Two local Junior Solway Sharks have been to Madrid in Spain to represent the Great Britain
Under 16s Ice Hockey team recently.
Ruairi Lockerbie and Lewis Houston are both in the Solway Sharks Juniors U16s team, and were thrilled to be selected, along with players from all over the country, to be a part of the newly-formed team. GB Under 16s was set up last year as a means of identifying players who may be suitable for GB teams earlier in their playing careers. Ruairi and Lewis attended trials and training camps in Nottingham, Sheffield and here in Dumfries before being chosen as two of the 18 skaters in the team.
The youngest GB team was in a tournament featuring teams from France, Germany and Spain. Their weekend got off to a great start when they won both their Thursday and Friday evening warm-up games, against a German then a French team, setting the tone for the rest of their games with commanding performances, team play and long spells of dominance, despite this being the first time they had all played together as a team.
The tournament proper got underway on the Saturday, and the team took to the ice and rapidly took charge of the competition. The GB team swept to victory time after time, winning all of their games comfortably during the qualifying rounds, with both Ruairi and Lewis scoring and assisting goals, as they contributed to solid team performances against well-organised opposition.
When it came to the final game of the tournament it was a hard-fought, nail-biting match; despite the youngsters dominating for large spells of the game and battling hard against stiff opposition, Great Britain Under 16s were beaten 4-3 by an on-form Spanish team, and finished as runners-up. In spite of the result, Ruairi and Lewis both really enjoyed the experience of playing for GB, and returned home tired but happy, and justly proud of themselves.
Assistant coach, Sean Easton, said, “With the immediate goal of using the tournament to provide the GB16s with a tough schedule, it was hugely beneficial to be tested and get to the final. As a team we improved incredibly over the four days on the ice and off the ice. Considering we haven’t all trained together as a full team, they played together like they train together week, in week out. All in all, a fantastic four days which the players gained incredible experience and enjoyment representing the country – and boy they did Great Britain proud.”
Solway Sharks Juniors vice-chair Justine McCuaig commented, “Everyone at the club is extremely proud of these players and their fantastic achievement. We are a small club, to have one player picked at GB U16 level is marvellous, but to have two in the team is remarkable. Both Ruairi and Lewis have put in a tremendous amount of effort on and off the ice to make the GB team, and it is gratifying to see their commitment and hard work paying off. Their success is testament to their dedication to their sport, and we at the club all wish them every success going forward.”
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