Warriors 1 & 2 bitten by the Cobras
On Saturday 16th November the Warriors took a mixed ability team to Hull to take on the Cobras in a pre-season challenge game.
This was the first time any Warriors team had played against the Cobras in a 60 minute game - as all previous meetings had come during tournaments.
The Warriors took 4 lines and of the 12 forwards, 6 were from Warriors 1 and the other 6 were from Warriors 2.
In D, the team iced 1 x Warriors 2 player but also 2 x Warriors 1 forwards.
Each of the 4 lines were a mix of both 1 and 2 players.
The Warriors were without the following first team players:
Andrew Hughes (NM), Dylan Noonan, Sam Forrester, Tyler Heming, Chris Blaschko, Harvey Galloway, Dzintars Jonuss, Jamie Farrar and Chris Preston.
Dressed players
Lewis Pickering (NM), Joe Quinn (NM), Chris Giles (C), Andy Giles (A), Sam Cromack (A), Adam Gibbons, Ellen Gallimore, Tom Mallon, Mitch White, Ollie Gannon, Niku Ghaemi, Jordan Batty, Will Gibbons, Niks Kamaldins, Simon Morrow, Tim Lyndon-Belt, Stu Nelson, Mo Lin, Stu Shepherd, Howard Barwick, Ivis Homuts and Carl Windsor.
Our goalies
Joe Quinn and Lewis Pickering shared the net for this game.
1st period
With new line combinations to adjust to, the Warriors took some time to settle into the game. By the 3rd minute the hosts picked up a minor holding penalty, giving the Warriors a power-play opportunity. But unfortunately they couldn’t take advantage.
What followed was a defining 4 minute period as the Cobras scored in the 8th, 10th and 12th minutes. 3-0 Cobras. The hosts now had a commanding lead and the Warriors would have an uphill climb to get back in the game - unless they could strike back quickly and avoid leaking more goals.
Fortunately, with the clock at 13:55, the Warriors got on the board to make it 3-1. Ollie Gannon scoring the goal, with assists from Carl Windsor and Stu Shepherd.
The Cobras took a 2 minute tripping penalty late in the period but unfortunately the Warriors could not capitalise on this, meaning the period ended 3-1 to Cobras.
Cobras 3 Warriors 1
2nd period
The team were disappointed with their performance in the opening period and wanted to do themselves justice in the second period. With the pep-talk complete, the team hit the ice again.
Unfortunately, on 28:36 the Cobras extended their lead to 4-1. The Warriors needed to stay in touch and score the next goal and quickly. Thankfully that’s what happened as Sam Cromack netted 6 seconds later on 28:42 - with the assist coming from Niks Kamaldins. 4-2 Cobras.
Around the 30 minute mark, the Warriors changed netminders as Lewis Pickering made way for Joe Quinn.
The Cobras were determined not to let the Warriors get back into the game and on 35:28 they restored their 3 goal lead to make it 5-2 Cobras.
Whilst the Warriors were frustrated at constantly being pegged back, they kept pushing to try and reduce the deficit.
With the clock on 36 minutes, Stu Nelson laid off a pass to Chris Giles in the o-zone and he managed to shift the puck into the slot for Niku Ghaemi to fire into the net. 5-3 Cobras.
With the clock running down towards the final few seconds of the period, Sam Cromack picked up the puck from Gannon and hit a speculative shot on goal. The shot was mis-handled by the Cobras goalie and ended up in the net. With the clock at 39:56, the Warriors were within one goal of the Cobras at 5-4.
Cobras 5 Warriors 4
3rd period
With only one goal between the teams it was all to play for going into the final period.
The next goal was crucial. Could the Warriors tie the game or would the Cobras get their insurance goal? Unfortunately it was the latter. On 41:50 the Cobras extended their lead to 6-4.
This was a familiar story for the Warriors. Once again, being pegged back. But the Warriors didn’t have long to wait until they closed the gap once again. Gannon scored his 2nd of the night on 43:14 with the assists coming from Mitch White and Andy Giles. 6-5 Cobras.
This pattern continued over the course of the period as both teams took turns to score. The Cobras scored their 7th of the night with 44:23 on the clock and less than 5 minutes later, Adam Gibbons scored an unassisted goal for the Warriors. It was now 7-6 Cobras.
Going into the final 10 minutes, the game could have gone either way. Once again, the next goal was crucial and once again, it went to the Cobras. With 52:37 on the clock, the hosts made it 8-6.
But fortunately for the Warriors, the Cobras were starting to pick up some minor penalties. On 53:25 the hosts picked up a 2 minute minor and 24 seconds later Simon Morrow scored an unassisted goal on the power-play.
The score was now 8-7 to Cobras with only 6 minutes left to play. The Cobras picked up minor penalties on 55:01 and 58:48 meaning the Warriors spent much of the final few minutes of the game on a power-play, but despite pushing hard the Cobras stood firm and held on for the win.
Final score:
Cobras 8 Warriors 7
Points scorers :
Ollie Gannon 2+1
Sam Cromack 2+1
Tom Mallon 0+2
Adam Gibbons 1+0
Niku Ghaemi 1+0
Simon Morrow 1+0
Andy Giles 0+1
Carl Windsor 0+1
Chris Giles 0+1
Mitch White 0+1
Niks Kamaldins 0+1
Stu Nelson 0+1
Stu Shepherd 0+1
Jordan Batty
Player of the game
Will Gibbons
Captain’s POTG
The Player of the Game for the Warriors, as selected by the Cobras, went to Jordan Batty and the Captain’s helmet went to Will Gibbons for a solid display in D.
Thankfully, both mixed ability teams were closely matched and it made for a competitive game of hockey. It was a useful pre-season game for both sets of players as they prepare to enter cup competitions.
Thanks to Mike Forbes and the Cobras for a good game of hockey! We always enjoy our visits to Hull Ice Arena.
Our Warriors 1 team have one more challenge game before they start their season campaign in the IHSC Cup (Ice Hockey Summer Classic). See the details below:
Challenge game:
Sunday 8th December 2024
Halton Huskies v Warriors
@ Planet Ice, Widnes
Face-off : 16:15
All Warriors 1 fixtures can be found here : Fixtures and Results
The next game for Warriors 2 will be in the IHSC Cup . See the details below:
IHSC Cup
Saturday 18th January 2025
Warriors v Sheffield Ice Tigers B
@ Planet Ice, Leeds
Face-off : 21:45
All Warriors 2 fixtures can be found here : Fixtures and Results
But before both of those games, our development team are in action. See the details below:
Challenge game:
Saturday 7th December 2024
Warriors v Blackburn Renegades
@ Planet Ice, Leeds
Face-off : 22:30
All Warriors 3 fixtures can be found here : Fixtures and Results
