The Magnificent Seven Defeat Slough

Only seven players turned up on Saturday, April 28 to take on the Slough Satans - but that was all that was needed. The seven players (Ben Durcan, Paddy Durcan, John Cavanagh, Milan Kocybala, Michael Baker, John Leslie, and Steve Potts) faced a squad of 17 from the Satans, yet managed to pull out a win in a game that had everything in it including: fights, break-away rushes, crazy goals off deflected shots, a penalty shot (saved by Ben Durcan!), come-from-behind scoring, and real grit and determination from a very short Statesmen bench.

The Statesmen did well in the first period to control the pace and keep the game within reach until the final minute when exhaustion and mental fatigue took its toll and the Slough Satans scored twice just before the buzzer to finish the period 1-4.

In the second period, the Statesmen rallied back and, despite an unfortunate deflection that resulted in a Slough goal in the first minute of the period, the score was 5-5 after 40 minutes.

With the game tied going into the third period, the visiting Statesmen were feeling confident and optimistic about the possibility of not just finishing with a respectable scoreline, but stealing a win from the Satans. This confidence was tested early in the third period when Slough scored twice in the first 7 minutes. But Paddy Durcan, who provided a solid back line for the entire game, opened the scoring for the Statesmen in the final period. This was followed by Steve Potts, a pair from John Leslie, and a cracking goal in the final 90 seconds off a slap shot by Michael Baker to seal a 10-8 win for the elated visitors.

All seven Statesmen players rose to the challenge and played a great game which was a real treat for the supporters on both sides who braved the late night to come out and watch. Milan Kocybala had an impressive five assists, John Cavanagh was a real playmaker on the team with one goal and five assists, John Leslie put on the jets in the third period with two goals and two assists, and Steve Potts got Man of the Match with five goals and two assists.

A legendary game for the Statesmen!