Match Report
This Weekend the Magnox Ltd. Solway Sharks conclude their season with the National Ice Hockey League Moralee Conference Play-Off Weekend here at Dumfries Ice Bowl. Having already won the league title and the Northern Cup the Sharks will be eager to round off another successful season with the play-off trophy. On Saturday Solway meet the Whitley Warriors in a match that has a 1pm face-off while Blackburn Hawks and Billingham Stars meet in the second semi-final at 4:30pm. The two winners then progress to the final on Sunday afternoon which faces-off at 2pm. So why not come along, find out how exciting live ice hockey is and cheer the most successful sports team in the region on to an unprecedented treble.
Last Saturday the Sutton Sting were the visitors to the Shark Tank in the first leg of the KD Flavell & Sons Northern Cup Final. As the Sharks had been beaten by their opponents twice this season in Sheffield the home team knew that a first leg lead would be vital if they were to retain their cup for a third time the following day. In the end this was a close match where momentum swung both ways before the Dumfries side eventually emerged victors by four goals to two.
The Sharks got off to a dream start when Pavol Melichercik opened the scoring after just forty-five seconds. The likable Slovakian forward received the puck on the right wing and faked to move outside his marker but cut inside instead. As he entered the face-off circle he picked his spot and rifled a terrific shot past the Sutton netminder at his near post. Solway looked to press home their advantage but the visitors dug deep and soaked up a lot of pressure as they repelled the home team’s early advances. Gradually Sutton began to become more of the dangerous attacking force that we have come to expect from them and in the tenth minute they equalised on a powerplay. Jamie Spur and Chris Sykes combined to feed possession to Adam Robinson in the right-hand face-off circle and he provided a clinical finish to level the scores at one. The Sharks might have retaken the lead five minutes from the first interval with a powerplay goal of their own but Dmitri Zimozdra produced an excellent glove save to ensure that the scores would remain level as the teams headed into the first intermission.
Two minutes into the second period Solway were a man up as Simon Offord took a seat in the penalty box when he was called for holding. On the resultant powerplay the Sharks never really looked like breaking down the well-organised Sutton penalty-kill unit but seconds after Sting returned to full strength the home side got their reward. The puck skipped across the danger area to Ross Murray to the left of goal and his powerful shot looked to have been stopped by Zimozdra but somehow it slipped below his body and was prodded home by Melichercik at the back post. Sutton tried to hit back immediately and for the next four minutes it was the Sharks turn to soak up pressure, but the defence stood firm and Gary Russell only had one shot of note to deal with when Jamie Spurr slipped his marker and fired in a low drive. From the midway point in the match until the second intermission Solway generally controlled the game and on another day they may have added to their tally but Zimozdra in the visitor’s goal was inspired form, saving well from Struan Tonnar, Iain Bowie and Juraj Senko.
Solway knew that a slender one goal lead was not what they wanted to take into the second leg of the cup final but they were also aware that Sutton were more than capable of hitting on the break themselves so the Shark attack had to be tempered with a degree of caution. Three minutes into the period a neat toe drag by Struan Tonnar took him inside his marker but Zimozdra was well placed to block at his near post. Immediately Tonnar pounced on the rebound and fired in a first time shot that had the Sutton keeper beaten but this time the Sharks forward was foiled when the puck struck the goal frame. The home side continued to press and got their reward two minutes later when Pavol Melichercik picked up possession on the right-hand boards and headed for goal. With the keeper well placed he chose not to shoot and instead threaded a pass across the face of goad to Iain Bowie who was waiting at the back post to slot home goal number three.
The visitors needed to rally and to their credit they did and their pressure forced a powerplay when Juraj Senko was penalised for interference. From the re-start to the right of the Solway goal Jamie Spurr passed the puck along the blueline to Chris Sykes who wound up and fired in a slapshot. The shot may well have found the net on its own but the Sharks keeper had no chance to react when Simon Offord redirected the puck into the net from close range. Undeterred the home side went back on the offensive and gained a powerplay of their own when Ryan Johnston was penalised for interference but once more the Sutton defence stood firm and solid. The moments after a powerplay has just ended are still a dangerous time for the defending team as they readjust to returning to full strength and so this proved for the second time in the game. Before the visitors could fully clear their lines Pavol Melichercik won possession to the left of goal and found Iain Bowie lurking in the slot. The Solway sniper needed no second invitation to fire low into the Sting goal and put the Sharks ahead by four goals to two. The Sharks might have added to their lead before the final hooter sounded but again they found Zimozdra in tremendous form and when Iain Bowie was able to beat the Sutton stopper his shot cannoned of the crossbar to safety. In the end a four-two victory was probably a fair result for both teams on the night and a two goal first leg advantage was a defendable position for Solway but kept the tie very much alive as far as Sutton were concerned.
Scoring statistics for the Sharks were as follows: Pavol Melichercik two goals and one assist, Iain Bowie 2+0, Juraj Senko, Frazer Goldie, Craig Mitchell and Ross Murray all 0+1. Netminder Gary Russell saved twenty-two of the twenty-four shots that he faced (save percentage 91.67%). The Alive Radio Man of the Match Awards were presented to Craig Mitchell for the Sharks and to Dmitri Zimozdra for the visitors.
On Sunday the Solway Sharks, sponsored by Magnox Ltd, travelled down to Sheffield for the second leg of the KD Flavell & Sons Northern Cup Final holding a slender but vital two goal advantage from the previous night and produced the perfect road game to win the match three-two (aggregate seven-four) and the retain the cup for a third season in a row.
The Sharks almost got off to a dream start for the second night in a row when Ross Murray broke through the Sutton rearguard in the opening minute but was foiled when Dmitri Zimozdra rushed from his goal-line to dive full length and freeze the puck at the Dumfries man’s feet. Gradually Sutton began to take the game to Solway and for much of the first period they held a greater share of possession and territory but the Sharks always looked dangerous on the break and overall created the better chances to score. On the seven minute mark Thomas Stuart Dant almost broke the deadlock for the home side when he cut in from the left wing and unleashed a powerful low drive that Gary Russell did well to block with his pads at the near post.
Just after the fifteen minute mark Pavol Melichercik collected a Frazer Goldie pass just outside the Sutton blueline, turned inside his marker and headed for goal. Once more Zimozdra rushed out of his goal to narrow the angle but Melichercik’s low shot had just enough power to slip below the keeper’s pads and find the back of the net. The home side almost hit back immediately but for once the normally lethal Jamie Spurr scuffed his shot wide of the target after picking off a loose pass deep in Sharks territory. But the home support didn’t have to wait long to celebrate as good work on the right from Ashton and Sykes allowed Richard Oliver to prod home the equaliser from close range ninety seconds from the first break.
The home side knew that a big effort would be required over the final two periods if they were to overcome Solway’s two goal advantage and lift their first NIHL trophy in front of their own supporters. Two minutes into the session it looked like an upset might just be on the cards as a Ryan Johnson pass allowed Chris Colegate to cut in from the left and place his shot neatly past Russell to give Sutton the lead on the night and reduce the aggregate deficit to one. For the next ten minutes the home side took the game to the Sharks whenever they had the puck, but the Solway defence remained calm and focused and refused to be drawn out of position. All too often the Sutton forwards were frustrated into taking shots from poor positions and Gary Russell in the Sharks goal was rarely troubled to any great degree. The Sharks keeper did however produce a couple of good pad saves from Jamie Spurr and Mark Turner although his best save may have been to rectify his own mistake and deny Shaun Ashton after the Sting forward had picked the keeper’s loose pass.
For their part the Sharks forwards always looked dangerous on the break with Melichercik in particular coming in for some special treatment from the Sutton defence. With seven minutes to play in the period Solway received a powerplay when Adam Robinson was penalised for tripping the Slovakian and Mark Gallagher wasted no time in finding Struan Tonnar who fired home from the slot. Sutton were quickly on a powerplay of their own and set about the task of reducing the deficit once more. However, a sloppy pass was picked off by Iain Bowie at the home blueline and the Solway sniper made no mistake as he homed in on goal to score short-handed from the slot. This was the straw that broke the camels back for the home side. In a matter of four minutes they had gone from a goal down on aggregate to a deficit of three and the confidence and self belief that they had built up visibly drained away.
With a three goal advantage the Sharks were able to control most of the final twenty minutes. Sutton for their part did all they could to try to repair the damage but it was always going to be an impossible task for them. To their credit they never stopped trying but they found the Sharks defence was well marshalled by Mitchell, Goldie, Crane and Wallace. While the Solway forwards could well have added to their advantage on the break but for the form of Dmitri Zimozdra in the Sutton goal. For the final three minutes of the game the home side pulled their netminder in favour of an extra forward but, despite constant pressure on the Sharks defence, they just couldn’t find a way past Gary Russell who produced a string of fine saves in the final minutes. Overall Solway had produced a perfect road game, soaking up a lot of pressure at times while giving up very few genuine scoring chances and always looking dangerous on the break themselves.
Scoring statistics for the Sharks were as follows: Iain Bowie, Struan Tonnar and Pavol Melichercik all one goal and no assists, Mark Gallagher and Frazer Goldie both 0+1. Gary Russell in the Sharks goal saved twenty of the twenty-two shots that he faced (save percentage 90.91%). Connor Henderson was named the Sharks Man of the Match.
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