DEVILS ROCKED IN FIERY CLASH

The Chieftains V Cardiff ENL Devils clash always has that edge and Saturdays' game was no different. The Chieftains had put themselves in an unassailable 7-2 lead with a brace from Tom Long and Aaron Connolly each with Danny Hammond, Kyle Jones and Darren Brown, but the game will be remembered not only for the skill on show but with what happened in the final few minutes. With just over 4 minutes to go an incident between BT Williams and Bryn Griffiths ended with Griffiths jumping on BT Williams and throwing punches at the Chieftains tough guy. Once Williams had his gloves off, it was only going to go one way and Williams ended the fight by taking the Welshman down much to the delight of the home crowd.

20 seconds after the first fight ended all hell broke loose when Devils netminder Mike Brabon went to the ice to make a save and clashed with Blaho Novak and this invoked the ire of the Devils players and Brabon who triple teamed the Chieftains youngster. The rest of the players on the ice came over to help out the 17yr old and it ended up being uneven numbers as the Devils had already sent some players out for a normal line change. Williams, in the penalty box, was desperate to get out to help Novak and eventually managed to, once Griffiths had jumped out and gone after star Chieftains forward Danny Hammond. This signalled the remaining players to leave the benches and come on to the ice and a mass brawl broke out with all players on the ice pairing off, or in some cases teaming up with teammates to double-team others. The huge crowd of over 700 were all on their feet cheering and watching something that is quite rare in ice hockey, but in many respects is a special moment to witness.

Once things had calmed down and the penalties awarded, the referee Jurijs Solavjovs, had awarded match penalties to both Griffiths and Williams for leaving the penalty box, as well as match penalties to Tom Long and Steve Fisher. Each side also had 3 players put in the penalty box on roughing penalties. The game itself played out without much further incident and as is tradition all players shook hands after the game, other than Novak and Brabon who visibly didn't shake hands with tension clearly between the two still rife

2 out of 2 for Chieftains

Chieftains head coach Dean Birrell was delighted with his team after netting 10 goals in 2 games over a disappointing Streatham side. 
 
"We've been scoring well recently, but we've slipped up and dropped points we shouldn't have done and getting back to back wins over a side like Streatham is very pleasing. We worked well as a unit and put them under pressure and it paid off as we got 4 points and move higher up the league".

Saturday night was the Tom Long show as he ran in a natural hat-trick with 3 goals in a row in a dominant performance from the Chieftains which saw them give a debut to new boy Kyle Jones who immediately made an impression with the Chieftains fans as he checked every Redskin in sight on his first shift. Once Long had got his third, the Redskins hit back through youngster Chris Rasmussen who shot past Euan King who was making his first start since returning from injury. Less than a minute later and James Ayling had restored the Chieftains 3 goal lead and defenceman Richard Gunn rounded out the scoring on 47:54 when he got his 1st goal for the Chieftains this season. Needless to say, Long took the plaudits and the man of the match award for an outstanding display.

In South London on Sunday evening it was always going to be tougher for the Chieftains as they knew that the Redskins wouldn't take a defeat like that lightly and so it proved as they restricted the Essex side to just 1 goal in the first 35mins of the game and this time it was Matt Turner who got the goal, but was set up by Long, who was having a storming weekend and also won the man of the match award in the away game. Late in the second period and the Chieftains, who had been on the back foot for much of the session, made it 2-0 with an unassisted goal from Blaho Novak. Early in the third it was 3-0 when Danny Hammond netted, quickly followed by Ayling getting his second of the weekend. A mass brawl broke out late on in the period after a nasty check on Hammond left the Chieftains forward injured and his team-mates quickly moved in to stick up for their star forward and it took a few minutes to calm everything down. Jones made sure he made an impact in this game as well as he made it 5-0 to the Chieftains with 30seconds to go to end a strong weekend for the Chelmsford side.

While all this was going on, the Chelmsford second side headed to Hampshire to take on high-flying Basingstoke Buffalo in a game many expected the Warriors to struggle in. As it was, they took the game to the Buffalo early on, but succumbed to a Buffalo goal in the first, however Ben Osborne, on a good run of form, netted before the end of the period. Later in the game, Ashlee Cave, Gary Brown and rising star Courtney Grant all scored unanswered goals to end the game with a 4-1 win to the visitors.

The Warriors now have to wait until the 9th of January before they take to the ice again. The Chieftains have a 2 game road trip next weekend when they take on Bristol Pitbulls on Saturday and Swindon ENL Wildcats on Sunday.

Chieftains win Essex derby

The Romford Raiders made the short trip up the A12 in large numbers to create another huge crowd at the Riverside to witness a close,exciting, end-to-end game that could have gone either way for most of the game. 
 
Referee Yuri Solojanovs and Chieftains forward Blaho Novak will have tongues wagging for various reasons, however the real stars of the show on the night were the two netminders with Michael Gray and Ben Clements being in outstanding form. Both kept their sides in it throughout the game and it was going to take something exceptional to break the deadlock and it took until the 42nd minute for the first goal to be scored, however not the first time the puck hit the net, when Aaron Connelly fired home from close range as Michael Gray gave up a rebound on a Ross Brears shot. Both Gray and Clements, in the Chieftains net, made 41 saves each on the night, with Gray having 42 shots on him. Rightly both players were awarded the man of the match beers and both sets of fans can be very proud of their goalies after this game. Midway through the first period the puck bounced back off the plexi behind Clements's net and Danny Marshall was on hand to put the puck in the net, however the goal was ruled out for high-sticks as Solojanovs adjudged the contact to have been made above crossbar height.

The game was filled with controversy and players on both sides were invoking the wrath of the opposing fans with Pierre Wilhelmsson firstly getting tempers to rise with a nasty hit from behind along the boards which in many people's eyes should have been given more than a 2minute minor penalty. Blaho Novak managed to upset the Raiders fans and players twice in the game for doing the same thing. In ice hockey if your stick goes up and draws blood from an opponent it's an automatic match penalty, however Novak accidentally caught Raiders player-coach Danny Marshall in the face in the second period and drew blood, yet nothing called and in the third period, with just over 3minutes to play, again caught Marshall in the face, but this time Solojanovs called it by the book and sent Novak for a straight match penalty. Earlier in the game, former Chieftain JJ McGrath took his stick to Danny Cox's forearm behind the play and Cox struggled off the ice and the Chieftains bench was going mad and demanding a penalty be called, however Solojanovs didn't call anything as he hadn't seen the incident.

Back to the hockey though and it was an exceptional game, even though it only had 1 goal. Both sides created plenty of chances and put a lot of shots in on the goaltenders, however neither side was keen to give up anything as they knew what the Essex derby meant and the reaction of the victors after the game showed that. Ice hockey fans normally like to have lots of goals to talk about, but this game will live long in the memory as it was one of the most exciting games seen at the Riverside for some time and both sets of fans can be proud of their teams after this barnstorming game.

After the game Dean Birrell said "The fact of the matter is, is that Romford didn't let us play. Romford came at us tonight and made it uncomfortable and stopped us playing our game. They clogged up the neutral zone and the slot, they worked our defensive unit hard, they gave our forwards some hits and they played at a high tempo, probably the highest tempo game we've played this season. We have a number of players who are not experienced in games like this and that counts for something. With no disrespect to Romford, but I felt we could have, should have got something more from this game than a 1-0 result, but that's not to take anything away from their goalie who was outstanding but I'm pleased we won. Ben Clements was immense for us tonight and stood strong at everything fired at him and in games like this you need to have game makers and he was ours tonight." 

Birrell was less complimentary about the officiating "I was disappointed in the inconsistency of the officiating and the way in which calls were made, but we have to learn to deal with that. We had one guy smashed into the boards from behind that could have been a nasty incident, but not called anything other than a minor penalty, yet two players get tangled up and they get the same thing. What happens if the stick goes up high and draws blood it's a penalty, deliberate or not, but he didn't call it in the first, yet in the third he did. Again we come back to the inconsistency."

The waiting is almost over.....

After a difficult summer with hold-ups in the multi-million pound refurbishment of the Riverside ice rink in Chelmsford, the season is almost upon us and the club is raring to go. Saturday 2nd of October sees the 2010-11 Chieftains take to the ice for the first time in anger in what will be a tough first game away to Wightlink Raiders on the Isle of Wight, followed up by a tricky game away in Oxford 24hours later. This all leads into ice hockey returning to the heart of Essex when the Chieftains will do battle with the Streatham Redskins on Sunday 10th October at 6:30pm. The club is excited about playing in front of their great fans again and even more so in the much-improved ice rink. With new changing rooms, toilet facilities, new ice pad and catering areas, as well as a new scoreboard it is hoped to vastly improve the matchnight experience for fans, players and officials. The work which has cost over £3m has shown the dedication to ice sports and leisure facilities from the local council and the club would like to take this opportunity to thank the council and the contractors for the work they have put in in making the work happen and keeping the club informed of developments and giving Chelmsford an ice rink to be proud of. The Chieftains organisation would also like to thank the EIHA and the other clubs in the league for their patience throughout what has been a roller-coaster summer.

Chieftains head coach Dean Birrell said "We've had a tough off-season and preparations haven't been ideal, but we've made the best of it and I'm sure come face off on Saturday we'll be ready. We've worked hard on a variety of things away from the ice, but when we have trained on the ice things have gone very well. All the players have been working hard and training as much as possible and we're ready to go.


I've said that Wightlink have improved and I believe it will be an ideal test for us as our first outing for the season. Jeremy Cornish has built a hard-working, tough hitting side and the small ice surface works in their favour a lot of the time, but we've got the speed element and we've got guys who are as prepared to check and hit back, so it should be a great game. Oxford are a different proposition. They work hard, are well-drilled and are tough to break down and there is a reason they are top of the league. No team in this league should be taken lightly and I know it's an old cliché, but this season the league really has got better and stronger and we've had to up our game as well. I believe the players we've brought in have brought something to the team to give us that extra that we were perhaps missing at times last year. I still believe we have the capability and the players to win the league, but it will be tougher now but it's down to us to show the determination and professionalism to put the problems behind us and get on with the job in hand."

Away from the ice the club have been working hard to secure new sponsors this summer, as well as retaining existing ones, and most of the main sponsors from last season have agreed to stay on board. The club have welcomed Grants SEAT, amongst others, into the fold as big name supporters and are still looking for further entrants to the 'big screen draw'. The draw will take place at the first home game on October 10th and first prize is a website link from the Chieftains site (Over 1.7m views last year) and an advert on the new big screen at the rink. All entrants will get a link from the club's site and second prize is a half-page advert in the clubs programme for the season. Entry closes now on 8th October.

Further to that, the club have also agreed to support Autism Anglia as their chosen charity for the season and will be supporting and raising money for this excellent organisation throughout the season.

For further information on the 'big screen draw' please visit www.chelmsfordchieftains.co.uk or contact Pete Lewis via pete.lewis@sporttrades.co.uk

"The Mayor" takes on new role as Captain

In traditional Chieftains fashion the election of club captain for the 2010-11 was held this week and Danny Wright was elected to wear the 'C' for the forthcoming season. The self-styled "Mayor of Chelmsford" Wright has been a regular fixture in the Chieftains line up for a number of seasons, barring a short spell at Romford, and was delighted to be elected captain by his team-mates.

Wright said "I love playing hockey in Chelmsford. We have a great set-up here with the right mix of youth and experience with some great characters in the locker room to help lift team spirit. There is no better feeling in ice hockey than coming out onto the ice at the Riverside in front of our loyal fans who are always giving words of encouragement to the players and getting behind us every night of the season. We'll be looking to them to be loud and proud at the Riverside and make it a place no club wants to come to play. We've not had an ideal preparation for the season with the problems at the rink, but we're determined that when the first game faces off we're ready to take on anyone and give them a real test. I'd like to take a moment to thank the players for giving their support to me and I am really excited about captaining my hometown team."

Also elected by the players were the two alternate captains and they were former captain Tom Long who has returned to his roots from spells in Basingstoke and the Isle of Wight, as well as solid no-nonsense defenceman Sean Easton who has signed for another season at Essex's premier ice hockey club.

Away from on-ice matters and the news from the rink is promising as all the work is on schedule and the revised opening date of the 5th October looks quite likely to be hit and as such the Chieftains will be able to take to the ice in Chelmsford on Sunday 10th October when Streatham Redskins are in town.

Chieftains On Lookout For More Sponsors

Following hot on the heels of the announcement that Grants SEAT being announced as the club's main sponsors for the 2010-11 season, the Chelmsford Chieftains are now searching for further sponsors to come on board as part of Essex's fastest growing sports team.

With the refurbished rink just weeks away from opening and the season getting underway, now is the time to get involved with Essex's premier ice hockey team.

With a high number of existing sponsors continuing their support for the club, the Chieftains are looking to add to those sponsorship partners with new local businesses supporting Chelmsford's aim for glory.

The recent mutual deal with Chelmsford Radio is a sign of how much the club is moving forwards in a commercial way and the club have a fantastic opportunity for one local business opening up. As part of the refurbished rink there will be a brand new scoreboard placed at the rink and it will have the capability for video and still footage advertising. What the club is offering to any local firm, large or small, is the chance to have your organisations name and details up on that screen and regularly announced throughout matchnights to over 10,000 fans throughout the season, as well as prime advertising on the club's website for just £250.

All new organisations that express interest in being a part of the club and it's drive for silverware this season will be entered into the draw and the 1 lucky winner will gain all of the above. For those not lucky enough to win the big screen advertising opportunity, they will still be given space on the Chieftains website which attracts over 1.7m views per year.

There will also be a secondary draw which will see the second name drawn given a free half page advert in the club's matchnight programme.

All entrants will need to have entered by the 31st August with the draw to be made during the club's first home game of the season, likely to be on September 12th V Romford Raiders. A free adult ticket to that game will also be provided, upon full payment.

Any organisation wishing to enter will need to initially send an email to Pete Lewis pete.lewis@sporttrades.co.uk or call Rob McAvoy on 07932651996 for further information. Full payment will need to be made prior to being entered into the draw.

Chelmsford Chieftains Seeking Partners For 2010/11 Season

The Chelmsford Chieftains have just come off the back of a highly promising season in the English National League 1 where they finished 4th, just 1 point off second place and 7 points off the title, and came very close (within 4 minutes!) of making the play-off finals.

The club did this incredibly with the youngest team in the league and also their first season in division 1 after an unbeaten 2008-09 season in which they won all bar 1 league game and had an average scoreline of 9-2!

How can you and your organisation be a part of this season’s plans?

The 2010-11 season looks set to be the biggest and best in years for Essex’s premier ice hockey team and the club is looking for advertising and sponsorship partners to help the club in it’s quest for glory.

The Chieftains have many varied and exciting opportunities available for the upcoming season and bookings and requests are being taken now. The organisation will be playing across all age ranges from u-10s through to senior men’s ice hockey, as well as women’s hockey and numerous rec players. The club also boasts some current and former GB international players.

The club expects to attract around 10,000 fans this season and on top of that some of the advertising opportunities are available for ALL rink users to see, which are expected to top 110,000 and likely to be a fair bit more as the Riverside rink is undergoing extensive refurbishment this summer.

Not only are individual opportunities available, there is also the chance to take advantage of a ‘bundle’ of adverts. A typical ‘bundle’ would encompass a rink board, a half page advert in the match night programme and a link on the club’s website which has already attracted over 150,000 hits this year.

The Chelmsford ice hockey organisation is well aware of the economic climate and how businesses are suffering and are not necessarily able to pay up front, and they understand it too having been through downsizing themselves not so long ago. Therefore the club offers attractive payment packages and payment plans, available upon agreement.

Advertising with the club starts from as little as £120 right the way through to £1500 for a shirt sponsorship.

The Chieftains have agreed with SportTrades to be their official media partners and as such SportTrades are requesting that all enquiries to the club for sponsorship goes through the dedicated Account Manager, Pete Lewis. Contactable at Pete.lewis@sporttrades.co.uk or info@sporttrades.co.uk

Redskins Undone By Chieftains!

After their comprehensive win over the MK Thunder last week, Chelmsford Chieftains knew that that result would mean nothing unless they could win their next game. Their oppenents the Streatham Redskins are well known for being a tricky team to beat and have taken points of the leading teams this season. Our IceMan Pete Lewis was there to report on the action.

Chieftains started the game like a house on fire as their forwards peppered Stefan Nubert in the Redskins net with a number of shots inside the first two minutes. Once the South Londoners got control of the puck they showed some good skills and were able to take the game to the Chieftains. The Chieftains defence was made to be alert and Alex Green made an excellent poke check on Louis Lockwood who was bearing down on Ben Clements in the Chieftains goal. It was Danny Hammond who put Cheiftains ahead just after 6 minutes when he struck a powerful shot from the blueline that Nubert stood no chance with. Sean Easton getting the assist on the goal.

Slovak forward Jerry Pavlus doubled the advantage for the Chieftains on twelve minutes when his shot trickled through Nubert's legs. Nubert's confidence had clearly dropped and up popped Ross Brears to put the hosts 3-0 up when Aaron Connolly's shot bounbed back off Nubert and Brears had the simple to task to put the puck into the empty net.

Sadly this was the last we saw of Brears as he was helped off the ice moments later with what looks like a badly twisted knee. The Redskins did get on the scoresheet with a powerplay goal 15:58 when Perry Richardson slotted the puck home. Minutes later and it was 3-2 when Louis Lockwood put the puck in the roof of the net from close range. So much for a comfortable lead!

It was almost half way through the game before the next goal went in and this time the Chieftains put a bit of daylight between them when Blaho Novak looped the puck over Nubert to make it 4-2. Just before the end of the period and it was back to 1 goal when Lockwood notched his second of the night with a controversial goal as the Redskins had more players on the ice than allowed, but none of the officials picked up on it. It was quite a shocking decision by the officials and it shocked the crowd in attendence who all picked up on the official's mistake.

The third and final period started with a bang as barley a minute had passed and the Redskins had tied it up at 4-4. Lockwood rounding of a fine team move by completing his hat-trick when he scored past Clements after breaking clear. Things began to get feisty on the ice with a cross-check on Connolly that went unpunished by the officials, so captain Richard Whiting took it upon himself to fire a big hit back at the Redskins seconds later in retaliation and flattened the South Londoner. As he was being led off the ice, other players were involved in a pushing and shoving match with various Redskins players, but things didn't spill over. Who needs the WWE?

Just over 10 mins remained in the game when the deadlock was broken again and once again it was the Chieftains who took the advantage. Man of the match Connolly got the puck in the middle of the rink and skated to just inside the Redskins zone and he fired the puck into the top corner past a stranded Nubert. Less than a minute later it was 6-4 when Easton looped the puck high over the neutral zone and Hammond skated onto the puck and took it in close and shot it past a dejected Nubert. Jerry Pavlus scored moments after to make it 7-4, finishing cooly after a good pass by BT Williams.

Frustrations were boiling up by now and Lockwood was again the centre of attention as he took a 10 minute misconduct penalty and in doing so killed off any hope of a comeback for the Redskins. The last piece of action was a minor scuffle on the final buzzer when BT Williams and Peter Molnar had words, but when offered more, Molnar skated away not wanting to mix it with the Chieftains tough guy.

After the game, Dean Birrell had this to say: "The ref tonight was awful. He let far too much go and called some silly things and when things were getting heated, he very nearly lost control of the game. Onto playing matters and we knew we wouldn't have it easy tonight and we had to work very hard to get the win. The Redskins have taken points off of the other 'big' teams and will be a banana skin in the run-in to the playoffs and will certainly get a few more results and take some big scalps.

"I am disappointed that it looks like Ross Brears won't be training at least for the next week. I'm hoping he won't be missing heading into next Sunday's tough and physical game against Cardiff at the Riverside. We are going in as underdogs, but we're one of the few times to go to their place and get points, so we know we can take points off them. They still have aspirations for the title and will be wanting to beat us. Of course though, we're looking to cement our place in the groupings for the playoffs and we're not going to want to be bullied or pushed around in front of our own fans. It's going to be tough, but I believe the boys can do it and have the capability to win it".

We're more from Pete next week, where he'll be reporting on what we hope is a memorable Chieftians win over Cardiff Devils. Fingers crossed.

Chieftains And Warriors Earn Good Wins

It's been a fortnight or so since Pete Lewis has updated us on the Chelmsford Chieftains and their second-string team the Warriors.

Thankfully he's back this week to give us the latest news to do with the teams as they both gained good wins. Chieftains were hosts to the MK Thunder from Milton Keyens. Thunder were looking to improve on their calamitous 16-3 home thrashing by league leaders Invicta Dynamos on Saturday night.

Looking to build on their hosts nerve's, Chieftains started the quickest and quickly camped themselves around the Thunder net, ably guarded by Mark Woolf. Chelmsford were peppering Woolf's net with shots from all over the ice but none found their way past the excellent goalie.

Against the run of play, the Thunder took a shock lead when some poor defending and some mix-ups around the net allowed Connor Goode to slot home into the almost empty net to silence the Riverside crowd. The lead was short-lived though as the impressive Darren Brown quickly equalised on 10:43 with a lucky bounce off Woolf's pads and the post. That was the end of the scoring in a first period which Chieftains dominated.

The second period began brightly for the Chieftains with Danny Hammond taking the lead for the home side at 26:08 when Brown slid the puck to Hammond to fire home from in front of the net. Just over 4 minutes later it became 3-1 when Aaron Connolly rifled his shot into the net thanks to the hard-working duo of Richard Whiting and Ross Brears setting up the youngster.

Alex Staples continued to be a solid and dependable defenceman throughout the game and made some nice saves to turn defence into attack. BT Williams stationed himself in front of Woolf around the 37minute mark and when the puck fell to him, he made no mistake in slotting it home. The Chieftains superiority showed in abundance this period with a shot count of 28-4 in the Essex sides' favour.

Into the third and final period Slovak Jerry Pavlus notched his 18th goal of the season thanks to Brown once again and also Blaho Novak who battled hard throughout the game and was unlucky on many occasions not to be amongst the scorers. With just under 10minutes to go in the game, comical defending from Matt Roberts who tried to check Ross Brears into the boards and missed his hip check entirely, allowed Brears to skate in on Woolf from centre ice and he coolly finished with some ease to end the scoring at 6-1.

After the game head coach Dean Birrell had this to say: "We got 65 shots in on Woolf tonight and he played a blinder against us, as he always does. He would have been low on confidence after their drubbing the night before, but he bounced back tonight and ended with a save percentage of 90. Having said that, some of the shots we did put in on Woolf were not great and we've got to work on that as we head into the play-off run-in and the play-offs themselves.

I thought we dominated the Thunder across the ice and there were some good individual performances tonight that brought the team together. It would be unfair to single anyone out tonight as right across the team the boys performed pretty well after a bit of a stutter to start with".

Meanwhie the Warriors were down in Lea Valley to play the Lions. Due to commitments to the under-18s team the Warriors arrived in East London with only 11 players, however this did not faze the team as they raced into a 3-1 lead at the end of the first period with Ben Osborne, Sean Martin and Tom Foskett netting. The remainder of the game was dominated by the Warriors as Foskett and Lee Hounslow grabbed hatricks. Further goals were scored by Martin and Adrian Woodyard with the Lions scoring three goals to try and limit the damage already done..

Man of the match Foskett said after the game "I give my all whenever I get the chance. A lot of the guys on the ice tonight really stepped their game us as we knew we hadn't had a game for a few weeks and were a bit rusty. We're a good bunch and it's nice to take a man-of-the-match award in games like this where players have to step up to the mark".

More Dissapointment For Chieftains

After losing their last 2 games to the Wightlink Raiders, the Chelmsford Chieftains needed to bounce back this weekend againgst the Oxford Stars. Here's the IceMan Pete Lewis's take on the game:

The Stars came at the Chieftains hard and early in this game and it seemed to throw the Chieftains off their game and the Stars took full advantage early on with a goal less than 2 minutes into the game when Alan Green and Andrew Shurmer were free in front of Ben Clements and Green slotted it home. The Chieftains hit back quickly though through Darren Brown who backhanded the puck high over James Skaife in the Oxford net. The period looked to be ending with the scores tied, but a mistake on the Chieftains defence left Dean Francis with space and he slotted the puck home with ease.

The second period started brightly and it was fairly even with both sides creating chances, but both netminders were playing well and shut a lot of chances down. Out of the two, Skaife looked the more vulnerable and gave up a lot of rebounds. However it was the Stars who extended their lead when Darren Elliot found the smallest of gaps at Clements's near post and the puck crept in.

The third period saw a traditional early goal and this time it was thanks to a lucky bounce after the puck looped high in front of Skaife and there was Aaron Connolly to poke the puck over the line thanks to some good work by Ross Brears to create the chance.

The two official system had worked fairly well up until this point however Rene Ross and Nick Stephenson began to blow up for a lot of infringements and both sides found themselves on the powerplay a number of times throughout the period. Things were bubbling along nicely and the tension was building and then the eruption happened at 56:56 when the puck was fired in on the Oxford net and it had bobbled around a bit and all three of Jerry Pavlus, Danny Hammond and Blaho Novak were digging at the puck and it appeared to have crossed the line off the crossbar. The crowd were delighted to see the team back in the game at 3-3, however the officials, after much protest from Oxford, then decided to overturn their decision and say the puck hadn't gone in and the game remained at 2-3.

Andrew Shurmer from the visitors then took a 2+10 minute penalty late on as frustration and tension reached boiling point, joining his team mate Richard Wojciak in the box also on a misconduct. After a bit of a scramble in front of the Oxford net, Paul Gore and BT Williams had words and the local hero floored Gore in one gloved punch, much to the delight of the Chieftains crowd and players who were buoyed by the re-energisation of the team. Sadly it was too little too late and the game played out with the home side suffering a 1 goal home defeat for the second week running.

After the game defenseman Reece Covington said "It's frustrating at the moment. We just can't buy a win. However you make your own luck and we've got to turn things around and soon".

Weekend to forget for Chieftains

It was a weekend to forget for the Chelmsford Chieftains as they were defeated twice by the Wightlink Raiders, here's the IceMan Pete Lewis's take on the weekend:

A broken piece of plexi delayed the start of the game on the Isle of Wight this evening and as the evening progressed things began to go wrong for the Chieftains.

The shortbenched side went 1-0 just over 10minutes into the game when Danny Hughes netted for the home team to get the crowd going. The Chieftains battled hard and did their best to keep the scoreline within reach as the game headed into the first break. In fact the Chieftains had the majority of the shots and outshot the Raiders 12-9 in the first period.

Just under half way into the second period and it was 2-0 when Alex Murray fired past Ben Clements with Hughes getting the assist. Ross Brears gave the away fans something to cheer about on 32:55 with a nicely taken powerplay goal with Alex Green and Aaron Connolly picking up the assists. Sadly that was the end of the scoring for the Chieftains this evening.

Player-coach Jeremy Cornish then netted on a powerplay to make it 3-1 and then early in the third period Murray netted his second of the game with former Chieftain Hughes notching his second assist. Another former Chieftain killed off any hopes of a valiant comeback as Luke Reynolds made it 5-1.

James Ayling was the star of the show for the Chieftains as he picked up the man of the match award while young Matt Colclough in the Raiders goal took home the award for the home team.

The next day the teams met again, this time at Chelmsford. After the defeat on Saturday, much was expected for the Chieftains to bounce aback. The hosts got off to a dream start as Danny Hammond notched an early goal just 99 seconds into the game. The game was end to end and the extra large crowd of almost 500 almost saw Hammond make it 2-0 but his shot went just wide. Late in the period and the Chieftains did double their lead thanks to man of the match BT Williams being in the right place at the right time in front of the net and poked the puck home thanks to Blaho Novak and Aaron Connolly's build up work.

26 seconds of the second period was all it took for the Chieftains to go 3 up when Ross Brears capped a fine performance with an excellent solo effort that he tucked past Matt Colclough in the Raiders net at the second attempt. Darren Brown almost made it 4-0 a few minutes later but was denied by Colclough. A few moments later and it was Ben Clements's turn to be a hero as a good save denied Stewart Tait a goal. Clements was finally beaten though on 32:46 when a near post goal from player-coach Jeremy Cornish found it's way past Clements in what looked to be an impossible angle. Youngster Ruairidh Garrett threaded through a great pass for Hammond but Hammond slipped when he was 1on1 with Colclough and the score remained 3-1.

The Raiders pulled another one back at 46:58 when Dan Scott rifled in a shot from the top of the circle, although there was some debate about whether the puck did cross the line or not. Hammond again went close moments later when a good pass from Alex Staples, who later picked up player of the month award, found it's way to the hard-working forward but the crossbar came to the rescue and the score remained nicely poised at 3-2 with just under 10 minutes to play.

The Chieftains hearts were broken on 54:05 when Scott combined with Danny Hughes to give the former Chieftain a game tieing goal. The Chieftains players were rocked and then the game turned right against them when Hughes turned provider for Tait to score the winner with just under 4 minutes left. It was quite ironic that Tait would be the game winner for the Raiders as he had spent the best part of both games getting under the skin of both players and fans of the Essex side, so it was no surprise to see him and his teammates celebrate in the manner they did.

A disappointed and frustrated head coach Dean Birrell said after the game "Sometimes you look at games and think 'did they win that or did we lose it?' Tonight we definitely lost it. We competed with them early on and were the best team for the first half of the game, but then we got lackadaisical and sloppy at times and gave the Raiders chances to get back into the game and they did. We stopped hitting, we stopped forcing issues, we were dominating early on and then just slipped away. We've been in this position before and we've got to learn from it. We are a young side and they are still learning, but if we want to play with the big boys we've got to start playing like big boys".

Birrell continued "It's a weekend to forget. There are positives to take from it though and we will, but it's frustrating that it's overshadowed by a big negative that we've not scored any points this weekend and all the teams around us have picked up points.

"Looking ahead to next week when Oxford come to visit us, they've obviously lost their coach recently (Simon Anderson left the City Stars to take up a coaching role at Premier League side Swindon Wildcats) but they've brought some guys in who can play and will play and we have to be aware of that. Oxford are never a simple side to beat and we haven't had any easy games against them. We've got to pick our game up again, as we head towards the play-offs, and I hope we can start with a win over the Stars as we play game 2 of our 6 home games in a row series".

Chelmsford weekend of excitement

The Iceman, Pete Lewis, was busy for Sporttrades this weekend as the Chelmsford ice hockey teams were all over the south of England. Here is his reports on the weekend's action:

A second period demolition job was done by the Chieftains in south London on Sunday night with 6 unanswered goals coming in the 20 minutes of play. An early goal from Blaho Novak on the powerplay gave the travelling Chieftains side a 1-0 lead heading into the first break. Novak had an eventful period as he also picked up a straight 10minute misconduct penalty for an incident after the whistle with Russell Stevens of the Redskins. For the majority of the period the Chieftains had the upper hand but the Redskins always looked like they had another level to go to to match up with the Chieftains, yet struggled to find that extra gear.

Will Sanderson held the Chieftains at bay in the Redskins net up until 6 and a half minutes into the second session until he was beaten by Ross Brears (Pictured, by Helen Fryer) notching the first of a hat trick. Just over half way through the game and Adam Copland notched a goal for the visitors and this seemed to open the floodgates. 4 goals in just over 5 minutes from Brears with his second, Jerry Pavlus, Darren Brown and Danny Hammond gave the Chieftains a 7-0 lead heading into the third and final period.

It was only 19 seconds old when Ross Brears stepped up and scored his 3rd of the night, much to the acclaim of his teammates. The game seemed to slow down a bit as time wound down, but there was still time left for Novak to round out the scoring at 53:57 to end the game at 9-0 after a good all round team performance.

Slovak Rudi Dzurko picked up the man of the match award for the Chieftains side after an impressive display on the blueline for the Essex side.

Head coach Dean Birrell said after the game "I was glad to get the scoring touch back again in the team. We did struggle before Christmas to find the net but to now have scored 31 goals in 5 games is quite pleasing and I am sure the fans are a lot happier. It's disappointing for me tonight to see my old team beaten like this, but I am coaching the Chieftains now and we can only play what's in front of us. I understand they picked up some injuries tonight and were missing a few players, but credit to the Redskins though as they made us work for the whole game and barring a bad patch in the middle period, they were making it tough for us"

Down in Avon on Saturday night, saw the Chelmsford Warriors in a tough game, made even more tougher with a shortened bench. However the team did themselves and their club proud by battling to a 6-4 defeat. With only two officials on the ice, the game was always going to be on tenterhooks and this game was no different as incidents were happening off the puck all over the ice and by the end of the first period Sean Martin and Ben Osborne were just about classifiable as 'walking wounded'. Ashlee Cave had also been ejected from the game for mixing it up with the Pitbulls.

The Pitbulls went 2-0 up before the end of the first period and the Warriors looked to be out of this feisty game, but the second period scoring was slightly unevenly split with the Pitbulls getting 3 more and the Warriors picking up 2 through Blaho Novak and Tom Foskett who were playing down from the Chieftains.

The third period was anyone's game, but the Pitbulls sneaked another goal and Novak got his second along with young Max Bennett to end the game 6-4 to the home side. Gary Brown took the honours for a man of the match performance for the Warriors. The small travelling band of Warriors fans were certainly not downhearted on their journey back from Bristol.

Back in Essex on Sunday night and it was another outstanding performance from the Warriors as they took on the Basingstoke Buffalo, who had come to Chelmsford full of confidence. The Warriors showed great mettle the night before in Bristol as they went down just 6-4 to one of the favourites for the title, but Lee Hounslow and his teammates made sure that the Warriors fans went away happy as he picked up both goals in a 2-1 win. The Warriors were leading for most of the game and it was only thanks to a third period goal from the Buffalo that made the final few minutes a tense affair.

The Warriors looked solid throughout and gave a good account of themselves, despite a lot of pressure from the Basingstoke side. The Buffalo were determined to snatch something from the game and battled right to the end, but to no avail as the Chelmsford second side held on for the two points.

Chieftains Overcome Thunder To Win

As ever last weekend saw SportTrades's Iceman Pete Lewis at the Ice Hockey. He was there to see the Chelmsford Chieftains face off againgst the MK Thunder ice hockey game. There were also apperances from 2 wrestlers from LDN wrestling, the Wrestling Compnay that the Chieftains have linked up within the last month.

The game itself began in the way games against Milton Keynes normally do and they were tough to break down, but once the Chieftains broke through their lines it was only thanks to Mark Woolf having a blinder in the MK net that kept the score down. Danny Hammond broke the deadlock at 5:27 of the first period with a fairly simple tap in at the back post. Jerry Pavlus then scored an excellent goal as he went through the MK defence and slotted the puck high into the top corner all thanks to an excellent pass from man of the match Danny Wright.

A couple of moments later it was 3-0 when a blue line shot from Sean Easton looped in over Woolf's shoulder while the Chieftains had a man advantage. MK then pulled a goal back six minutes before the end of the period, when Jamie Holland's shot pinged in off the post and it was a 3-1 lead going into the first break.

As a special promotion, in association with LDN wrestling, Travis (adorned in a Chieftains shirt, much to the home crowd's delight) came onto the ice to talk to the fans but was rudely interrupted by Steve Preston, sporting an MK Thunder shirt. Things quickly heated up and a pushing and shoving match ensued between the two, with only Frizzy on hand to break them up, but he too took a few pushes from Preston to really get the crowd wound up.

The second period began with an early goal to the Thunder as Harrison Goode finished off a nice move from Ross Horsley. Blaho Novak quickly hit back for the Chieftains, restoring their 2 goal advantage with thanks to his linemates Hammond and Pavlus. The period was a bit back and forth, but the Chieftains began to take further advantage, but Woolf was playing an outstanding game and continued to deny the Chieftains.

Into the third period and things were still going the Chieftains way, but MK were finding ways back into the game and Ben Clements was called upon more times than perhaps he would have liked to pull off some nice saves. Back down the other end and the usual agitation tactics of Novak and Ross Brears were paying off as the MK defence began to get a bit hot under the collar and started to take some silly penalties, including a 2+10 minute penalty to Bernie Bradford for a check from behind. Paul Jamieson and Ross Brears had words and things were getting close to boiling point now, but referee Rene Ross kept control of things and it was the Chieftains who rounded out the scoring with 20 seconds left with a second goal to Hammond, assisted by Pavlus. Final score 5-2 Chieftains.

The man of the match awards were presented by Travis (The reigning LDN Wrestling Champion) and the fans were encouraged again to attend the LDN wrestling event at the Riverside on the 30th of January. Man of the match for the Chieftains was Richard Whiting, who as you can see in the picture was delighted to pick up his award.

Speaking after the game Dean Birrell, head coach of the Chieftains said "I wouldn't say tonight we were unconvincing in our victory, but there were some times out there I felt frustrated by our performance. We created lots of chances and outshot them, but we must start the majority of our chances".

Birrell continued in the same vein as he did earlier in the week with praise for GB Under-18 call ups in James Ayling and Aaron Connolly on the reserve list "It's fantastic for those boys, it's not only this year but we've got some other lads coming on and with the ice time they are getting with the Warriors now I wouldn't have thought it would be too long before the GB selectors are in touch with those lads too. On top of that in the junior system there are some special talents coming on and it really is testament to development they receive in the Chelmsford system".

Speaking of the Warriors, they didn't have as good a weekend as the Chieftains. Invicta Mustangs were too much for the Chelmsford's second string side winning 3-1 at the Ice Bowl in Gillingham. Dan Raven was on target for the Warriors with Andy Brummitt grabbing the man of the match award, after several key saves stopped the hosts winning by more.

Chieftains Win Overshadowed By Injury

After their 8-5 defeat away to the Invicta Dynamos, the Chelmsford Chieftains needed to bounce back and grab a win over the Haringey Greyhounds. That was achieved by Dean Birrell's men, but nobody will have been pleased by the conclusion of the game, which was far more important than just sport.

As ever The 'Ice Man' Pete Lewis reports on the action for us, on the sport that if the weather continues as it is at the moment could very well could be all the rage in schools and parks up and down the country.

The Chieftains dominated this game right from the start, scoring three times in the first period. Goals from Danny Hammond, Ross Brears and a remarkable finish from Sean Easton (Pictured) from the halfway line which went past Haringey netminder James Tipple, which set the tone for the rest of the game. The second period continued in the same vein with Brears getting his second of the game and then Blaho Novak, Rich Whiting, Alex Green and Jerry Pavlus all scoring to give the Chieftains a convincing 8-0 lead going into the second break.

Ben Clements in the Chieftains net had barely been tested up until this point, having only faced around 12 shots in 2 periods, but when called upon he pulled off some solid saves and along with Brears, Green and James Ayling, he was in contention for the man of the match award. At the other end Tipple had been subjected to a staggering 40 shots, emphasising the sheer dominance of the Chieftains over their north London rivals. The Greyhounds decided to change goalies at the end of the period and changed Tipple for Laura Saunders.

Saunders had only been on the ice for just over 2 minutes when a Pavlus shot went just wide and as she turned to see where it had gone she was caught 100% accidentally by Hammond and she went down with a suspected spinal injury. Play was stopped immediately and an ambulance called and after she was treated on the ice for around 20minutes the officials took the correct decision to award the game as 8-0 to the Chieftains and end the game early. Laura left the ice in a conscious state, but strapped to a stretcher with her head and neck held in place.

SportTrades would like to send their best wishes to Laura, her family and the Haringey organisation and hope for a full and speedy recovery. A post on the Chieftains forum from a member of the Haringey management has stated that Laura has been released from hospital this evening with tissue damage only and looks like she will be fine.

Women players are allowed to play in the English National Ice Hockey Leagues, but Laura is one of only five female players that are playing this season. The other four for anyone wanting to know are Robyn Maby, Ruth Cattel and Angela Taylor who play for the Lea Valley Lions, who are in division 2, and Laura Price who plays for the Streatham Redskins. An incredible fact is that Taylor, the captain of the Great Britian Ladies team scored FIVE goals on her debut for the Lions against the Streatham Bruins this season.

In other Chelmsford related news, the Warriors won 5-2 at Romford Fury after a fine performance. Warriors scored early on and romped into a 4-0 lead before being pegged back late by the hosts to 4-2 in the final period. There was to be no nervous finale as Sean Martin sealed the win and send the home fans trudging sadly out of the Arena at the end of the game.

High Scoring Encounter For The Chieftains

After last week's great victory over the Peterborough Islanders at the Riverside, the Chelmsford Chieftains travelled to rivals Invicta Dynamos looking for a win to get their season back on track. The match at the Gillingham Ice Bowl was always going to be a tough one for the Dean Birrell's men, but they had played well there last month when they drew 2-2.

As ever SportTrades Iceman Pete Lewis was there to report on the game for us, here's his take on the game:

Andy Smith got the Dynamos of to a great start when he slotted past Andy Moffat in goal for the visitors after four minutes. It was a lead that was then doubled when Nolan Boike put away his first of the night to make it 2-0 but Chelmsford fought back to level terms by the break.

Ross Brears and James Ayling combined well to give Brears a simple finish. Brears (pictured) was hard-working all night and was a real thorn in the Dynamos side and was unlucky to miss out on the man of the match award, which went to Cheiftains hard man BT Williams. The game was tied moments later when Mark Williams made a howler of a clearance from the Dynamos zone and passed the puck straight to Danny Hammond who shot the puck past Joe White to level the game.

Early in the second the hosts went ahead once more with Boike getting his second of the game. Moments later a large scuffle gathered at centre ice with Jerry Pavlus and Mark Williams exchanging new years wishes, followed by large numbers of both teams also joining in the festivities, or so it looked!

Once Williams left the penalty box for his roughing penalty he rifled home a goal thanks to Boike winning a face off in the Chieftains zone. It was 5-2 just over the half way mark when Boike netted his hat-trick goal. The Chieftains were in disarray now and the rampaging Dynamos were going at full force and it became 6-2 thanks to Elliot Andrews netting on the 37:43.

As the players left the ice at the end of the period, there was some words exchanged in the locker area and the next thing the fans knew were that announcement’s were made for security to attend the changing area as there were scuffles breaking out between players outside the locker rooms. Things were diffused though by cooler heads and the officials stepping in and both sides returned the ice for the third period with no further incident.

The third period started well for the Dynamos as they made it 7-2 two minutes into the half. Andrews netting his second of the game following good work from Boike who skated past his marker before laying off a great pass which set up the goal. The large numbers of travelling fans were silenced by the 5 goal deficit and it appeared that it was a case of damage limitation. Thankfully Darren Brown was having none of it though and brought the score within 4 goals with a nice finish minutes later. With around ten minutes left the home side switched net minders and Shane Kemp came in for the Dynamos.

Kemp has been known to struggle and it showed early on as the Chieftains took the game by the scruff of the neck and 2 quick goals from Brears and Danny Hammond brought the scoreline to 7-5 with just under a minute to play. Coach Dean Birrell made the decision to pull Moffat for the extra skater to try and get a sixth goal for the Chieftains but it backfired as Andy Smith netted in the unguarded goal to make it 8-5 with around thirty seconds to go.

After the game Birrell said “We had a bad second period and that’s what cost us. We competed at times, in the third particularly, but that’s not taking anything from Invicta. There were some good individual performances tonight, particularly from Nolan Boike who scored 3 and set up at least 4 others. Games like that from imports will always make it tough for any side to compete. From our side there were some poor performances from individuals tonight”. Next up for the Chieftains is an away trip to Haringey Greyhounds who have struggled towards the foot of the table for much of the season.

Meanwhile back in Essex, the Chelmsford Warriors hit 10 goals past a lacklustre Lee Valley Lions in a 10-3 drubbing of the East London club. Adrian Woodyard was amongst the scorers again and deservedly picked up the man of the match award.

In other news, the Chieftains have announced a a mutual partnership agreement with LDN Wrestling. The agreement will see both sides promote each other. LDN Wrestling is one of the UK’s fastest growing wrestling promotions and are intent on bringing back the “Golden age of British wrestling” when people like Big Daddy, Giant Haystacks and Kendo Nagasaki ruled the squared circles up and down the country. They are based in London and the south east and the promotion regularly pulls in 300+ fans at their events.

Chieftains Go Sixy On The Islanders!

As you're know the Chelmsford Chieftains had a dissapointing couple of results last week, losing to the Bracknell Hornets before following that with an 'ok' draw againgst the Streatham Redskins. Last Sunday Dean Birrell's team bounced back and kept the smiles going for their festive fans with a win for them over Christmas.

As always SportTrades own Ice Man Pete Lewis was there and here's his report on the action:

Unlike many encounters with the Cheiftans this game didn't start well and there was not really a chance in the first ten minutes for either side. Simon Wren in the Islanders net though was beaten just after 13 minutes, when a good build play ended in Alex Green setting up Jerry Pavlus who slotted past Wren outside the goalie crease with the first real chance of the game. Chelmsford doubled the lead two minutes from the end of the first period when James Ayling found Darren Brown in space and he slotted home with smartly.

Just two minutes into the second period it was 3-0 when Richie Whiting scored and just over a minute later it was 4 as Danny Hammond (pictured) scored meaning that after 23 minutes on the clock it was staggeringly 4-0 to the Chieftains! Another goal came exactly on the half hour, but this time it was to the Islanders as James Pentecost put the visitors on the scoreboard. There were no further scores in the last period, to the shock of all at the Riverside the Islanders reduced Chieftains lead to 2 two minutes into the half when Steve Maile drove home the puck from close range.

This seemed to wake the Chieftains up and in the final 10 minutes of the game, they sent their great support home happier by scoring 2 goals to reaffirm their dominance of the game. Chelmsfor'd's fifth goal came when Ayling took control of a pass from BT Williams and danced down the ice with the puck and squared it to Brown who slotted home for his second of the night. Minutes later it the sixth goal came as Danny Hammond's wrist shot was too much for Wren as the puck beat his dive into the net.

After the game, a relieved head coach Dean Birrell said “I’m glad we got that win under our belts. We know we’ve had a bad run lately, but that corner should have been turned now. We’ve scored some goals, got 2 points and can now concentrate on the big game next Sunday in Invicta. We’ve played them twice recently and narrowly lost to them and got a draw at their rink, so we know we can match them. There are things from the game that need to be worked on, so the fans can be rest assured we’ll be working hard to get things flowing again for next Sunday”.

Spirited Hornets Hold Chieftains

After last week’s draw at league leaders and rivals the Invicta Dynamo’s, the Chieftains last Saturday travelled to Bracknell to face the Hornets. It was a disappointing result for the Chieftains who lost to the hosts, though that was because they were without several big names including Darren Brown, Andy Moffat and Adam Copland to name a few.

As always SportTrades Ice Man Pete Lewis was there and here’s his report of the game:
The Hornets struck first just 45 seconds into the game when Ben Duggan slotted into the free net, having been left unmarked at the back post. The game continued to be back and forth with both net minders busy.

Early in the second period and the Chieftains were back on level terms when Blaho Novak put the puck in the net after a rifle of a shot from Staples rebounded off Wride and fell at Danny Hammond’s stick and he calmly squared it to Novak to slot home.

Things got a bit heated a few minutes later when Wride spilled a shot so Aaron Connolly went in to try and poke the puck into the net, however he was set upon by Ovenden and Graham Bellamy and was rescued by James Ayling and Ross Brears who came in to even the numbers up as other Hornets players had arrived to get involved in the scuffle. Once more Decaux confused the away fans as he sent the main protagonists to the box for 2 mins each roughing.

Early in the third and the Hornets did take the lead when Ben Johnson and Hopkins combined to bundle the puck past Clements while Connolly was sitting a harsh holding the stick penalty. 67 seconds later and the game was tied again at 2-2 when Brears scored a beauty of a goal when he skated from centre ice and fired it high and into the corner past Wride.

Decaux sent Sean Easton to the penalty box on 45:47 for a hooking call, and it meant the Chieftains would have to continue on the penalty kill and unfortunately they couldn’t hold out for all of it and with just 4 seconds to go Tom Avery managed to get the puck past Clements, on a cruel deflection from Garrett’s skate, and take the lead for the Hornets. Alex Barker then made it 4-2 at 55:01 to put the game beyond doubt with a nice finish from the middle of the Chieftains zone that fired past Clements.

After the game Dean Birrell commented “I am a bit disappointed with things tonight, but more frustrated than anything. 3 power play goals tells it’s own story, especially with one or two strange calls late on that cost us goals. We knew we would be up against it whenever we played Bracknell, but the late change in the schedule that caused us to be short on numbers didn’t help. I am pleased with how the youngsters performed though and they did what I asked of them, so there are some positives to take from the game”.

Sadly for the Chieftains and Birrell they couldn’t fully bounce back in their very next league game after the Bracknell defeat, drawing 2-2 againgst Streatham Redskins. For more on the Chieftains follow them on their website @ http://www.chelmsfordchieftains.co.uk/. The Peterborough Islanders face the Chieftains next on the ice at the Riverside on the 27th. Everyone at SportTrades is hoping that Santa will deliever them a win of course!

Chieftains & Invicta Throw Up Another Thriller!

From those of you who've been following SportTradesReport over the last couple of months you're know that we've been following the Chelmsford Chieftains, an Ice Hockey team this season. Anyway last week they narrowly lost home at the Riverside to their fierce rivals the Invicta Dynamos, with the winning goal being scored late on. Kevin Howland from the Dynamos has got cracking highlights of that game which you can view from this link -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSmNdAf8mjw

Anyway last saturday saw the two teams clash again, this time round Invicta were the hosts and the Chieftains were looking to bounce back after that heartbreaking defeat a week earlier. SportTrades Pete Lewis as ever reports on the game for us:

In a great game of Ice Hockey, there was action right at the start of the game with the hosts having an early shot saved by Ben Clements. Chieftains though had the first real meaningful chance of the game though when Ross Brears and Danny Hammond broke clear only to see goaltender Joe White pull of a double save to stop the puck going in.

In a game like this, the first one was always going to be important and it went to Chelmsford after they grabbed the intiative after Invicta lost 2 players to the penalty box. Mark Williams and Ryan Giles both found guilty for needless infringements. Adam Copland doing the damage from the blueline with a powerful snapshot, which Shane Kemp in goal failed to see. Not long after that the Chieftains were 2-0 up, following a well-worked move. Good work from Rich Whiting and BT Williams (pictured by Ian Snoding) set up Darren Brown who slotted past the goalie with style.

It was all going so well for the visitors who really wanted to end the first period 2 goals to the good. Invicta though like league leaders should fought back and Nolan Boike did well to slot past Clements at his near post with just 4 minutes to go until the end of the period. Just into the second period and it was almost 1-3 but Kemp in goal for the hosts made a save from the tireless Brears somehow keeping the puck out down at his near post. A few minutes later and a mistake from Sean Easton in clearing the puck almost allowed the Dynamos to tie the game up, but Ben Clements made a great poke check to deny the onrushing Dynamos.

Tempers began to heat up a few minutes later when a save by Joe White (who had replaced Kemp in goal) was spilled and a scrum of players ensued after some nasty pushes and punches were thrown behind the net. Only the instigator of the ensuing scrum, Blaho Novak, took any penalties though - which is often the case in hockey unlike football for instance.

With the minutes ticking down it looked like Chieftains could just hold out for a famous victory and send Invicta to only their second league defeat of the season. Sadly with around twelve minutes left, Peter Vaisenan took a chance at the near post to tie the game up. It was harsh on Chelmsford, but in such a good game of Ice Hockey perhaps both teams derserved a point.

After the game, Chieftains coach Dean Birrell said “I’m very pleased tonight to have got the draw from here. Not many sides this year will get anything from this rink, so to be the first is an excellent feeling. What was interesting was seeing who scored the Invicta goals and who scored our goals and who our main players were. It was our British and local players who were the main danger tonight, but on the other side it was only their imports who looked really dangerous, with the exception of the odd attack”.

Cheiftains Clash With Invicta Lives Up To Hype!

For those of you who read our post on Friday which featured the latest news on the Chelmsford Chieftains would have known that on Sunday, they had arguably their biggest game of the season. It was a game against local rivials and leaders of the ENIHL South Div 1 league – the Invicta Dynamos. As you’re find out it proved to be a great game of Ice Hockey, Sport Trades Pete Lewis was there and here’s his report of the game:

In a game that everyone involved with the Chieftains had been looking forward to in years, there was much expectation that Chelmsford would beat the league leaders. To do that the team would need to start the game well, and although they had a chance in the first ten seconds of the game through Ross Brears – Invicta grabbed the lead after only 17 seconds. A pass by Invicta netminder picked out the quick Nicky Lewis in an attacking position and he fired a snap shot past Ben Clements in the Chieftains goal to score.

It was a shock to the crowd that the visitors would score that early, but there was no time to panic even at this stage and soon the hosts were level, through a smart goal from Danny Hammond on 12 minutes. Hammond (pictured below on the left) was picked out well by Jerry Pavlus and slotted past White in front of the net to put the hosts on level terms. The joy of equalising was short lived as just 40 seconds later, Invicta scored again as Elliot Andrews had a shot deflected past Clements in goal. It was harsh on the hosts but hockey is like that sometimes, you can never relax even for a second.

Going into the second period, it was obvious that Chieftains couldn’t afford to concede another goal to the visitors, which is sadly what they did just three minutes into the period. After the hosts lost poccession of the puck, Invicta’s Nolan Boike teed up Joe Johnston bearing down on the Chelmsford goal and the Brit forward lifted over Clements to give the Dynamos a two goal advantage. It was a lead that could have been added to as Chieftain’s prospect Blaho Novak saw the red mist and attempted to take on Grant Baxter in a tussle but Baxter soaked up the punches on the ice without retaliating to earn his side a four minute powerplay advantage.

Even with a man light, Chieftains were still looking for a goal and they almost got that when Hammond had a powerful shot saved by White in goal, who was lucky to see his save bounce of the inside of the post. Hammond atoned for that moments later when he rifled home a shot from the blueline which flew into the top of the net past a stunned White to reduce the lead to 1 with 29 minutes played. The dying minutes of the second period were full of action. First Hammond missed a chance to score his hatrick when he shot the puck wide with only White to beat. Then with two minutes to go before the end of the period, a major scuffle emerged which ended in Chelmsford’s Rudi Dzurko and Invicta’s Ryan Giles brawling on the ice with both players getting 4 minute penalties for their actions.

With only one goal between the teams at the start of the third period, it set the game up brilliantly for a thrilling conclusion. Six minutes into the half and the home support were estatic as Aaron Connolly finished of a great passing move between him, Ross Brears and Alex Green to make the score 3-3. With both teams not wanting to sit back and take a draw, there was a feeling that there was going to be a winner in the game and sadly for the home support, Invicta went home with the win as the visitors scored a goal in the penultimate minute of the game. After Peter Vaisanen won a face off for the visitors just inside the Chieftain’s half, a quick pass inside to Andy Smith caught the hosts out. With only Clements to beat, Smith kept his cool and launched the puck beyond the netminder to conclude a dramatic game and send Chelmsford to only their second defeat of the season.

Head coach for the Chieftains Dean Birrell had this to say “"It was a great performance from the boys tonight. I asked all of them to give it 110% and they did. we were the better side and deserved something out of the game”. Birrell though gave praise to the visitors saying “They played a fantastic game as well and showed why they have won the league and been at the top for so long.

Next Sunday is the big rematch between the teams as the Chieftains travel to Kent to play Invicta at their Gillingham Ice Bowl. If the game this weekend is to go by, the return game should be another good encounter. Birrell is confident that the team can perform well and please the travelling Chelmsford support saying “and I know going into next week's game, we know what we have to do now to get the win. We'll be giving it our all again and hope the travelling Chelmsford fans will give it their all too. The fans were in fine voice tonight and I hope that sort of support continues”.

The Chieftains feeder club, the Warriors went down 8-2 this Saturday to a dominant Swindon ENL Wildcasts. Despite some good saves from netminder Andy Brummitt, the Wildcats could not be contained and won at a canter. More from the Chieftains next week!

Controversy Hits Chieftains, As Oxford Grab Draw

Last weekend saw the Chieftains stumble to a 4-4 draw in Oxford, although it wasn’t their own doing that cost the game, but poor decisions from the officials. SportTrades Pete Lewis as always reports for us:

In a game in which there were eight goals scored, Chelmsford went home feeling like they’d lost the game due to being on the wrong end of some poor decisions in the game. The Stars though were a test for Chieftains. Oxford should have gone ahead early on but Ken Forshee shot straight at Ben Clements in the Chieftains goal. Moments later and the first real chance at the other end fell to Ross Brears from a nice layoff from Danny Hammond. Referee Freeman towards the end of the period sent Richard Wojciak of the Stars for a 2 minute minor for hooking and as well as a further 10 minutes for questioning the referee.

On the resulting powerplay the Chieftains broke the deadlock thanks to a smart Alex Green finish who fired past Skaife. As the players were returning to re-start the game the referee sent Abu-Saada to the box also for 10minute misconduct and it appeared that the Stars discipline was rapidly going. As the buzzer went Stars new signing Andrew Shurmer went steaming in on Blaho Novak, only to be totally up-ended by the young forward who stepped into the onrushing defenseman and sent him sprawling across the ice. Instead of the usual melee that follows instances like that; many Stars players seemed to be laughing at Shurmer who had just been shown up by a 16 year old School boy! Who said kids can’t play against the big boys.

The second period started well for Chieftains when Hammond slotted home from another perfect Novak pass three minutes into the half to put make it 2-0. The Stars fired back minutes later through Shurmer who slid a shot in under Clements to reduce the lead. Goal of the night came ten minutes later when Hammond picked the puck up at centre ice and skated past his marker before slotting the puck past goaltender Skaife from a tight angle. Again though the Stars refused to lie down and captain Darren Elliot took advantage of the Chieftains stopping play as they thought the whistle had gone to wash out an alleged goal, but only to find the whistle hadn't gone and to their horror Elliot scored. The Chieftains made it 4-2 two minutes from the end of the second period when Jerry Pavlus finished past Skafie after a good team move.

It looked to be one-way traffic now, but the Stars had other ideas as the third period began. Forshee grabbed a goal three minutes into the period through somewhat controversial circumstances. Clements the goalie for the Chieftains was clearly been infringed in his crease, which under the rules of hockey isn’t allowed. Referee Freeman failed to see this error and much to the surprise of those in attence the goal was given - much to the displeasure of Clements and the Chieftains players. Even Stars Coach Simon Anderson seemed to motion to the Chieftains players a look of embarrassment. Then to cap it all, in the dying minutes of the game Freeman missed another infringement which allowed Stars Grant Bailey to level the game and earn the hosts a tie.

After the game Birrell said "We will take nothing away from Oxford, they were up for it and gave us a real tough game. I don't want to say too much about the officiating, but suffice to say 2 of their goals at least were down to the officials getting the basics wrong. I think Oxford deserved something from the game, but I'd rather they had earned their draw fairly rather than being gifted it". Looking ahead to this Sunday, little needs to be said.The Chieftains host Invicta Dynamos. Invicta are top of the league and will be a huge test. The teams have not met in league action in almost a decade and it’s a game that should live up to the hype, it's one that i certainly can't wait for!