| Coach's Corner |
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| 20/04/08 - Canadian Junior Hockey Live On The Web |
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| All young MK juniors and anyone else that is missing hockey can tune into live webcasts of the Canadian Midget AAA Hockey Championships that will have some of Canada's best 16 and 17 year olds in action. The action can be accessed on http://www.telushockeycanada.com All fans are advised to cheer for team Pacific (coached by my youngest brother James) which is the Calgary Buffaloes whom I played for as a 16 year old. |
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| 13/04/08 - SHL 08 Coming Soon |
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| Stay tuned for the details of the upcoming Summer Hockey League 08. Places are filling up fast so please get your name down now to book a spot on one of the rosters. The teams will be finalised over the coming weeks. Please either email me at coach@mk-lightning.com or post onto the MKIHForums.org |
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| 13/04/08 - Under 14's Beat Guildford |
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| A huge game yesterday took place at Guildford when our U14's beat Guildford 3-1 in a must win game. This win keeps the team in with a hope of gaining entry to the U14 National Championships. We will need Romford to drop a game of there remaining two to qualify. Well done to head coach Lewis Clifford, Duncan Pullar and all the lads for another terriffic performance. With one game to play against Chelmsford it is still all to play for. |
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| 13/04/08 - U12's In Fife Tourney |
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| Well done to all the lads who took part in the Under 12 tournament up in Fife Scotland. The group of players and parents left early Friday morning by min-bus and made the trek up north. On Saturday they played four games winning two, drawing one and losing one. On Sunday morning they lost the last game to Telford before losing out in their semi-final match to Guildford 2-1 in a nail-biter. Well done to all the lads and coaches who took part and all the parents who helped make the trip happen. |
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| 25/03/08 MK Juniors in Europe |
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| Congrats to some of our up and coming talent in the MK junior ranks who were playing overseas this past weekend. Matt Clement and Jordan Hedley were in Holland with the Southwest England U13 team. Tom Mboya and David Carson were taking part in a tournament in Latvia with the England U14s. Tom and David's team came second in the field of 12. Well done to all! |
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| 18/02/08 - LIGHTNING CRASH OUT OF LEAGUE TITLE RACE WITH LOSS TO FLAMES |
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Saturday's 5-1 defeat looks to be the final nail in the coffin of our title hopes as we now need two or three teams to have a very poor run of results. Although, we are not yet mathematically eliminated from top spot the chances are very slim.
Whilst this is a very disappointing to all the players, staff and fans of the club we must now look to get our game back on track as we still have both the playoff and knock out cup competitions to win silverware. We have struggled since we crashed out of the semi-final in the League Cup with a last second goal in overtime against Bracknell. This loss has severely dented our confidence and we have struggled to find any kind of form since then. With three losses on the bounce and a very tough run of games coming up it is crucial that we pick ourselves up and start enjoying our hockey again. We have always been a team that needs to feel confident and feel good about what we are doing and that just hasn't been the case lately.
I know that many of our loyal supporters are also frustrated by the recent run of poor results. It isn't fun when the team you support loose games. However, I would like to make it very clear that no one is hurting about the results as much as the players themselves. The lads have been working very hard and I will not fault the effort over the last few games. I know that the spark is not there at the moment and we are not clicking as a team, but it is not for a lack of effort.
On Saturday we did hear the boos and it did hurt. It made a nervous and tense team even more nervous and tense. At the end of the day I realize that fans are entitled to do what they want and if that means airing their feelings then so be it, However, I would like to say that we are going to do everything we can to get ourselves playing the way that we know we can play (and the way that we have played). We know that we are a win away from feeling good again and we are going to do whatever it takes to get that win. We are a very tight unit and we are going to stick together. I would like to think that our supporters believe in us enough to do the same. We believe we have a team that can still win some silverware and nothing is going to change that belief.
We have plenty of hockey left in the season and we want to start enjoying what has been up until a few weeks ago a great year. With two tough road games this weekend it is an ideal time to roll up our sleeves, put the hard hats on and grind out a couple of wins. We would like to come back to the 'Thunderdome' in two weeks time smiling and get our fans smiling with a win as well.
On a final note, for all the fans that have stuck with us through this tough time, many Thanks. It's much appreciated by the whole Team. It is not the first time we have had a sticky patch and I am sure it will not be the last. We are a great club, with great fans and I have no doubt we will get back to winning ways soon.
Keep the Faith! |
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| 8/2/08 INJURY NEWS |
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| Muzzy has been back to the fracture clinic and he has been given bad news that there is a crack in his wrist. He is likely to be out for around 4 weeks as the bone heals. This is unfortunate news as we will miss Muzzy's hard nosed play. He will continue to help on the bench over the coming weeks with both Phil and Vito. |
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| CLARKIE GETS POINT FOR GB |
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| Congrats to Gary Clarke for netting his first GB (senior) point. Clarkie got credited an assist on a Jona Phillips goal. However, my sources have informed me that it was in fact a Gary Clarke goal. At least there is comfort in the fact that international refs make mistakes as well. Team GB lost the game 5-3 to Norway who are a top 15 ranked side. Gary and Team GB are taking on France tonight. |
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| 31/1/08 Lightning Hit With Penalty Point Suspension |
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| MKL player coach Nick Poole will be forced to miss both of this weekend's matches due to the team having reached the 50 penalty point mark. This past weekend saw the team rack up a total of 18 points (15 in Swindon and then 3 more against Telford). This same situation has happened in Telford with player coach Claude Dumas having to miss two games as well. Both MK and Telford broke the 50 point plateau when Ales Parez and Jake Armstrong were given game misc. penalties for there little scuffle. |
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| 24/1/08 Lightning Must Rebound Quickly After Cup Loss |
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With our trip to Swindon today we must forget what I can only describe as one of the most disappointing losses we have ever suffered. The overtime loss was a very bitter pill for both players and fans as we had been the better team over the two legs. However, this is the beautiful and frustrating thing about sport, and we must pick ourselves up quickly as we need a victory this evening to guarantee us another semi-final opportunity.
I only hope we can learn from the defeat and the next time we are in a similar situation we will be better coped to not only defend our lead but to make sure we capitalize on our chances.
All we can do now is congratulate the Bees and wish them luck in the final. More importantly though, we must look forward and get over Thursday's disappointment with a good performance and result against the Wildcats. |
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| 24/1/08 Clock Trouble Strikes Lightning |
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After viewing the tape of last night's game it appears we lost between 7 and 8 minutes of play. After the Bees second goal the clock sped down at a very rapid rate (visible on tape) where by a minute lass only around 10 seconds. This appears to be the case up until Matty scores which is timed at around the 5 minute mark. The two Bees goals (1st and 2nd) were scored in quick succession around the 15 minute mark. The next goal was Matty's to make it 2-2 and although the actual time was a few shifts, 10 minutes elapsed on the clock.
We did query it with the ref after the Bees 3rd goal and everyone on the ice was in agreement that time seemed to go by very quickly. However, we took what the clock said to be true and carried on. Obviously we all (players and fans) got caught up in the excitement and tenseness of the match and did not notice the rapidly moving clock.
This is only adds to the disappointment of the loss, but we shall have to move on and make sure it does not happen again. |
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| Injury Update |
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| Muzzy has suffered ligament damage to his wrist and will be out for the next 10 to 14 days. Thankfully it is not broken as we first suspected and he will only be out for the short term. We are hoping that he will be available for next weekend's matches and will keep you all up to date with his progress. |
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| Mixed Weekend For Lightning As We Prepare For Bees |
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This past weekend saw two very different performances and games from the MK Lightning. Saturday saw us take on the Slough Jets at the Hanger, a place where we have enjoyed success in the past. However, we were second best in every department as the Jets dominated the match from start to finish and won 7-1in what was a very disappointing and frustrating night for us. Everything that we pride ourselves in doing was forgotten on the night and we were punished for it. Credit to the Jets as they played some very good hockey and worked very hard. I hope this loss will give us a good kick up the backside for the next time that we play Slough.
Sunday saw us take on the struggling Wightlink Raiders at home and unlike the previous night it was us that dominated from the start. We opened up a 3-0 lead in the first period and rounded out the night as 9-0 winners. I was pleased for David Wride who got the shutout and thought that Ross Bowers and Ales Parez were both outstanding on the night.
With what promises to be a very tough game on Thursday as we take on the Bracknell Bees in the second leg of our English Cup semi final it was a relief that we did not have to expel too much energy on Sunday. |
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| 7/01/08 - Junior Results |
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| A great weekend for our juniors as the U10 continued there great run of results with back to back 13-0 wins against both Romford (home Saturday) and Lee Valley (away Sunday). This keeps us at the top of the table with Bracknell who are also undefeated. Our Under 14's won 5-3 against Haringay to keep within the top two. Well done to all the players and coaches. |
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| >> Coach's Corner 2006 - 2007 Season |
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| 26/11/07 - Junior Round-Up |
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| All in all a very positive weekend for our junior club with our teams winning 4 of 5 games over the two days. Our U10's won by an amazing scoreline down in Slough with a 28-0 victory. The game provided an excellent opportunity for the coaches to let all the players play out of position with each line contributing to the win. Our Under 12's took on Swindon and won 10-7 away from home on Sunday whilst our Under 14(Div 2) took on the league leading Cardiff and although lost by a heavy score never let their heads drop. Our Under 14 (Div 1) side won both games in a weekend double header beating Bracknell 4-3 away on Saturday and then defeating Chelmsford 7-2 at home on Sunday. Well done to all the players, coaches, management and parents for a great weekend. |
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| 19/11/07 - A Big Thanks To Supporter's Club |
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| On behalf of all the players I would like to thank the supporter's club for all their hard work in supporting our team and raising funds. Once again we received a cheque on Saturday night that will go along way to help providing the players with equipment over the course of the season. There are a lot of people that put in a massive amount of time both on game nights and during the week. Without the efforts of all these people there is no way we could have the success on the ice that we have had. |
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| 12/11/07 - Lightning Weekend Round-Up |
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Saturday saw us take on our old rivals the Phantoms in what always is tense affair. THe Phantoms with newly appointed coach Phil David and new signing Janne K...... came out of the blocks quickly and did put us under some early pressure. However, after conceding an early goal we managed to get back on the front foot for the remainder of the match. Yet despite the bulk of play, territory and pressure we made some very uncharachteristic mistakes that cost us dearly. Over the last few months of play we have been very successful due to disciplined play and smart decision-making both with and without the puck. Against Peterborough we were guilty several times and all credit to the Phantoms for capitalizing on them.
We exchanged goals early in the second period and found ourselves down 4-3. For the final 30 minutes of play we found ourselves more or less in control of play but could not score despite several excellent chances. We did score on two other occasions (in the 2nd period) but both were called off by the ref. Once was the correct call as the net was off the moorings whilst the other was a goal but was waved off as the puck was not visibly over the line. I could understand this but the reason that the puck was not visible was because it was under the goalies pad which was well behind the goal line. I can't fault our work rate as we were playing with 12 skaters and managed to boss the game and with just under 5 minutes to play we finally scored the equalizer.
However, in perhaps the most bizarre bit of officiating I have ever witnessed the referee decided to wash the goal whilst we lined up take the face-off at centre ice. The Phantoms captain questioned the goal and the ref then consulted his linesman. One linesman said he saw nothing to wash out the goal whislt the other said there was a man in the crease/obstructing the goalie. The ref then took the word of the linesman and the score remained 4-3. I was baffled at the time and after reviewing the video of the incident I find the decision of the ref to change his original call of a goal absolutely shocking. The ref was in the perfect spot to see the goal (goal line) and to see that no one was in the crease or even close to the netminder. His indecisiveness and lack of confidence in his own ability to make a correct call has cost us a point at the very least. However, this is the nature of our sport and we will have to live with the outcome. All in all I am pleased with the performace that our team gave with a very short bench. If we eliminate some of the unnecessary mistakes that we made we will not put ourselves in situations where a ref can determine our fate in a hockey game.
Sunday saw a very ticked off team take on a much improved Telford side. We went into the game with the right mental attitude as we have had a habit in the past of not always being 'switched on' in Telford. We opened up a 5-0 lead in the first period with some excellent play from all. It was a very stop/start game with lots of penalties but we coped with the short bench and Barry Hollyhead made the few important saves that he had to. Ross Bowers scored three and that will do him the world of good as he is a player that we need to have scoring regularly. The final score was 8-0 and it was a great end to a frustrating weekend. |
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| 12/11/07 - Junior News |
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| A great weekend for MK Juniors seeing all our sides that were in action picking up results. Our U12's beat Haringay on Saturday 10-4 while our U10's were away in Peterborough where they won 12-0. Our U16's beat Invicta 4-0 and our U18's beat Streatham 19-1 down in London. Our U14(1)'s beat Slough 7-3 and the result of the weekend was our U14(2) side drawing 1-1 with Bristol. This was the first point for our U14 division 2 side and the fact that we lost to Bristol 10-0 previously shows all the hard work that coach Rob Fanning and the players are putting in is paying off. Well done to all the players, coaches and parents on a great weekend of hockey for MK Storm. |
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| 3/11/07 - Injury Update (and suspension) |
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Today both Greg Randall and Al Parez visited the fracture clinic in Milton Keynes for an update on their injuries and progress. Both were given better news and although nothing is definitive yet we are hopeful that they may be back sooner than originally anticipated. We are now looking at perhaps 4-5 weeks for both players instead of 6-8. We should know even more after they have a few sessions with our physio and we see how they react to rehab.
Kurt has been given a three match suspension (one match for accumulation of points and a further 2 for the match penalty that he received against Romford).
This means we will be considerably short staffed for the next few games but we have little doubt that the remainder of the players will step up and we will continue to find ways to win hockey games. |
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| 29/10/07 - Injury News |
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| Both Al Parez and Greg Randall suffered what appear to be fairly serious injuries. Both went to Hospital late last night and have had x-rays and have had initial diagnosis on their respective injuries. Al has what looks to be a seperated shoulder and Greg a fractured tibia. There was a lot of swelling in both injuries and both are due back within a week for a further check up when it will be easier to know the full extent of the injuries. Needless to say they will be out for the short term and fingers crossed they both will get better news in the coming days. We will keep everyone up to date with any new news. |
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| 29/10/07 - Romford Game |
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| Last night we suffered our first loss of the season to the Romford Raiders in a 1-0 loss away from home. It was a very hard fought game and credit must go to the Raiders for playing a very tight game. They scored early in the match and then defended desperately for the remainder of the game. We outshot the Raiders 44-14 and if it were not for some great netminding and a few posts we could have had the victory. However, that is sport and I have no doubt we will be put in similar situations through out the season and we will have to find a way to win. Romford played very hard and if they continue to play with that passion and spirit they will no doubt have a change in fortune. Despite the loss the most upsetting aspect of the game was the injuries that we have suffered. Greg got caught with his foot planted in the ice (clean hit) and looks to have suffered a broken tibia. Ales made a great hit on one player behind their net and was then jumped by a Romford bench warmer from behind. This I find is the most disappointing thing in British hockey is that fellow sportsman can have such a lack of respect for their opponents. At least when Norm and Kurt fought it was face to face and both were willing combatants. Where as Ales was caught off guard and now has a seperated shoulder as he was not ready and landed awkwardly with a Romford lump on top of him. |
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| 29/10/07 - Junior Results |
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| MK Storm had two wins from three games this weekend with the U12's beating Basingstoke 8-5 at home on Saturday. Matt Clement scored 6 goals with Macca Gadsby notching the other two. Well done to Jon Metherall for his first full game in the nets for the team. Jon has only just started and was thrown in at the deep end but came up with some big saves. Well done to all the players and coaches. Cam Green led the U16's to a 5-3 victory against Bracknell on Sunday scoring 2 goals. A hard earned victory for Paul Gore and the lads. Our U14(B) squad lost yesterday 14-2. I will post our goalscorers when I receive the info. Well done to all. |
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| 14/10/07 - U10's Continue Storm Success |
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| Well done to the U10's players and coaches yesterday on their 7-1 win against Guildford yesterday that opened up their league campaign. With a load of newcomers to the team this is a very pleasing win and will give all the players confidence going forward. Yesterday's win comes on the back of wins last weekend for our U16's (2-1) against Swindon and U12's (6-5) against Guildford. These wins give the club a lot of pride as they show we are closing the gap on some of the top junior clubs in the south. Well done to all the players coaches and parents for all their hard work and efforts. |
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| 02/10/07 - Newest Member of MK Hockey Family |
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| A huge congrats to Toni Alasaarela and his partner Zandras on the birth of their baby boy Alex. We look forward to welcoming both Zandras and Alex to the MK community. Toni understandably flew back last Friday and will be joining us this coming weekend for our two games. |
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| 02/10/07 - Pucky In Mascot Race |
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| Good luck to our new mascot Pucky who is competing in the National Mascot Race at Huntingdon. Pucky has been in training and we have no doubt that the 'Beast From MK' will do us all proud. |
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| 02/10/07 - Strong Response After First Loss |
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After a poor performance on Saturday against Chelmsford in which we lost 4-3, it was great to see such a strong response from the lads on Sunday in our 4-1 win against Sheffield. The Saturday game saw us play a very sloppy and slow match and fail to hold onto a 3-2 lead in the third period. The Cup loss throws our group wide open and also gave us a bit of a wake up call after having some early season success.
Sunday was a complete change from the previous nights lethargy and with Mikko being tossed out in the first 5 minutes it strengthened our resolve. We killed off the 5 minute power play (5 v 3 for two minutes) and then set out about our task of winning the game. All three lines played very well with the goals once again being spread accross the team. However, it was the defence that stole the show with their best performance of the season. Macca deservedly got MOM but it could easily have gone to Randy, Crofty or Radders. All four were outstanding and made the game very easy to play for the forwards. Once again Baz was very solid in the nets and overall it was a very satisfying road win. |
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| 24/09/07 - Total Team Effort Secures Four Points |
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A great start to the league campaign sees the MK Lightning bat all four points on offer as we beat Sheffield 5-4 on Saturday and then won away in Bracknell by a 2-1 score line.
It was a total team effort on both nights that saw game-winning goals scored in the dying seconds on Saturday and the last five minutes on Sunday. Both games were real tight affairs played at pace against very solid teams.
Saturday's win was a real crowd pleaser and to come from behind (2-4) in the final 20 minutes to win 5-4 shows early season character. This is something we can build on and will give all the lads a real boost of confidence should we find ourselves in a similar situation later in the year. It was also great to see and hear the 'Thunderdome' back to its rocking best! The noise that all the players heard when the final goals went in with 7 seconds to go was tremendous.
Sunday saw a very tired team take to the ice against the Bees and play a great game of 'road hockey'. There was nothing pretty about our play and at times it felt like an uphill struggle, but the guys stuck to the game plan and ground out the win. It has been a long time since we have won in Bracknell so again this will hold us in good stead for the future. It was also good to see the team pull together without one of our key players in Al Parez. As has a back injury and we are hopeful that he may be fit for the weekend. We will keep all updated as we know more from the physio.
All in all, a great team performance over the weekend. However, I must single out the performances of both Muzzy and Barry Hollyhead who I thought were outstanding. It is great to see Muzz back to his best and he knows he has to continue to play to these standards. Barry was his usual unassuming self but he made some key saves during both matches when the team needed it most.
A great four-pointer and roll on next weekend. We know lots of our faithful will be at the NHL games this coming weekend but we hope those that come to watch us will continue to give us the great support that we have had early in the season. You have given us a big lift when our legs start to tire. |
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| 15/09/07 - Lightning Bring Home Ashes! |
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Two very good performances this past weekend saw us win our first piece of silverware of the season. A 5-3 victory and then 3-2 away in Peterborough gave us a 8-5 (agg) victory.
A hat-trick from captain Gary Clarke led the way on Saturday and then a great away team performance and some solid netminding from Bazz on Sunday saw us in control from start to finish. I was pleased with the entire line-up and am feeling very comfortable with the overall balance of the side. I think we have never had such a strong set of offensive lines and I have been very impressed with the way the defenders are moving the puck up. The new lads have all brought something to the table and we seem to be developing a great team spirit at this early point in the season. |
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| 15/09/07 - MK Storm Win 3 Out Of 4 |
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| A successful weekend for the MK Junior Club as the Under 10's went undefeated in there cross ice tournament, under 12's beat Peterborough at home (7-3) and the under 16's won their league opener 5-3 in Chelmsford. Our Under 14(2) lost 10-0 in Bristol but head coach Rob Fanning was pleased with the overall performance and saw good signs for the future. |
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| 05/09/07 - Romford Weekend in Review |
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Overall a promising start to the season ahead this past weekend. With only one proper training session under the team's belt it was great to lace the skates up and play two games against Romford. The results were pleasing but more important was the fact of getting valuable minutes of game time and improving fitness levels whilst having a good look at different line combnations and letting the new players settle. Although we got off to a slow start, I thought the confidence grew as the game went on and we were unlucky not to win by a far greater margin on Saturday. All the new players impressed and there looks to be a high level of skill on the team. There is no doubt that we have areas to work and improve on but I can see that we have the foundations of a very good hockey team.
With two games this weekend against what looks to be a very strong side, I feel we will be in great shape before taking on Guildford. The Phantoms seem to have invested heavily this summer and are one of the teams that everyone is tipping to be title contenders. This will be a great test for us and will let us know early what we need to work on and how we stack up in the league. |
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| 05/09/07 - Injury Update |
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| David Wride has had a nagging injury to his hamstring that he suffered in the summer. He tweaked it again late in the first period and will now be out for the next week or so as he does some physio. We are hopeful that he will be fit for the opening Cup game with Guildford next weekend. |
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| 04/09/07 - MK Storm Open Up Junior Season With U14 Win |
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| Today the MK U14's played the first league game of the 2007/08 season against Basingstoke and got off to a flyer with a 7-2 win. Icing all three lines we put in a good first game performance with goals coming from Ben Russell, Fraser Green, Ross Tippet and a brace each for Tom Mboya and David Carson. Jordan Hedley backstopped the match facing 9 shots. Well done to all the players and coaches! |
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