Chalmers gave Whitley the lead against derby rivals Billingham Stars. Photo by Pyro-Media.
Whitley Warriors accomplished a 3-1 road win over local rivals Billingham Stars at The Forum on Sunday evening.
Making the trip with fourteen skaters, the Warriors opted for netminder Dean Bowater between the pipes whilst forward Shaun Kippin once again fulfilled the role of captain in the absence of suspended on-ice leader Dean Holland. Forwards Adam Finlinson, Callum Queenan and Anthony Wetherell, defenceman Craig Johnson and imports Matěj Valíček and Rihards Grigors were also amongst those unavailable for this clash. Meanwhile, the Stars had twenty men at their disposal for this game, including top points scorer Chris Sykes, Captain Michael Elder and shot stopper Thomas Brown.
As Whitley faced off against their local rivals, some fierce end-to-end play ensued, both teams trying to carve out some early chances without success, versatile forward Kyle Ross amongst those working hard for his team. A slashing penalty for utility player Adam Wood on 4:56 handed the Stars a power play but the Warriors prevented the home team from capitalising. Struggling to find a way past shot stopper Thomas Brown as play progressed, Whitley were disappointed when forward Callum Watson’s attempt to set up stand-in Captain Kippin was unsuccessful and the side were left to rue this missed opportunity when Billingham’s Joe Walls unleashed an unassisted shot which beat Bowater to break the deadlock on 11:25. Shortly after, Latvian Patriks Grigors incurred an elbowing penalty on 13:59 and just fourteen seconds later, the defenceman was sidelined once again, slashing his offence on this occasion. With the game growing to be fiery in temperament, Whitley’s Steven Chalmers was dealt a crosschecking penalty on 17:20 to extinguish his team’s second successive power play. As Billingham gained a short advantage as a result of this, the Warriors quashed the outfit’s attempts to double their tally but as the period entered its final minute, tempers flared once more as Grigors made a hit on Alternate Captain Jordan Barnes by the Stars’ bench and subsequently refused to drop the gloves with the Warrior to find himself confronted by Kippin whom he crosschecked. As the first period came to an end, events boiled over, resulting in a string of penalties for both sides: Grigors received 2+2 for crosschecking and roughing whereas Kippin was dealt the same penalty for slashing and roughing, forward Niall Ryder incurred a ten-minute penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, and an off-ice clash between forward Alex Preston and Wood saw both pick up ten-minute penalties for misconduct and abuse of an official respectively.
Returning for the second stanza, Whitley were fired up by the stormy conclusion to the first period but quickly fell foul of the rule book as Watson was sidelined for slashing on 22:42. Despite this, the Warriors applied pressure to Brown’s net and, just one second after killing this penalty, Whitley reaped the rewards of their persistence as Barnes tapped home a long range effort from defenceman Harry Harley, making it 1-1 on 24:43, Kippin also assisting. Just over two minutes later, the Warriors were shorthanded again as goal scorer Barnes was made to sit out for charging. In the latter stages of their power play however, Billingham also found themselves a man short as forward James Moss made way for hooking to level the playing field and Whitley made the most of this, versatile blue liner Chalmers fending off the Stars’ defence to execute a superb shot to give his team a 2-1 lead on 28:20. Matters were soon made worse for Billingham as they went shorthanded again just before the halfway point of the period, this time Walls guilty of tripping on 29:40. Though unable to make the most of this power play, Whitley were keen to put Brown to the test and enjoyed two further power play opportunities later in the period to see more of possession; forward Callum Wilkinson was sinbinned for a high sticks offence against Latvian Rolands Gritāns as he skated along the boards with the puck on 32:41 before Moss was penalised for holding on 36:08. Despite these chances slipping by, the Warriors were pleased to be back in the game as they left the ice at the end of second period with their narrow 2-1 lead intact.
Taking to the ice for the final period, Whitley began searching for a third goal but were soon on the receiving end of another penalty call, this time Harley punished for hooking on 42:08. After working effectively to kill this penalty, the Warriors picked up another just over three minutes later when Gritāns was dealt a slashing penalty. With Billingham looking to level the scoring, Whitley worked hard to maintain their lead, Bowater dealing with the Stars’ attacking play to keep the score line at 2-1. As the home team increasingly sought an equaliser, the Warriors realised their need for a third goal and peppered Brown with shots, forward Jamie Ord coming close before Chalmers’ long range shot went wide. Persevering, Watson found Gritāns after being picked out by Harley and the Latvian demonstrated excellent puck control to fire past Brown on 56:22, giving Whitley a much-needed two-goal cushion. Grigors ran into further penalty trouble fifty six seconds later following a boarding offence and no sooner was on he on the ice than he was sidelined again, slashing his misdemeanour on 59:45, to allow the Warriors to see out their 3-1 victory on the power play.
Stats
Shots on goal
Stars: 18
Warriors: 37
Points
Warriors:
Jordan Barnes (1+0), Steven Chalmers (1+0), Rolands Gritāns (1+0), Harry Harley (0+2), Callum Watson (0+1), Shaun Kippin (0+1)
Stars:
Joe Walls (1+0)
Penalty minutes
Stars: 30
Warriors: 36
Man of the Match
Stars: Joe Walls
Warriors: Kyle Ross