Warriors Knock Stars for Six

Whitley Warriors achieved a 6-0 win over local rivals Billingham Stars at Hillheads on Sunday evening.

Playing Billingham just one week after their 8-3 victory over the Stars at The Forum, the Warriors had twenty skaters available to them but were missing Captain Dean Holland, meaning forward Shaun Kippin was instead called upon to fulfil the role. By comparison, Billingham made the short trip with a squad of twenty players which included youngsters Joseph Walls, Dylan Hehir and Stuart Jackson, not to mention starting netminder Mark Watson and backup shot stopper Mark Turnbull.

Whitley were quick off the mark in the first period, scoring just thirteen seconds in when forward Phil Edgar sliced through Billingham’s defence to find left winger Ben Campbell who instantly buried the puck to give his team an extremely early lead. Encouraged by this positive start, the Warriors were overjoyed to double their tally on 1:17, this time Niall Ryder persevering to tap forward Adam Finlinson’s attempt past Watson’s right pad. Just eight seconds later, netminder Watson was beaten for a third time when forward Ross Douglass fired into the roof of Billingham’s net to stun his opposition into calling a timeout. Dominating, the Warriors were unaffected by an interference penalty called against forward Ross Murray on 2:17 and, when the side went shorthanded for a second time due to a tripping offence from Alternate Captain Jordan Barnes, Whitley remained in control to eradicate chances created by forwards Craig Thurston and Chris Sykes. Barnes was then sinbinned again just past the midpoint of the period for a late hit but the Warriors continued to put pressure on Watson’s net whilst shorthanded, forward Callum Queenan amongst those seeking an opening in Billingham’s defence before narrowly missing a tap-in. Persistent, Whitley made it 4-0 moments later when forward Callum Watson gained possession to fire into the Stars’ net unassisted on 13:51. With such a margin separating the two teams, the Warriors easily quashed Billingham’s attacking play to resume possession and were largely untroubled by the efforts of Thurston, Sykes and Czech forward Tomáš Rubeš to file from the ice with their four-goal lead intact at the end of the first period.

Taking this momentum into the second stanza, the Warriors challenged netminder Watson from the outset but play was soon broken by penalties for both teams as Finlinson was sidelined for holding sticks whilst Walls was made to sit out for hooking on 25:36. With both sides icing four men as a result, the game became fast-paced and the Warriors contended with some early attacking play from the Stars as netminder Richie Lawson plucked Rubeš’ shot out of the air and made a pad save to keep Sykes at bay. Working effectively to clear their zone, defencemen Craig Johnson and Dan Pye were amongst those parrying the puck away from Lawson’s net as the netminder was increasingly called into action. Finding possession in consequence, forward Ben Richards attempted a shot at Watson who collected the puck. Positioned in front of Billingham’s net, forward Callum Watson then tapped the puck goalwards to also come close to adding to his team’s lead. After both teams were restored to five men, Whitley’s forwards Anthony Wetherell, Ryder and Douglass battled effectively for possession along the boards whilst Latvian defenceman Rolands Gritāns showed himself to be influential on the blue line, picking out the Warriors’ forwards with precision to enhance his side’s attacking play. Countering Whitley’s offensive work, the Stars played their forwards close to their opposition’s defensive zone in search of a breakaway which frequently left David Longstaff’s defence scrambling back to protect their netminder when the visitors gained possession. A holding penalty for Ryder on 30:17 saw Whitley go shorthanded and Stars’ Captain Michael Elder responded with a high shot on the power play. Though breaking down Billingham’s subsequent efforts on goal to kill this penalty, it was not long before the Warriors went shorthanded again as Murray was sidelined for slashing on 34:31. Whitley’s defence held out however as Johnson made an important clearance and Pye blocked the puck to leave Lawson untroubled and the period goalless.

Starting the third period on a power play due to a tripping penalty incurred by Billingham’s Player-Coach Michael Bowman on 40:00, Whitley strove to make their additional skater count but could not capitalise. Soon after the Stars’ return to full strength, the Warriors found the net for a fifth time only to have their goal ruled out for high sticks. Determined to make it 5-0 on the back of this disappointment, Queenan supplied Finlinson with the puck and, cutting a path from netminder Watson’s left, the forward released a shot which breezed into the net on 45:53. The Warriors peppered Watson with shot after shot and the netminder acted quickly to prevent Gritāns from scoring, the Latvian defenceman having spun before unleashing the puck. Forward Callum Watson then tried his luck on the backhand and Queenan was certainly not short of chances in front of goal but struggled to edge the puck past the netminder. Just past the halfway point of the period, Barnes clashed with Rubeš after taking exception to a holding offence, causing the Warrior to be punished alongside the Star for interference. Just over a minute later, Murray joined his teammate in the sin bin to give Billingham a power play. In spite of this, the Warriors remained strong to prevent the Stars from scoring and resumed their attacking play shortly after Murray’s return to the ice; Queenan seizing possession and burying the puck with confidence to give his team a 6-0 lead on 55:35. With no way back for Billingham, the game slowed to a leisurely pace in the final minutes and the Warriors were elated when the final buzzer confirmed their shutout against their local rivals.

Stats
Shots on goal
Warriors: 49
Stars:       27

Points
Warriors:
Adam Finlinson (1+1), Callum Queenan (1+1), Ben Campbell (1+0), Niall Ryder (1+0), Ross Douglass (1+0), Callum Watson (1+0), Anthony Wetherell (0+1), Rolands Gritāns (0+1),Phil Edgar (0+1)

Penalty minutes
Warriors: 16
Stars:         6

Man of the Match
Warriors: Callum Watson
Stars:        Joseph Walls