When/Where/Whats going on?
On Saturday the 23rd we held the annual pre-season launch party at the Stanley Leisure Centre. Great attendance from everyone, parents, grant parents, friends, and many others. With three games over the night and a crowd cheering from the gallery for all it really had the feel of a proper hockey night.
Senior Game
The night kicked off with a mixed all stars game with two teams containing a selection of players from the senior leagues. It was a hotly contested game with goals flying in from both sides, and plenty of effort from both sides to contest the puck! The last couple of minutes seeing a flurry of activity to take the trailing team up to 4-5 and maybe bringing a draw into reach, only to have those hopes dashed by an immediate response from the face off with a long shot to take it to 6-4 where it ultimately finished. Special mention should be made for Temis Smith and John McLeod who not only stepped up their games in the first game of the year, but also their first games in an all star game, well done to both excellent performances!
We were delighted to have Alex Mitham as our special guest on Saturday. Not only did he do a great job of dropping the puck for the inaugural games, he highlighted the recent successes of the Association overseas as well as looking to our exciting future regional opportunities on ice and inline.
Alex has taken a keen interest in the Association in the years he has worked in the Falklands and has seen us evolve into the Association we are now – one that is fully inclusive with player development at its heart. His passion and assistance has been invaluable and we will be forever grateful for that
Peewee Game
Alex then dropped the puck for the peewee game including the launch of a new team PHOENIX vs. Villains! Like all Peewee games this was brilliant to watch with plenty of heart and effort from every one and a few goals to go too. Great performances from everyone, including a number of new players who seemed to really take the spirit of the game. We are really excited about the Peewee league this year with another team and the standard of players really coming up too as everyone throws themselves into the game with maximum effort. Great work Kids!
Junior Game
Finally we finished out the night with a junior game with new team Vikings and Thunder. Vikings were dominant in the first period getting to 4-1 at the buzzer. The second half was a complete turn around with Thunder coming back hard, eventually bringing tying the score like up at 5-5 with only 2 minutes remaining. Those remaining minutes were the highlight of the night with an insanely competitive finale to the game with opportunities for both sides. Ultimately neither could make it through to a win, and finishing with a 5 all tie. Great efforts from both teams with top scorers Liam Williams for the Vikings and Hayden Stanworth for Thunder making a massive impact with a hat-trick each.
Now we get into the season for real, we will be posting results here on the site. keep coming back to see how your teams are doing!
Players and fans can find the Player Standings and the League Standings by following the links.
