorded a 6-3 loss to Blackburn Hawks mid-September and have certainly
met their match in Solihull Barons this season, first suffering an overtime
defeat to the side on the opening day of their campaign before losing out after
penalty shots at Hobs Moat Road last month which was followed by last weekend’s
narrow 8-7 victory for Jason Hewitt’s men; the game again settled in overtime. Hoping
to contend with the Pirates as closely as the Barons have, Whitley will head out onto the ice on Sunday looking to avoid the heavy loss that
Billingham suffered to Hull in October, particularly as the Warriors have
managed to play some strong hockey so far this season, only last weekend
bouncing back from a 6-2 road loss to Blackburn to beat defending champions Solway Sharks in front of a home crowd.
Though heading
into the unknown, Whitley will be under no illusion as
to the challenge they face when they clash with the Pirates on Sunday. Only this week, Hull’s left winger
Matty Davies was named October’s Player of the Month after achieving five goals
and an astounding twenty four assists in eight league games to prove deserving
of the award. However, Davies is just one of the many skilled and experienced players
Hull have at their disposal this season, with player-coach Jason Hewitt, alternate
captain Samuel Towner and right winger James Archer also amongst those shining for the Pirates to find themselves not too far behind Davies
in the points production chart. Setting out to contend with yet more tough
competition, the Warriors will be ready to endure another battle and will no
doubt give their all as they look to steal the points from the Pirates to
challenge for a place in the NIHL North’s top four.
Sharing his expectations of this game
and reflecting on Whitley’s season so far, Warriors’ alternate captain Jordan
Barnes kindly took part in a short interview ahead of this fixture:
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| Photo Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson |
How do you feel heading into your upcoming game against Hull Pirates?
The
team feels good after a win against Solway which boosts the lads’ confidence. I
expect the game to be fast-paced from the start and we will have to be at our
very best, especially in our own end of the rink.
What do you make of Whitley’s form so
far and how has the restructuring of British Ice Hockey over the summer months affected the NIHL?
Our
season so far has been pretty good considering the team’s situation where money
is concerned. We have shown we can compete with teams at this level and we have
our heads switched on as the league is a lot faster and it’s all about doing
the little things right.
How has Whitley’s far more
disciplined approach impacted on your style of play as a power forward?
This
year we can’t afford to give away stupid penalties so it’s a lot different as the league is now more skilled and, if you look around, there
are very few teams that have an enforcer; they have players that can fight but
also who can play. If you think of it like this: if there was a player on the
top team who was trying to get a reaction last year, we would just fight; this
year, we need to know the right time and place to fight. If our team needs a
boost or if we just need someone to step in, our team has a few faces that will
do that, not just me. Also, being alternate captain, I can’t just be selfish
and go out and fight and hurt my team by taking penalties. I have to set an
example; be in the right place at the right time, like I said. We have Watto [Callum
Watson], Ryan Sample and other guys who can fight as well so it’s good to have
a few guys that can do that if needed. Also, regarding how it affects my game,
not much at all. Last year, I showed I can get points as well to help my team
and that’s what I intend to do this year as well. At the end of the day,
winning the game is the most important thing, not fighting. As much as everyone
loves it, it’s not as easy as just going out there and fighting someone.
Also preparing for Hull’s first encounter
against the Warriors, Pirate Chris Wilcox noted:
“This
Sunday we travel to Whitley who we have not faced yet this season so it should
be a good test. Whitley is always a tough place to go and play so we are
expecting a hard game. We have been playing well of late so hopefully we can
stick to our systems and play a good overall game.”
Adding to this, NIHL North’s Player
of the Month Matty Davies shared:
“Sunday will be a tough game. I haven’t played in
Whitley since the Newcastle days and it was always a difficult game. With the
team, the rink and the fans, it was always a tough place to get a win in. But,
for us, we need to do our best to improve our away form and start picking up
big wins away from Hull, so that will have to be our focus on Sunday. The season
has gone well up to now. We’ve had a few below par performances and some good
ones. Like most teams, we just need to find that consistency which we will need
to try and push for the league title. I am happy to receive the award this
month. We have won some big games, notably in the cup against teams like
Telford, Sheffield and Swindon, so the team, as a whole, has had a good month. My
job is to produce and to get the team into winning positions so, for now, it’s going
well and we need to keep it going!”
Fixture:
Billingham Stars vs. Solway Sharks
Date: 5th November 2017
Venue: The Forum
Faceoff: 6:30pm
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Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
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Taking
to the ice after finally breaking their twelve-game losing streak with a 9-3 cup
win over Blackburn Hawks on home ice last Sunday, Billingham Stars will once again
enjoy a one-game weekend as they invite Solway Sharks to the Forum; the duo preparing
to go head-to-head for a third time this season, though they have yet to face
each other in the league. With three cup victories against the Stars already under
their belts, the Dumfries outfit will feel that they are more than capable of leaving
Teesside with maximum points but will equally approach this game with some degree
of caution rather than complacency, having only just edged two of their three
wins over Billingham by a single goal; first winning by four goals to three in
overtime to allow the Stars to claim a point, the Sharks then snatched a narrow 2-1 win at
the Ice Bowl one week later and more recently triumphed again on home ice, the score line 7-2 on this occasion.
However,
though the aforementioned cup games against the Stars were undoubtedly close in
the past, the Sharks will know that Sunday’s clash will be very different as
Billingham head in to this fixture with some momentum after captain Michael
Elder, alternate captains Chris Sykes and Callum Davies, player-coach Michael
Bowman and Latvian imports Artūrs Ozols and Deniss Baškatovs all grabbed goals
against Steven Duncombe’s Hawks last weekend. Sitting in eighth place with just
three points from eight league games, the Stars are currently nine points
adrift of the Sharks, though they do have two games in hand. As such,
Billingham will do all they can to reduce this gap on Sunday, although this
will be no easy task as Solway, looking to get back to their best following
last weekend’s struggle against Whitley Warriors, will aim to utilise their
firepower in current top points scorers Iain Bowie, Ross
Murray and Steven Moore. With games between these two close rivals often fiery,
this game will certainly be one to watch as both teams go all out for glory.
Looking forward to this game after
last weekend’s cup success, Stars’ alternate captain Chris Sykes revealed:
“It’s a big weekend coming up, moving into the league against Solway. We’ve had some good games against the Sharks this
season and, after last weekend’s performance, we need to build on that and work
how we did last week to get the win again.”
Adding to his earlier comments,
Sharks’ Head Coach Martin Grubb took time to consider the challenge his team
face ahead of this encounter:
“The Stars will come into this game full of confidence
after a huge result last week and we know this will be a very tough game. We
haven’t been playing great on the road so we will need everyone to execute the
systems and compete all over the ice. These games are usually tight and we need
to be sure to give ourselves a chance to win and we believe we can do so.”
Also,
this week sees Solway Sharks’ alternate captain Ross Murray and his workmates begin
their fundraising campaign for Movember and, should they reach their target of
£500 by 1st December, Ross has pledged to shave his hair off. To
donate, please follow the link: mobro.co/rossmurray90.
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Photo
Credit: IceHockeyMedia - Colin Lawson
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For more photos from IceHockeyMedia, please visit: http://www.icehockeymedia.co.uk/.
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