Westminster Statesmen IHC

New website

2011-05-29T08:00:00.001Z

The Statesmen have moved to http://www.statesmenhockey.com/

v Devils

2011-05-25T12:11:00.003Z

Monday night saw the very first game against the London Devils. Both teams started well and a closely fought first period with the teams sussing each other out and on a goal by Jake saw the teams end the first period with 1 a piece.
The second period didnt go to plan for the Statesmen and a lucklustre period saw the Devils score 5 unanswered goals to lead 6-1.
The third period was a lot better for the Statesmen and though out the game played with a lot more conviction and with the exception of some tired legs and a couple of late goals should have won the period.
A very enjoyable game despite the scoreline and hopefully the teams will meet again soon.

Fixtures

2011-05-23T13:45:00.006Z

Sun 5th June v London Rangers @ Lee Valley - 20.00
Sun 10th July v Nationwide Knights @Ally Pally - 17.00
Fri 22nd July v Nationwide Knights @Swindon - 22.45
Sun 30th July v Spitfire @Ally Pally - 18.30 tbc
v Chelmsford Nighthawks
v Cambridge Eskimos - final Eskimo Cup - tbc

v Vanssa Flyers

2011-05-15T11:47:00.001Z

The Statesmen welcomed the Vanssa Flyers from Finland. A loss but a very good natured game in which both teams enjoyed.

No Jesting

2011-03-19T17:46:00.012Z

The Statesmen completed the first round of their away games in the Eskimo Cup with a very good win against the MK Jesters (8-5).
The Statesmen started of the more spritely of the teams with a goal from Jon Leslie on 41seconds. The Statesmen then solidified the lead with another on 6mins from Jamie O'Dell (2-0) on a delayed penalty and the Statesmen looked like they could run away with the game. This wasnt to be and the Jesters never lost their heads and battled back to (2-1) after 12mins, the Statesmen then took the advantage again with a goal by John C at the end of the period (3-1).
The Statesmen started strong again in the 2nd with a goal by Ty on 24mins (4-1), though this game was not over by far, with the Statesmen never really being able to shake them off and the Jesters not giving up they scored 2 in quick succession to make it (4-3).
Mark Freitag got a well needed goal on 35mins to give the Statesmen a bit of breathing space (5-3), then a couple of silly penalties and the ref not realising that players will be playing with a bit more ambition when 5-3 down, got the Jesters back into it and the period finishing (5-5) with it all to play for.
The Statesmen started off again the better team and got a goal by Jake Switzer (one of a brace) and another a minute later by Marcus Cast gave the Statesmen the breathing room needed and the period finished off with another by Jake for the win (8-5).
This leaves it all to play for in the cup with the Statesmen 2-1 from 3 games, looks like its going to be a well fought cup and not much between the teams.
MOTM Ty

Cup win v Legion

2011-03-01T10:29:00.005Z

The Statesmen started the years fixtures with a game against our old rivals the London Legion. With us just getting back to regular training after nearly a year off due to the closure of Ally Pally it was good to get back to training and into a cup game early on.
After a jittery first period, the Statesmens training seemed to pay off with us controlling the game but just not able to get a lot of shots off or score. After not being able to score on a penalty shot, the Legion capitalised off us not marking the points and a deflected goal saw them take the lead (0-1).
The second period saw the Statesmen get into their stride and start shooting more and putting pressure on the Legions goalie, there was some good scoring chances for both teams and the Statesmen finally got on the scoresheet with an effort from Mark Fen (1-1).
The goal galvinised the Statesmen and eventually took the lead in the third period with a goal from Jake (2-1). Ty extended the lead a few minutes after and looked likely to seal the win (3-1), though this was nearly not to be as the Statesmen seemed to go after the best form of defence is attack philosiphy (ie everyone jumping forward wanting to score) and the Legion pulled one back to make it 3-2 and managed to hold on for the last few minutes and held on when the Legion pulled their keeper.
A great win and first of the Eskimo cup.
MOTM Marcus

Blown away

2010-11-02T11:39:00.002Z

Friday night saw us play the Romford Tornado's and the rivalry took an interesting step. The game was Ritchies last as a Statesmen and we will all miss him and wish him well as he's going back to Canada.
There was an ideal start for the Tornado's with a lucky bounce on a shot to nothing going in, we just knew then it was going to be one of those days. With the Statesmen looking completely out of sorts, most people havent trained since May and we've only had 2 games in the last 3 months and it showed, Romford raced to a 4-0 lead.
A game of 2 halves (seemed like a good idea at the time), the second was a different story and the Statesmen finally found a bit of rythm and were all over the Tornados, getting back to within 2 goals at 6-4, but it was too little too late and a couple of late goals from Romford put the game to bed, 8-4.
3-1 up at the moment so the next game will be interesting.
MOTM James;)

James hits 50 games

2010-04-01T09:01:00.002Z

The game against the Legion saw James hit 50 games for the Statesmen with a very impressive 80 goals and 141 points, congratulations James.

WC - double over Legion

2010-04-01T08:54:00.005Z

Monday night saw the 2nd game against the Legion in the Winter Cup and a must win for the Statesmen to finish off the bottom. The Statesmen knew the Legion would be up for it and with some bad ice the game wasn't exactly going to be a classic from the get go, but all credit to the Legion for not giving us the time or space and clogging up the middle to prevent a lot of scoring chances. The Legion took the lead in the 1st period and with Ben Durcan stealing the show and playing a blinder kept the Statsmen in the game, the Legion added another in the 2nd, this forced us to change up the lines on the PP which really changed the game with the Statesmen pegging 1 back to 2-1, and bought the Statesmen back in the game. 2-1 down going into the thrid saw crazy J get his 2nd of the night and continue his impressive form against the Legion and with Marcus Cast continuing in form with 3 helpers, James Wood added to the total for the Statesmen to go 3-2 up.
A last gasp effort from the Legion with their netminder pulled fell right into the hands of Bob Hedley as he slotted the empty net goal from centre ice and seal the game 4-2. MOTM a very well deserved Ben Durcan.

Met Police, handcuffed

2010-04-01T08:32:00.002Z

Sat 20th March saw the return leg against the Met Police, with no 'incidents' holding any players up the game started off lively enough and the first period was a close affair with the Statesmen edging the lead 4-2. This continued into the 2nd period with no team really taking control and the lead. This was until the 3rd with a supberb period by Marcus Cast and 4 goals (8 for the period), his display lit a fire under the Statesmen and finished with a 12-4 win. MOTM Ben Durcan

No bite against Bulldogs

2010-04-01T08:24:00.002Z

Sat 6th March saw the Statesmens inaugaral game against the Streatham Bulldogs, with a few key plaeyers missing it was always going to be an uphill battle in which was a very enjoyable game (well, everyone enjoyed it except Chris).
The Statesmen started lively and opened the scoring after a minute with a scorcher from John Leslie, only to see the Bulldogs equalise after 4mins and get a 2nd after 7mins. The Bulldogs scored 3 in quick succession on 10mins an 16 with the Statesmen getting a couple back on 17mins, to finish the period 6-3.
The second was more one sided scorewise with the Bulldogs netting 4 to the Statesmens 1 and tired legs and the inability to put the puck in the net took its toll, the 3rd ended 2-0 to the Bulldogs in a more closely fought game for the first half than the scoreline suggested. Everyone enjoyed the game and the Statesmen look forward to the return leg.

WC - Loss v Eagles

2010-03-01T11:09:00.004Z

Another 'thrilling' encounter with the London Eagles, the Statesmen started off with their intentions set out for the night steaming to a 3-0 lead and totally controlling the play in front of a stunned Polish crowd (they werent so loud then!), only for the Eagles to take a time out and then go about slowing the game and take the wind out of the Statesmen. The tactics worked and a couple of silly penalties and some dubious calls and the period ended 3-2.
Unfortunately the penalties seemed to continue and after one of the Eagles players dropped the gloves after 3mins the game was only really going to go one way, though apparently it was us. With 2 of the Eagles players kicked from the game things seemed to calm down a bit but it all played into the Eagles hands and a couple of very late goals saw the Eagles win 5-4, a game the Statesmen threw away really and it would have been nice to shut up the very partisan Polish 'fans' (to be polite). MOTM James Wood, not really:) Ben Durcan and well deserved.

Old timers

2010-03-01T11:07:00.001Z

John and Ty reached 200 'official' games with the game against the Met Police, congratulations John.

Win v Met Police

2010-03-01T10:57:00.002Z

The Statesmen welcomed the Met Police to Ally Pally in the first contest between the 2 teams. With an accident on the North Circular holding up the coach and leading to a few players being called out from the police the game started spritely enough, with the police opening up the scoring in 27 secs from James Paxman (his first of 6 of the night). The Statesmen responded after 2 mins with James's first of 5 from the night and Marcus getting the 2nd (his first of 7 points) the game was very even until 15 mins in with the Statesmen leading 4-3, then when the coach turned up the floodgates opened and the Statesmen finished the period 8-4.
This 2nd period was tied at 3 and the Statesmen finished off the 3rd 3-0, a well fought and enjoyable game and look forward to the rematch. MOTM James (this is just getting silly)

WC - Loss v Spitfire

2010-03-01T10:52:00.004Z

This was the second meeting of the WC against the London Spitfire, in a closely contested game the Spitfire took the lead after 10mins, then scored 3 goals in 4 mins of the second and 1 near the end of the period to take a 5-0 lead. With some key players missing the Statesmen though the scoreline not reflecting the play just couldnt put the puck in the net till the 3rd and controlled most of the play in that period as well coming close a few times, 5-1 loss. MOTM James Wood (if anyone reads this can you pick someone else ;)

WC- Win v Legion

2010-01-20T12:03:00.002Z

You'd have to go back to Nov 07 for the last win against the Legion, the Statesmen jumped out to a 4-0 lead in teh first with crazy J leading the way with a brace and Mike and James chipping in a goal apiece, the Statesmen were in control for the first 15mins and looked like they could run away with the game, but tired legs and a loss of concentration led to conceding a couple of goals late on.
The 2nd was marred by the refs whistle and really took the wind out of our sails, with crazy completing his hat trick and less than a minute after the Legion scored their 3rd.
The Statesmen then got back into it in the 3rd with crazy on the scoresheet again for his 4th and Ty answering the Legions goal on 53mins to put the game out of reach. Good game and well done everyone. MOTM James (Im beginning to think bribes are going on here, J - you were robbed;)

WC- Draw v Spitfire

2010-01-20T12:01:00.001Z

The Statesmen kicked off the Winter Cup on 8th Dec 09 v Spitfire, in what was a fast paced encounter and the lead being shared by the two teams ended in a draw and the Statesmen to ponder the 3 gifted goals, 5-5 a good start to the campaign.

v Eskimos

2009-11-26T10:33:00.004Z

The Statesmen kicked off the winter season with their first win against the Cambridge Eskimos. With the two previous encounters ending with a goal in it, the Statesmen were expecting a close game. The Statesmen welcomed three new players in their first game Tom Lahtinen, George Prich and Dmitry Selimir.
The Statesmen got off to a nice start with a goal from Tom on his first game for the Statesmen and bouyed by this jumped off to a 3-0 lead after 15mins, though this could have easily been tied with the Eskimos getting 3 clear breakaways but some great goaltending for Ben kept them out.
The 2nd period was a more back and forth affair with the Eskimos and Statesmen trading goals but the Statesmen getting the better of the period 5-3 with Mike getting a brace to lead 8-3.
The third period went to the Eskimos with the goal hungry Statesmen pushing more forward but unsuprisingly only scoring 1 to the Eskimos 3, 9-6 the final score. MOTM James

Ben gets 50

2009-09-24T10:32:00.001Z

Thanks to Steve for finding some 'lost' gamesheets and thanks to our founder Mark Feehan as well, lol.
As such officially Ben has now reached 50 games and Ty has 250 goals, congrats Ben.

Memorial Game for Mat Hoxby

2009-09-10T08:55:00.003Z

Sunday saw the first memorial game for Mat Hoxby who died last year in a fatal car accident. He played for both teams so it was only fitting we have a game in his honour and try to raise some money for Cancer Research (a charity he would have chose and one that is very worthwhile and close to me as well).
In what is hoped to be a bi-monthly game and a memorial cup to be kept by the winning team, the score doesn't really matter, but let's just say that the Statesmen are the current cup holders;)
Thanks to everyone who turned up in a very enjoyable game and we managed to raise a bit over £400 for Cancer Research. Thanks everyone.

Win v Hyenas

2009-09-10T08:48:00.002Z

In a battle of the Freitag's, the game saw the Statesmen eventual 10-0 winners from only 8 players. A great game played in the spirit normally played between the 2 sides and a special occassion for the senior Freitag was undermined by the junior.

Win v Wolves

2009-09-10T08:46:00.002Z

The Statesmen played the Solihull Wolves at the Coventry Skydome on the 20th June. In an enjoyable game in a very nice rink the Statesmen were never in danger and won 11-1.

James, Paddy & Mike

2009-06-26T08:28:00.002Z

Congratulations to James (50) and Paddy (25) assists against the Solihull Wolves and to Mike H who scored his first goal for the Statesmen.

Join us

2009-06-23T14:09:00.008Z

Get in touch!
The Westminster Statesmen are a recreational ice hockey team based in London. Players of any age, but were not taking on any beginners at the moment, so some experience is necessary.
Come to Alexandra Palace on Thursday evenings from 8.00-9.00pm and join a training session (£15 a session or goalies are free, Students £10). Alaxendra Palace Ice Rink is inside the front entrance on Alexandra Palace Way,London,, N22 7AV, telephone – 020 8365 2121 , directions http://www.alexandrapalace.com/Directions.html. Nearest station is Alexandra Palace or Wood Green tube (then a bus).
If you would like more information about the club, feel free to get in touch:

On the new website:

www.statesmenhockey.contactus.html

Best D Man & 50 games

2009-05-26T09:40:00.002Z

Congratulations to Paddy who won best D man for the Streatham tournament and to Isaac who reached 50 games.

Streatham tournament

2009-05-26T08:12:00.005Z

The Statesmen played in the Streatham mini-tournament on Bank Holiday Monday. 4 other teams of the Russians, Queensway Spitfires, Streatham Nightwolves and Streatham Redskins. Things started off well and a good quick game against the Russians ended up 0-0, then against a quick Spitfire team we lost 2-0, a very disappointing performance agains the Nightwolves ended 5-0 and finally a loss to the Redskins 4-0. 4 games and no goals sums it up, the games only being 20mins long a goal here or there would have changed our fortunes completely, but some good performances from everyone.
An enjoyable day and thanks to the Nightwolves for setting it up.
On a positive note, Paddy won best defenceman for the whole tournament, congratulations.

Win v Hyenas

2009-05-15T07:55:00.000Z

The Statesmen won 10-1 v Basingstoke Hyenas, In a battle of the Freitags the Statesmen came out on top in a very good natured and enjoyable game between the old foes.
MOTM James

Tall Paul - 25

2009-05-15T07:53:00.001Z

Congratulations to Tall Paul who played his 25th game against Basingstoke.

Win v Swindon

2009-04-06T13:45:00.002Z

In what was another closely contested game between the old foes saw the Statesmen come out 7-5 winners. With 2 lines and borrowing Froudy, things could have started better for the Statesmen, but with Wednesday's game to get out of the system the Statesmen got the opening goal from Jamie O'Dell (first of a natural hat trick) after 8 mins, the Knights got back in the fray with a goal the 15min mark, but to the Statesmens credit no-one panicked and we got a goal either side of the 2nd period to lead 3-1.
The Knights were quickly back into it with a couple of goals 2mins apart to tie the game and took the lead a min into the 3rd period. The Statesmen then took the lead after 32mins only for the Knights to come back into it again and even it up a min into the 3rd period. The goals reflected the play and their were some good chances for either side to take lead, with the Statesmen finally able to do it with some very nice goals from James and another natural hat trick, with only their linemate struggling to keep up with the scoring:) The Knights finished off with a goal on the death but the Statesmen held on for the win. We look forward to playing again in the summer at a more reasonable time when some light refreshments can be had after.
MOTM James (though it should have been Jamie..)

April fools?

2009-04-06T13:43:00.003Z

Wednesday 1st April saw the Statemsen play the Eagles in a WC game, normal service resumed and the Eagles won 15-0, with the highlight being their 'fans' playing and singing 'We are the Champions' during the game, nice.

John gets 100

2009-04-06T13:41:00.000Z

Congratulations to John who got his 100th assist against Swindon last Friday.

Win v Swindon

2009-03-16T10:07:00.004Z

Saturday night saw the Statesmen play our old friends and foes from Swindon, having not played them (unusually) in a year. In what is traditionally a good close contest saw the Knights score first after 10mins on a breakaway goal from Geoff Collins. The Statesmen then levelled off a nice goal from James (100th point & 400th for Ty) after 18mins to end the period.
The second period was scoreless but there were a lot of chances for both sides to take the lead. The Statesmen finally took the lead with a goal from Ty the Statesmen to go up in the game with 7mins to go and held off a Knights surge in the end to claim the well deserved victory with the Statesmen showed some real consistency and good transistional play lacking in previous games.
MOTM Ty

James hits a Ton

2009-03-16T10:04:00.002Z

Congratulations to James who notched his 100th and 101st points for the Statesmen on Saturday fittingly against Swindon in a very impressive 36 games.

WC - Loss v Eagles

2009-03-09T14:12:00.002Z

The second WC game was a strange affair, the Statesmen took the lead in the 1st period with a goal from Ty, but that was the only time in the game, with at least 3 breakaway goals going to the Eagles and finishing them well the first rounded out 5-2 to Eagles.
The 2nd period was very similar with the Statesmen getting a goal from John Leslie only for the Eagles to finish the period 9-4. The Final scoreline was 11-5, with James and Ty getting a brace each.
MOTM James

WC- First game loss v Legion

2009-03-04T14:59:00.002Z

The first game of the WC saw the Statesmen playing the Legion, in what is historically becoming a very close game didnt disappoint. This time saw the Legion go up 2-0 only for the Statesmen to get the score back to 2-2, though the Legion took the lead and the momentum to 3-2 and a last minute goal saw the score end 4-2.

Another Frosty Night

2009-02-25T11:52:00.003Z

Saturday night saw a return match against the Cambridge Eskimos in what is becoming very close encounters. The Statesmen started off the scoring after 3mins with Rich Jones getting his first goal for the Statesmen only for the Eskimos to reply 30 seconds later. The Eskimos then stretched the lead after 7 and 15 mins, to go into the 3rd period 3-1 up.
the Statesmen then got onto the board after 50 mins with a goal from James only for the Eskimos to score after less than a minute later. The Statesmen then got within 1 goal after 53mins with a goal from Ty only to be outdone by the running clock and an empty net goal with less than a minute to go, final score 5-3, a very close game.
MOTM Marcus

Win v Romford

2009-02-02T10:13:00.004Z

Saturday saw the Statesmen take on the Romford Tornado for the second time, with a nice early f/o of 16.30. Even so, a few people turning up late saw the Statesmen start with only 2 lines, Romford took full advantage of the confusion arising from people turning up during the first period and took the lead after just 37 seconds on a goal from Marcus Cast.
The Statesmen then equalised after 6mins on a goal from John Cavanagh, only for the Tornado to then take a 2 goal lead heading into the second period, goals from Marcus and Paul Curtis.
With everyone now turned up in the 2nd and the arrival of Lukas seemed to bouy the team and between James (3) and Lukas (4) with Bob chipping in 1, the Statesmen scored 5 unanswered goals to go into the 3rd 6-2 up. 4 goals in the 3rd period with Romford netting 1 saw the game end 9-4 to the Statesmen. A good enjoyable game and a good friendly rivalry between the 2 teams.
MOTM Lukas

Loss v Eskimos

2009-01-26T13:44:00.002Z

Saturday night saw the first meeting between the Statesmen and the Cambridge Eskimos. In a good natured and close game saw the Eskimos win 4-3.
The Statesmen still having a bit of trouble scoring went down 2-0 in the first 5 mins of the 1st period, 1 of the goals on a dubious penalty. The Stig and Bob Hedley then got the Statesmen back into the game to end the period 2-2.
Lot's of missed chances from both teams and with the Eskimos leading 4-3 on a couple of breakaway chances that were buried, saw the Statesmen pull the goalie with a minute to go and a couple of good chances missed and suprisingly not an empty netter saw the game finish 4-3.
MOTM James

50 Games

2009-01-26T10:47:00.000Z

Congrats to Paddy and Dan O, both hit 50 games at the weekend.

WC - Loss v Eagles

2009-01-15T12:46:00.003Z

Wednesday night saw the second leg of the WC against the London Eagles, having lost the first game 12-2 we knew we were in for a battle but went into the game very positively after the win on Saturday, this lasted all of about 40 seconds when the Eagles scored their 1st goal of the period. The Statesmen started off flat and seemed nervous against the Eagles who can pass the puck around well, after 10 mins it was 3-0, the poor start deflated the team but buoyed by a couple of good shifts the Statesmen got back into the game and proved that we could skate with them with Mark Fenwick getting a goal and host of missed chances towards the end of the 1st to get within a goal.
Determined not to start the 2nd the way we did the first, the Statesmen inevitably started the same way and another shocking 10 mins (running clock) saw the Statesmen down 6-1, yet again like the first the Statesmen then got back into the game with some good chances not buried by both teams. The third started off a lot better and we continued to battle throughout with James getting a natural hat trick and the Statesmen drew the final period 3-3. A good and entertaining game with the scoreline that maybe shouldnt have been so 1 sided if only the Statesmen could have buried some of the sitters that we had.
MOTM James

Milestones

2009-01-15T12:45:00.002Z

Congratulations to Michael Baker who has now reached 251 games for the club, Dan O'Dell for reaching 50 points and James for getting 50 goals, well done to you all.

WC - Finally a win

2009-01-11T11:26:00.005Z

The Statesmen kicked off the New Year with a win in the WC against the London Spitfire's, 5-4. The Spitfires kicked off the 1st period, scoring after 2 mins, in what was a fairly slow paced game from the start and thoughts of too much turkey at Christmas comes to mind, the Statesmen then equalised from James after 7 mins off of Frank and Rich, getting their first Statesmen points. The Spitfires then regained the lead after 11 mins and got another 5 mins later finishing the 1st period up 3-1.
There must be somthing strange about getting a 3-1 lead in the WC as for once the Statesmen started off better in the 2nd with Marcus getting his first Statesmen goal after 3 mins on a nice backhand, then after 34 mins Ty got the tying goal on a superb slap shot from outside the blue line ting in off of the post in which Ben was just a spectator (;-)) James then added another just before the end of the period on a nice shorthanded effort.
Once winning the game then seemed to take a strange twist with the Spitfires refusing to play as they thought there was too much contact going on and with the Ref on the sidelines thought someone might get hurt, fair enough but I personally didnt seem to think the game was dirty at all but then what do I know, the 3rd period was played on the proviso that there was no contact. This didnt really last long for the Spitfire's as after 2 mins there was 'contact' on the boards with Ty ending up with a slashing penalty, mmmm. What with this and running clock the Statesmen played a smart and almost farcical 3rd period with James getting his hat trick, the Spitfire's then almost immediatly getting 1 back to finish the game at 5-4.
MOTM James

WC - Loss to Legion

2009-01-11T11:21:00.001Z

This was the last WC game of the year and the last against the Legion, again heading into the 3rd period up 3-1 saw the Statesmen lose the game 4-3, a dissapointing loss and end to the year.

WC scores so far

2008-12-02T15:49:00.006Z

October:
15.10.08 - London Eagles 13 vs London Legion 2
22.10.08 - London Legion 3 vs Westminster Statesmen 3
29.10.08 - London Eagles 4 vs Queensway Spitfires 4
November:
05.11.08 - London Legion 3 vs Queensway Spitfires 4
12.11.08 - Statesmen 2 vs London Eagles 12
19.11.08 - London Legion 3 vs London Eagles 5
26.11.08 - London Spitfires 3 vs London Legion 8
December:
03.12.08 - Spitfires 3 vs Eagles 5
10.12.08 - Statesmen 3 vs London Legion 4
January:
10.01.09 - Statesmen 5 vs Spitfires 4
14.01.09 - Statesmen vs Eagles

Late one v Nightwolves

2008-11-23T13:03:00.002Z

Fri night saw a late f/o against a vastly improved Nightwolves team. The Nightwolves obviously have got some better players so a good game was in the offing. The Statesmen started off sluggish and after 10mins the Nightwolves had gone 2-0 up, with seemidly a lack of confidence at the moment was evident and we just seem to be struggling to put the puck in the back of the net, even so on 15mins debutant Bob Heldley got one back and the 1st ended 2-1.
Some rather strange refereeing seemed to stem any flow the Statesmen could get into the game with misconducts for 2 of the D, when there was only 4 to start the game and the Nightwolves took full advantage and with a goal from Ritchie continuing his good form of late at the end of the 2nd it was 5-1.
The 3rd was more of the same and with a lot of sitters missed the Nigthwolves scored 1 to end the game 6-2, well done to them and look forward to a rematch in the New Year and maybe a good rivalry will be ensuing and some close games.
MOTM James

Christmas Break

2008-11-15T17:05:00.003Z

The last training session will be on the 4th Dec then we will have a Christmas break until 8th Jan.

WC v London Eagles

2008-11-14T12:16:00.002Z

Wednesday night saw the Statesmen play the inaugural game against the London Eagles, a Polish team that play out of the Ally Pally. This game was a bit of an unkown, after beating the Legion they drew against the Spitfires.

Without a game sheet theres not much to report, the first period ended 3-1 with Ritchie continuing his good form and getting the lone goal, then with the Statesmen chasing the game the Eagles took advantage and the Statesmen just couldn't seem to create any chances. Paul Danis scored in the 3rd with the game well out of reach and finishing 12-2. This leaves us 3rd in the cup on goal difference with the Legion.

First Winter Cup game v Legion

2008-10-23T08:54:00.004Z

Wednesday 22nd October saw the first Winter Cup game for the Statesmen against the London Legion. With both sides fielding stronger teams than the last encouter it seemed like it would be a good match. With debutants for the Statesmen, Glen Moorhouse, Frank Bruce, Marcus Cast, Brandon Paluzzi and Mark Freitag, with the game ending in a 3-3 draw.

The first period was a tight affair with both teams coming close until the Legion opened the scoring, a few minutes later Mark Freitag got the equaliser and his first goal for the club. The second period started off the same as the first and shorthanded, this period became tighter with both teams not wanting to make a mistake and it started getting a physical edge, the Statesmen then got the upper hand with a goal from Paddy and afterwards consolidated a 3-1 lead going into the third.

As with most games between the two clubs this may not have been enough and the Legion pulled a goal back and with some end to end hockey and a bit more physicality between the two squads the Legion then pulled level with 1.40 to go in the game. We look forward to the next encounter and play the London Eagles in 3 weeks time which will be a very tough game.

Ritchie gets 25

2008-10-23T08:53:00.001Z

Congratulations to Ritchie, with a goal and assist against the Legion he gets 25 points.

Winter League

2008-10-03T09:48:00.003Z

It is now official and the Winter League will be going ahead, should be good. There will be away games still arranged during the winter. Note:- ALL games are at Ally Pally.

Provisional dates are as follows:-

Wed 22nd Oct v London Legion @ 20.45
Wed 12th Nov v London Eagles @ 22.15
Wed 10th Dec v London Legion @20.45
Wed 14th Jan v London Eagles @ 20.15

Also note there are 2 games v Queensway Spitfires (a couple of them we know ;-)) are yet to be arranged.

Tribute Game for Mat Hoxby v Romford

2008-10-03T09:45:00.002Z

Unfortunately due to ice time etc, the tribute game against Romford Tornado's for Mat Hoxby will not be happening until May. This is due to getting the ice at Romford at a decent time and when the Raiders season has finished.

Still it should be a fitting tribute.

EIHA Registration is now due

2008-09-11T21:28:00.003Z

It's that time of the year when every rec player needs to register with the English Ice Hockey Association. This is an annual process and you will need to be registered with the EIHA to be able to play in official games as a Statesmen. Processing your registration takes a while so it is important that we get your paperwork filed early.

If you have registered with the Statesmen before, please bring £37 to training next week. If we are your 2nd club then it's £24.

If you are new to the club, you will need to bring £37 plus 2 passport sized photos.

Forms will be provided and you can fill them in at training.

Please get your money paid now so we can start to book some games in October.

Mat Hoxby - RIP

2008-08-28T09:07:00.004Z

It is with great sadness that I write this post. Mat Hoxby passed away yesterday 27/08/08 after a being involved in a hit and run accident 2 weeks earlier. He was induced into a coma which unfortunately he never recovered from.

As with the Romford boys I have personally have known Mat from my days as a Havering Hornet (U16) and also those who were only just getting to know him I'm sure, will join me in sending out our thoughts to his friends and family.

A quote from the facebook site for friends of Mat Hoxby:-

'If you know Mat you would know that he is one of the most optomistic people you may ever meet. Someone that lives for only today and takes life as it comes, always looking for the positives in everything he does and the people he meets.'

http://www.new.facebook.com/group.php?gid=35920177592&ref=ts

A sad loss for our hockey community.

You Jest!

2008-08-05T11:26:00.002Z

The Statesmen travelled up to MK on Saturday with a squad roughly assembled at the last minute, with the Jesters having a strengthened squad at home we knew it was going to be one of those days and cruised to an easy 9-3 win. The Jesters lead 5-0 by the time the Statesmen responded 2 mins into the 3rd period on a solo effort by Ty. What didnt help is before that Paddy and Ty both received rogue sticks in the face with Paddy's being a lot worse, (always makes me wonder if people with full cages on should be made to play without one for a while) and the ref making some rather strange decisions on both sides. The 3rd wasnt so bad as the Statesmen only lost 4-3 with goals from Isaac and Mark, all in all a strange game and the Statesmen couldnt really get anything going.
MOTM Paddy (2 weeks in a row I hasten to add)

John hits 200

2008-08-04T07:49:00.001Z

Against the MK Jesters John finally got 200 PIM's.....

Blown away!

2008-07-29T09:18:00.004Z

The Statesmen's first game against a new Romford rec team the Tornado's started off with a very good 6-0 win. With the Romford side icing a few familiar faces the game started off at a fast pace in a very hot Ally Pally rink. There was nothing really between the sides in the first with the period ending 0-0 though the Statesmen had more of the shots with Andy Gillon making some key saves.
The 2nd started off the same as the 1st and after 10 mins and a disallowed goal from Romford the Statesmen took the lead from Mark F on a deflection. With an unfortunate incident with Jyri crashing into the boards (yep the boards are ok) the game had to be stopped for a good half hour while the ambulance was called, Jyri was ok and discharged that evening, the Statesmen took advantage of the break and the loss of Glen Moorhouse for Romford and James scored on the restart to go into the 3rd 2-0 up. The Statesmen then took advantage of the Tornado's trying to press the game and an unanswered 4 goals in the 3rd with goals from James (natural hat trick) and Ty to end the game 6-0.
A very good and enjoyable game (and our biggest ever 'crowd' of 35) against a physical and quite talented Romford side and hopefully there will be many more in the future and a good rivalry can begin.
MOTM Paddy

Dan gets 50 points

2008-07-29T09:13:00.004Z

Congratulations to Dan, his 2 assists against Romford takes him to 50 points, James has 25 games under his belt with a very impressive 80 points, well done!

John hits 25 - James 75

2008-07-14T07:54:00.002Z

John netted his 25th goal on Sat against the Aardvarx and James has reached 75 points. Congrats.

Madchester

2008-07-14T07:44:00.004Z

Sat saw the Statesmen travel to Manchester to play the Altrincham Aardvarx for their first meeting. It only took 1 min 40 to get on the scoresheet and then the Statesmen with 2 rolling lines never looked back (the Aardarx having 22 players) coming out eventual 22-1 winners.
Despite the scoreline the Aardvarx battled hard till the end earning the respect of the team and if it werent for their goalie it may have been a bigger scoreline. A very enjoyable game all round and the play was good with the scoring spread around the team. James led the way with 4+6, Ty next with 7+2, Mark and Stig getting hat tricks and Ritchie with a brace and John, Paul and Jean getting one each.
Then a very enjoyable evening out in Manchester (5th Avenue) with a few of the Aardvarx joining us as well, look forward to next year and them coming to London.

Strange but true

2008-05-19T11:12:00.000Z

On a side note the game on Sunday gives Paddy 11G 22A 33pts 44PIM, thought it might be worthy of a milestone.

v Slough Satans

2008-05-19T10:59:00.003Z

The Statesmen rounded off there home games at a reasonable time @Ally Pally with an emphatic win, despite the final score of 26-6 it was a very well mannered game so respect to Slough for that. The Statesmen took an 11-0 lead in the first and continued to score at that pace in the next 2 periods, with some well worked goals. Juraj lead the way with 6 and Milan getting 4, James, Mark and Ty getting a hat trick and Ritchie and Nigel getting 2 and Paul, Paddy and finally... John getting one in front of a partisan home crowd. MOTM James

v Medway Madness

2008-05-19T10:54:00.004Z

The Statesmen played the other rec team at Invicta, the Madness, the following week. this time around it was the Statesmen to take control of the game and with a 7-0 first period win the game was in the bag and came out 15-2 winners. Scoring coming from James and Ty (5 apiece) and Milan getting a hat trick, with Paddy and Juraj chipping in 1 each. MOTM James

Loss v Invicta

2008-05-19T10:51:00.005Z

The Statesmen entertained the Invicta Knights @Ally Pally on the Bank Holiday weekend. The Statesmen started off very slow and Invicta went into a 3-0 lead and had much of the better play. With a 5-1 loss in the 2nd the only moral victory was 2-0 3rd period win with goals from Yuri and James but the game was well over and an 8-3 final score to Invicta. Some handbags at the end marred a fairly decent game. MOTM cant remember but I doubt it was Ritchie

A Sunday afternoon skate

2008-04-16T12:01:00.006Z

Finally a game at a reasonable hour saw only 9 Statesmen take to the ice against the MK Jesters on Sunday. Strangely enough the Jesters only had the same amount as well. With the game being an unknown quantity as we haven't played them for so long saw the Statesmen come out 13-3 winners. A relaxed and enjoyable game and a bit like the Slough game saw the Statesmen go into the 2nd period 4-1 up with a brace from James and Isaac and Dan Shreim get 1 each.
Second period wobbles saw the Jesters score a couple and get back into the game, but with a brace from Ty at the end of the period saw the Statesmen go into the 3rd 7-3 up. The Statesmen then took control of the game with 6 unanswered goals and only some outstanding keeping from the Jesters netminder kept the score being lower.
MOTM Paul Danis

James hits 50

2008-04-16T08:24:00.001Z

Congratulations to James who hit 50 points on Sunday in only a handful of games and Rob for his first Statesmen goal and penalty.

A Devil of a Win

2008-04-07T12:11:00.007Z

On Saturday night the Statesmen took the ice at Slough to face the Satans, with a much needed morale boosting victory after Holland, the 23.30 face off time was compounded by a few of the players getting stuck on the M4 and most importantly the goalie so we couldn't have faced off till after midnight which didn't seem like it was going to be the best omen. The game finally got underway and a good start as well with Michael scoring after just a minute, the Statesmen then steamed ahead to a 5-0 lead with a nice spread of goals by Nigel, Isaac, Mark and Ritchie before the Satans answered with a very well took goal, the period ended 6-1.
To the Satans credit they steamed out of the starting blocks in the second and within 5 mins were back into the game with a 5-1 goal difference, the game was then suddenly poised at 7-6 and the Satans had a 5 min powerplay to boot. The Statesmen survived this and with goals from Ty and Mark regained a 3 goal lead.
The 3rd period was a completely different affair with the Statesmen starting off as Slough had done the 2nd and the final score being 19-8. An enjoyable game all round. MOTM Mark

Holland 2008

2008-04-07T11:57:00.002Z

A good weekend of Hockey and beer all round. As most of it can't be remembered then this will be short and sweet.

The tournament didn't start off too well from the beginning with a 5-1 loss to Canada 1. The game later that day was a bit better but still an unwarranted 8-4 loss to Canada 2, the Statesmen just couldn't seem to find any groove in the games, but with one exception of Mark who was on fire in that game (and since) and showing everyone how we should be playing.

The 8am game against San Diego (and group favourites) was a bit of a washout losing 8-2, but was an enjoyable, if not early game.

Then it was all left up to the last game, while the coach was in the garage, another early start and a late night saw the Statesmen stumble (literally) onto the ice, with the new shout of bumhole and the cold air from the rink sobering people up we took to the ice for the last hurrah. Down 3-0 in 2 mins it looked like the game was done and dusted but as people sobered up so did the score and the Statesmen become victorious against the nemesis that is the Norwegian team 6-5, a good end to the tourney.

Then it was time off to Amsterdam and a night of drunken debortury, space cakes and window shopping, a good night all round though i've never seen the Statesmen so unwilling to drink beer as I did on Monday, must of been a good weekend.

Legion Loss

2008-03-17T11:50:00.004Z

The warm up for Holland didnt go exactly as planned against the legion with an 8-4 loss. The Statesmen did take a 2-1 lead into the second period courtesy of Paddy and Ty, but with it being an unusually undisciplined performance (a total of 11 penalties each for both sides) saw the legion grab 3 goals in 2 mins at the beginning of the second and didnt really look back from there. Isaac got a couple in the first half of the third to restore some hope but it was too little too late. A good warm up for Holland on how not to play when we are out there. MOTM Paul Danis

Milestones

2008-03-06T10:08:00.001Z

Well done to James for getting 25 goals and Michael for getting 75 points, both at Swindon.

Loss at Swindon

2008-03-06T09:59:00.002Z

Another closely contested game saw the Statesmen come out with a loss by one goal, which was marred by some very shoddy refereeing saw players get frustrated from either side and got a bit chippy which is unusual between the 2 sides. MOTM James and well deserved, still no gamesheet, Dave!

Finances

2008-03-05T10:58:00.003Z

We have had to raise the cost of training and home games, this is the first increase in many years and hopefully will enable us to continue training at Ally Pally.

Home games £15 per game
Away games £10 per game

Training £10 per session (if paid individually)
or
£35 per month (paid at the start of the month)
&
£40 per month if there are 5 weeks in the month

Hopefully this is acceptable with everyone.

Legion 30th Nov

2008-01-31T12:40:00.001Z

Last nights game against the legion saw it played out to a 3-3 draw. First game of the season and it showed, cant believe all that turkey is still hanging around. A fun and sometimes entertaining game, with the legion tying it up in the dying minutes. Well done to Jean on scoring the first goal, the others coming from Ty and Nigel. WOTM Jean

Return Leg v Swindon

2007-12-10T11:54:00.000Z

Sunday night saw the return leg against Swindon at sunny Streatham. The game started off with another tense and cagey first 2 periods, the Statesmen had 3 lines and couldnt really get off to the start we had on the Friday night. the scoring was opened by James (1st of 4 for the night) and a powerplay goal to boot (1 of 2 which is highly unusual) after 10 mins, only for the Knights to score a minute later with Robin Littlewoods 1st of a natural hat trick which wrapped up the scoring for the 1st period.
The second started off much the same with the Knights scoring after 4 mins only for the Statesmen to get 1 back a minute later, then the Knights scored again after a couple of mins only for the Statesmen to score the second PP goal scored by Ty a couple of mins later, that wrapped up the 2nd period with the scores tied at 3-3.
Like last Friday the Statesmen started the 3rd a lot livelier and a goal from Lukas after 7 mins, only for the Knights to even it up again a couple of mins later. Then the Statesmen seemed to pick it up and scored 3 goals in 1min 10 secs of the 3rd to take a commanding lead and with a late goal from James and 1 in the last minute from the Knights Geoff Collins that wrapped up the game and see the Statesmen win 8-5.
MOTM Paddy (Blimey!)

Milestones

2007-12-10T10:39:00.000Z

Congratulations to Nigel for surpassing 50 points in the game against Swindon.

Friday Night at Swindon

2007-12-03T12:30:00.001Z

Friday night saw the Statesmen travel to our old friends and adversaries the Nationwide Knights, with confidence at a high after the last couple of games we were looking for something not done in a long while at Swindon, which was a win.
The game started off at a nice tempo but first blood went to the Knights at 4 mins of the 1st, in a cagey first period this wasn't tied up until the 12th min by Lukas, 2 mins later the Statesmen struck again with a goal from Mark Fenwick (congrats on his 1st for the club) and this rounded out the first period scoring.
The 2nd was a completely different matter with Ty scoring in 30 secs of the restart and the first of four for the night off a nice feed from Lukas (I like). This started off a scoring spree with 4 unanswered goals 1 from James (hat trick on the night), 2 from Ty and 1 from Isaac, this is where the game got interesting and with the Statesmen 7-1 up the Knights started their comeback with a goal with 30 secs to go in the 2nd.
Starting off the 3rd the Statesmen were 7-2 up and with a natural hat trick from the Knights Shaun Littlewood the game started to get interesting and the Statesmen were flustered, then the Knights scored their 6th goal and a time out was needed. This seemed to get our heads back into it and a goal from Ty off a feed from the corner from James straight after the time out steadied the ship and got us back into it, another 2 goals with only 1 reply from the Knights and a final goal from James late on, on a spectacular solo effort saw the Statesmen come out 11-7 winners in the most exciting 3rd period played in a long while. Looking forward to the rematch on Sunday.
MOTM Lukas (this is getting boring now)

Game v Legion 21st Nov

2007-12-03T12:06:00.000Z

With the Statesmen buoyed by the come from behind draw against Invicta went into the Legion game full of confidence and it payed off. For the first time in a long time we played all 3 periods at the same pace and didnt let off for a minute for a resounding 8-1 victory.
The Statesmen in full control and never looked like losing , only a bit of handbags with the tour de farce of the legion team did it look like getting out of control, a conselation late on for the legion halted the hopes of the shutout, didnt really matter as the game was won. Well done to all involved.
MOTM (cant remember but I bet it was Lukas).

Draw at Streatham

2007-11-12T12:35:00.000Z

Last night saw the Invicta Knights visit Streatham for the return leg, the game started with what seemed to be the complete opposite of the game a couple of weeks ago and while the Statesmen just couldnt seem to find any rythm, the Knights raced away to a 3 goal lead and a short-handed one to finish off the period in the last minute.
The Knights carried that momentum into the second and scored just after 5 mins to take a commanding 4-0 lead, it seemed like it was going to be one of those nights (pardon the pun) until Ty scored just a couple of mins later from a nice feed from Lukas. This sparked off tit for tat goals in the second with the Knights scoring 4 mins after then Milan 2 mins later the Knights 2 mins after that and Ty 1 min after to finish off the period at 3-6.
The Statesmen had renewed confidence in the 3rd and with James and Lukas linking up well they went on a roll of 4 unanswered goals between them for the Statesmen to take the lead, in between was some slight handbags seeing 2 Statesmen ejected and 1 Knights player. Unfortunately the lead lasted only a couple of mins and the Knights equalised with 4 mins to go, a tie game and an enjoyable one.
MOTM Lukas (can he do no wrong?)

Loss in Invicta

2007-10-29T13:54:00.001Z

In a closely fought contest at Invicta on Saturday night the Statesmen ended up 7-9 losers. The Statesmen raced to a 3-0 lead by 13 mins in the first with goals by Lukas (2 of 4 for the night) and Nigel, the Knights then ended the period with a goal to bring it back to 3-1.
The Statesmen then seemed to relax in the 2nd who appeared to have thought the game won and would be able to cruise for 2 periods only to see the Knights with 4 unanswered goals in the first 10 mins of the 2nd, a quick couple of goals by Lukas and Ty seemed to spur the Statesmen on only for the Knights to answer back with 2 of their own just after and take the wind out of the Statesmen sails.
The final period ended up 2-2 with 2 late goals by Lukas and Ty in the last 2 mins but the game was out of reach. An enjoyable game and look forward to the re-match on the 11th Nov.
MOTM was a well deserved Lukas.

Coming soon to a rink near you?

2007-10-19T13:40:00.000Z

What next?!

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/heated-blades-thermablade-hockey

All little more info Wayne Gretzky has invested in the company and says it will revolutionise hockey and a few NHL players are going to test them out in practice.

Milestone- the 200

2007-09-03T12:46:00.000Z

Not quite the 300 but Ty hit 200 goals against the Legion on Thurs.

Legion of Gloom

2007-09-03T12:40:00.000Z

The Statesmen took part in what was an entertaining game against the legion on thurs 30th Aug, this was a close game with only a couple of goals in it all the way. The Statesmen started off at a furious pace which only slowed down in the second period due to fatigue.
It was a good performance and a good game which should have been won if not for an allowed goal towards the end that was clearly not a goal, this rattled the team and we never got back from that and having to push forward conceded a couple of late goals.
It could have been all different if Ritchies 'ghost' goal had been scored, only the supporters seemed to notice it as it hit the net and come back out so fast that no-one else saw it, must be his new stick.
Daylight robbery is a term that comes to mind and we look forward to the next game.

Maddening loss @ Medway

2007-08-25T10:30:00.000Z

Fri night saw the Statesmen visit the Medway Madness, last time the 2 teams met it was a resounding victory for the Statesmen. They have improved a lot since the last meeting and with the Statesmen only having 8 players in what was a good natured and very close game the Madness came out 6-5 winners, scoring the winner with 5 mins to go.
Well done to Nigel who got a natural hat trick with the Statesmen not scroring until the second period from 1-0 down to take it to 2-1 and then 3-2, the scoring was back and forth with only ever 1 goal in it, this added a nice competitive edge, also needs mentioning that Jacob got 3 assists, the whole team played well but we just couldn't seem to get that extra goal needed to take the lead.
Thanks to the Madness for the game and we will be looking forward the return leg later in the year, also to the Statesmen who made the journey.

Statesmen on Facebook

2007-08-06T12:10:00.000Z

To enter the world of technology even more there has been a group created on facebook called Westminster Statesmen, anyone from the team can join so feel free and upload any photos, hockey related or otherwise.

No Laughing Matter

2007-07-31T11:34:00.000Z

The Statesmen took on an old foe and recent Swindon Tournament adversary, the Basingstoke Hyenas on Sunday. In what was a fast and furious first period the Statesmen wrapped up the first period 6-0, with a brace from James and debutant Dan Shreim. The Hyenas then came out of the blocks a lot harder in the second and it was more of a close affair with the period being 4-2 to the Statesmen. Though generally a friendly game as it always has been between the 2 teams it did get a bit chippy in the third though I think this more to the battling nature of the Hyenas than anything.
The game finished out 12-6 to the Statesmen, well done to us though I think we could be a bit more consistent and well done to the Hyenas for battling hard and not giving up. Well done to Dan Shreim for scoring on his official debut and has now learnt the value of crashing the net. MOTM Freddy, though after looking at my skate yesterday and realising that one of my blades has snapped in half, I think for the first time in my life I will be asking one of the D to keep the puck 'up'. For info my skates are fine and well and getting some much needed TLC down the Rom Valley Way.

Swindon Tournament

2007-07-31T11:30:00.000Z

The Statesmen finished a very respectable 3rd place at the Swindon tournament, winning the Bronze in a penalty shootout of all things. Well done to Benny who saved all 3 shots and Ritchie for scoring the loan goal and shoving it up the 'frenchies'.
Well done to everyone who went and everyone had a very good time, it looks like there will be another tournament next year as well to look forward to. Still waiting for the official stats and they will be put up when received.

Blizzard at Streatham

2007-07-31T11:20:00.000Z

The Statesmen welcomed the Bracknell Blizzard to Streatham at the first meeting of the 2 clubs on 8th July. The Statesmen won 18-0, despite the scoreline the Blizzard kept playing hard against us and kept going till the end and never lost it and earned the respect of our team. Well done to everyone involved.

No Dinotopia at IOW

2007-06-05T10:51:00.000Z

On Sunday the Statesmen travelled down to the Isle of Wight, we were expecting a close game and it didnt disappoint until the last ten minutes, eventually losing 13-7 but the scoreline doesnt reflect the closeness of the game.

The first period finished off 2-1 to the statesmen, the game started off at a fast pace and there was chances at either end until the deadlock was broken at 10mins, only for the dinos to even it up 4 mins later. Then the Statesmen finished off the period with Ty's second of the game with only 6 seconds left.

The 2nd period started like the first and the Dinos got their nose in front after just 44 seconds, which then the Statemen replied with Isaac scoring only 30 secs after that goal, all level again. A loss of concentration from the Statesmen saw the Dinos score 3 goals in a 3 min span just 20 secs after the tying goal, a quick regroup and the Statesmen finished the period with 3 goals from Milan, John W and James scoring on his debut with 30 seconds left in the 2nd. All level again going into the 3rd.

The 3rd was a bit tighter affair with neither team seemidly able to break the deadlock until after 10mins the Dinos scored another 3 quick goals in less than a minute, the Statesmen pulled one back straight after with John W's 2nd of the night but it wasnt enough and with the Statesmen looking tired the Dinos got another 4 unanswered goals to finish the match. It was a good game overall and everyone enjoyed it and will be looking forward to the return leg.

Well done to Paul D and James who got points on their debuts for the Statesmen and James with a well deserved MOTM.

Swindon Tournament Poster

2007-06-05T08:42:00.000Z

Here is the poster for the Swindon tournament, we now have a full roster. Good luck everyone.

Team Photo from Holland

2007-05-23T09:45:00.001Z

Here is a team photo from the Holland tour 2007, note Ritchie on the end getting ready for the casting of the strip at the end of Slap Shot 3 - revenge of the wobbly.

Swindon Knights - 15yr Anniversary Tournament

2007-05-18T08:42:00.000Z

The Swindon Knights are holding a 15 year anniversary tournament on Sat/Sun 30 June & 1st July. We have about 10 people already interested and will take a max of 15 as normal, should be good fun so if you are interested let Graham know.

1. Teams

I'm pleased to confirm the following teams will take part:

Nationwide Knights (Swindon, England)
Westminster Statesmen (London, England)
Isle of Wight Dinosaurs (England)
Basingstoke Hyenas (England)
Rouen Gentlemen (France)
HC Great Pillnach (Finland/Germany)

2. Format

The tournament will be played as a round robin for the initial games (each team plays five games). Then there will be two semi-finals (1st v 4th, 2nd v 3rd from round robin); then 5th place play-off (bottom two teams in round robin), 3rd place play-off (losing semi-finalists), 1st v 2nd (final). So each team gets a minimum of 6 games, the top 4 get 7 games.

3. Timings

Saturday 30 June - 12 noon to 7pm
Saturday night - players party!
Sunday 1 July - 6am to 8pm (21 hours in total)
Each game will consist of 2 to 3 min warm-up, 2 periods of 20 minutes running clock with a 1 minute interval. Then a resurface. (Total time 1 hour).

Video

2007-05-14T08:32:00.000Z

Good video to watch on the Bracknell Blizzards website, very interesting.

Enjoy:-

http://members.lycos.co.uk/bracknellblizzards/

John Gets 100 Milestone

2007-05-05T07:44:00.000Z

At the game against Slough Satans John Cavannagh gets his 100th point. Although he was a lot quicker to get to 100 PIMs!! He's also closing in on 25 goals with 23.

Congratulations John.

The Magnificent Seven Defeat Slough

2007-04-29T21:30:00.000Z

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!

Statesmen v Nationwide Knights (0-5)

2007-03-18T11:12:00.000Z

Friday night saw us play against our old friends and rivals the Nationwide Knights to come out the wrong side of a 5-0 scorleine. Knowing that it was going to be a tough game and travelling with a weakened squad as some players pulled out at the last minute the statesmen defended resolutely and although under a lot of pressure kept a 0-0 scoreline till an error led to a breakaway and Ben had been standing on his head the whole game took it literally and slipped over to allow the Swindon player to score.
Ben deserves a lot of credit and kept the scoreline low until a couple of goals late in the 3rd all but sealed the win. The statesmen tried to avoid the shut out and came very close in the last minute but just couldnt put the puck in the net. It was a good contest and we will be looking forward to the return leg match April. MOTM - Neil Wells.

Player Stats

2007-02-10T14:21:00.074Z

No	Name	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2	Ben Durcan	63	0	1	1	4
3	George Prich	16	16	3	19	37
4	Ritchie Zimmerman	41	20	24	44	24
5	Jake Switzer	11	4	5	9	0
6	Darcy Dando	10	17	11	28	0
7	Bob Heldley	17	5	10	15	2
8	Neil Wells	108	37	62	99	38
9	John Cavannagh	210	30	110	140	305
10	John Johnston	31	36	33	69	4
11	Michael Baker	288	21	70	91	120
12	Paul Martin	143	9	48	57	8
13	Steve Potts	62	38	34	72	10
14	John Weatherill	12	3	3	6	0
15	Mikko Rovamaa	3	0	2	2	0
16	Ty Chinnery	210	264	184	447	194
17	John Leslie	37	12	20	32	2
18	Lukas Hanus	17	27	22	49	22
19	Mark Freitag	16	15	6	21	4
21	Chris Hodson	8	0	1	1	0
22	Isaac Howard	70	31	30	61	6
23	Paddy Durcan	82	13	28	41	98
24	Mark Fenwick	52	30	39	68	30
25	Mike Holmes	23	8	11	19	4
25	Julian Matthews	20	3	5	8	2
27	Jyri Petri-Siljamo	25	6	5	11	55
29	Nigel Auguste	64	45	39	84	8
31	Chris Halls-Hayes	35	0	0	0	0
36	Jean Whitney	12	3	4	7	0
39	Graham D'Anger	147	0	9	9	14
40	Marcus Cast	16	12	20	32	4
44	Pete Holecek	1	0	1	1	0
55	Paul Danis	33	5	9	14	6
67	Tom Lahtinen	5	4	3	7	0
69	Stig	15	8	12	20	27
71	Brandon Paluzzi	21	1	4	5	2
73	Milan Kocybala	27	19	23	42	53
74	Frank Bruce	6	0	2	2	2
78	Freddy Karlsson	9	2	3	5	0
79	Jeff Round	3	0	4	4	0
80	Daniel Shreim	7	4	2	6	0
83	Dan O'Dell	82	17	46	63	40
88	Mark Wells	77	5	19	24	0
89	Gavin Lattimore	5	0	1	0	2
90	Paul Denaeghal	11	0	1	1	22
91	Jamie O'Dell	25	6	9	15	6
93	Jason Ashworth	5	10	2	12	2
97	James Wood	50	80	61	141	8
	Glen Moorhouse	5	0	0	0	2
	Richard Jones	5	1	2	3	12

Slovakia Tour - Aug 2006

2007-01-29T09:30:00.001Z

Jyri trying to drink the club dry of vodka.

An excellent trip saw the statesmen go to Slovakia for the first time in August 2006 to play games in Bratislava and Trencin. We got stuffed but it was fun and drank lots of pivo (beer). All organised by our friend Jo (http://www.hockeyline.sk/) who's chance meeting in his shop in Bratislava is how the tour came about and who's Slovak hospitality made everyone more than welcome.

We played in the main rink in Bratislava (home of HC Slovan (7000 seater)), watched the national team train before the first game, but no one wanted to kick them out of their changing room and Jan Lasak watched us for a bit but I don't think the scouts were too impressed. A very good standard of hockey was played the classic quote coming that the last game wasnt that good to watch but one of our players saying 'we watched a very good game' and the trip was rounded off with a well deserved trip to the spa (and waterslides), I dont think anyone would have been able to walk without it.