Whitley Warriors hosted the Blackburn Hawks in game that counted towards both the league and cup at their Hillheads base on Sunday evening. Warriors got the better of Hawks last weekend on the road by 3 goals to 2 and David Longstaff and his side were looking to pick up another victory against the reigning NIHL North Division 1 Champions.
Warriors were able to ice at almost full strength while Hawks also had a strong roster of players to choose from, though the visitors recent signing Rick Bentham was missing from their line up. Whitley operated with 3 forward lines and 3 defensive units for the majority of the contest however Warriors forward units altered as the game went on to keep players fresh and ready for action.
There was a slight delay to face off however once the action got underway, Warriors flew out of the blocks and took the lead with just 51 seconds on the clock when Callum Watson fired past Stuart Ashton in the visitors net. Whitley were creating plenty of chances and Harry Harley made it 2-0 after 7 minutes of play when he found the top corner of the net from just inside the blue line.
Just a minute later, Callum Watson struck again to the delight of the large home crowd that had come along to see Warriors in action. As the period progressed, Whitley went close to extending their lead as Shaun Kippin had a goal washed out by the officials on duty while Watson almost grabbed his 3rd goal of the opening period after some superb interplay between himself and DJ Good.
Both sides created chances in the 2nd period of the contest and Chris Butler almost got Hawks on the scoresheet on 32 minutes when he forced a smart save from Warriors netminder Richie Lawson. Seconds later Whitley notched their 4th goal of the game when Dean Holland smartly slotted home from close range with Liam Brown and DJ Good providing the assists.
Callum Watson grabbed his 3rd goal of the game and 5th goal of the season on 36 minutes when the speedy winger once again lit the lamp after being fed the puck by Whitley import Andre Payette. Hawks almost got a goal back late in the 2nd stanza though when the hard working Aaron Davies tested Lawson with a solid effort on goal.
Blackburn opted to change their netminder ahead of the final period of action with Niks Trapans replacing Stuart Ashton as their last line of defence. Trapans was soon called into action as the youngster made a smart save from Dean Holland after a precise DJ Good pass had cut the Blackburn defence apart.
Midway through the period tempers frayed as a scuffle broke out near the penalty box before Warriors Andre Payette and Hawks Steve Duncombe exchanged blows on the opposite side of the rink. After a lengthy stoppage the game got back underway and Warriors were able to kill off an extended Blackburn powerplay.
With only 5 seconds left in the game, Warriors youngster Lawson Glasby found the back of the net with a powerful shot from distance that got the better of the impressive Trappans, Glasby was clearly delighted to notch his first ever senior goal for Warriors as the youngsters exuberant celebrations clearly illustrated.
Warriors gave all of their roster significant ice time during the match as Anthony Wetherall, Ross Douglass, Lawson Glasby, Niall Simpson and Liam Brown all got several shifts during the contest. Wetherall looked particularly impressive on his senior debut as the youngster looked a very promising player whenever he took to the ice.
Warriors took the points on offer in both NIHL North Division 1 and the NIHL North Cup thanks to their 6-0 victory. Callum Watson was named Warriors’ Man of the Match while Carl Price was chosen as the visitors’ best player on the night. A mention does have to go to Warriors goaltender Richie Lawson, who had a superb game as he recorded a shut out and saved every one of the shots that came his way from Hawks.
Warriors skipper Dean Holland shared his views on the game.
“We worked hard on things in practice during the week and it worked well out there on the ice tonight, we scored a few good goals and the youngsters all got shifts and did well.
“Lobby [David Longstaff] was very impressed with the youngsters tonight and they all showed they could play at this level. Wetherall has looked pretty good in practice with us this week and he did well out on the ice tonight, he’s only 16 and has been playing with the under 18’s and under 20’s this season up to now. Ross [Douglass] also did well and he’s an up and coming young player as well who will do well for us over the course of the season.
“Blackburn are a good team and it’s great to get a victory over them. They have a big budget and pay players to come and play for them so it’s nice to beat them and it’s also a confidence boost to ourselves.
“Having a strong line up like we did tonight is always good and tonight’s result proves when we can put a strong line up out on the ice we can compete with anyone we come up against. Richie [Lawson] has been doing well for us in goal and when he’s in top form he can win games for us on his own at times.”
Whitley Warriors have 2 games next weekend as they travel to the Scottish borders to face the Solway Sharks on Saturday evening before they take on Blackburn again next Sunday in a NIHL North league match up on home ice at Hillheads at the usual 5pm face off time. Warriors will be hoping to extend their recent good run of form that has seen David Longstaff’s team win their last 3 games in all competitions.