Whitley Warriors took a strong squad of players across the Pennines to face the Blackburn Hawks on Sunday evening. The only players Warriors were without were veteran blue liner Rob Wilson, industrious forward Martin Crammond and young winger Ben Richards.
Warriors started the game on the front foot and netted the game’s opening goal just 63 seconds in when Dean Holland fired home after being set up by line mate Harry Harley. Shortly afterwards Whitley’s Alex Lawson was given a minor 2 minute penalty for slashing which saw Blackburn go on an early powerplay and Hawks skipper Chris Arnone fired home to tie the game up while his side had the numerical advantage.
Towards the end of the opening period Hawks ran into penalty trouble as their player coach Jared Owen was given a 10 minute misconduct penalty and Adam Brittle was sent into the penalty box for elbowing.
Blackburn started the 2nd period positively and took the lead on 29 minutes when Luke Brittle fired home. Just 22 seconds later Hawks increased their advantage further when Luke’s brother Adam found the back of the net after some superb stick handling from the Hawks number 26.
Both sides continued to create openings during the 2nd session of play however Warriors netminder Mark Turnbull and Hawks goalie Daniel Brittle were able to turn away all shots that came their way which saw Hawks hold a 3-1 lead after 40 minutes of end to end action.
Hawks extended their lead further with 2 strikes in a 12 second spell from Matt Viney and Jared Owen early in the 3rd period. Warriors continued to battle away though and Whitley pulled a goal back after 50 minutes of play when Harry Harley fired home from close range after a wrap around effort from captain Jamie Tinsley had brought a smart stop from Blackburn goaltender Daniel Brittle.
The home side grabbed their 6th goal 2 minutes later when Luke Brittle scored his 2nd strike of the game. However Whitley were still going forward with purpose and Warriors summer signing Dan Pye slotted home after being set up neatly by Alex Lawson. Seeing a way back into the match Whitley Coach Simon Leach called a time out to outline his side’s tactics and opted to pull netminder Mark Turnbull so his side could have the extra skater.
Warriors created plenty of offensive opportunities with the extra man out on the ice however Hawks were able to break clear and Adam Brittle fired into an empty net to make the game safe for the home side. With under 90 seconds remaining in the game Hawks were awarded a penalty shot and Luke Brittle was able to light the lamp with a precise finish after Referee Boynton had penalised Josh Maddock on a delaying the game call.
Whitley netminder Mark Turnbull was chosen as Warriors Man of the Match with Blackburn’s Luke Brittle being selected as Hawks top performer.
Warriors Points
Dean Holland and Harry Harley 1+1, Dan Pye 1+0, Jamie Tinsley and Alex Lawson 0+1
Penalties
Warriors – 16 minutes
Hawks – 20 minutes
Shots on Goal
On Warriors (Mark Turnbull) – 39
On Hawks (Daniel Brittle) – 34
Warriors next game is a home match against the Sutton Sting in NIHL North action on Sunday 28th September (5pm face off) at Hillheads ice rink in Whitley Bay.