Whitley Warriors veteran defenceman Paul Matthews is set to return to the ice this weekend after a lengthy spell out of action with an ankle problem. All being well Paul and the Warriors will take on the Manchester Minotaurs on Saturday afternoon in Altrincham before he and his teammates face the Solway Sharks on home ice at 5pm on Sunday at Hillheads.
Warriors will also have all of the younger members of their roster available to them on Saturday in the north west however an under 18 fixture on the Sunday means Whitley will be without some of their more youthful players for the Solway match up. Whitley will also be missing blue liner Rob Wilson for both of this weekend’s games while Callum Watson is set to miss out on Saturday’s game but he should be able to ice on Sunday evening.
Everyone connected with the Warriors organisation are hoping for a bumper crowd for Sunday’s game against the Solway Sharks as the club have been promoting the game under the ‘Join the Tribe’ slogan where fans have been encouraged to bring their friends and family along to the game to experience what British ice hockey in NIHL North Divsion 1 is all about. Whitley have already 1 success against the Sharks on home ice this term and Simon Leach and his Warriors side will be doing all that they can to pick up another success against the side from the Scottish borders this weekend.
It has been confirmed that Warriors will finish the campaign in 6th position in the NIHL North table which will see Whitley go up against the side that has finished 4th Division 2 in a promotion/relegation play off for a spot in Division 1 next term.
Whitley Head Coach Simon Leach has been in contact with Widnes Wild who look set to be Warriors opponents in the promotion/relegation play off game and the 2 clubs are closely working together so the 2 legged tie can be scheduled as close to the end of the regular season as possible. Supporters should continue to check the Warriors website and the clubs social media platforms for all the latest news on when the play off games will be held.