Swindon Wildcats vs Solway Sharks 21.09.24
The Solway Sharks faced Swindon Wildcats in their 2nd road game on the bounce taking a 6-2 defeat, despite leading by 2 goals after the opening 20 minutes.
The Sharks travelled South without #16 Bailey Thomson, #37 Logan Reid, #55 Owen Rae and #88 Kyle Carruth whilst #15 Kieran Hair also missed out due to injury. It was a battle of the brothers in net as Solway opted for #33 Jordan Marr and the hosts gave #30 Renny Marr the start between the pipes.
1st period –
The Sharks dominated early, firing shots at Marr through #43 Gardiner, however #49 Liam Danskin picked up a tripping penalty at 2:30 giving the Wildcats an early opportunity to capitalise. The Sharks quickly returned to the attack and a tip-in by #43 Nolan Gardiner following the snipe on the blue line from #10 Liam Stenton put the visitors ahead at 6:46.
Solway’s lead was later doubled as #19 Aaron Nell’s tripping call allowed #43 Nolan Gardiner to fire a one-timer over Marr’s shoulder after the feed from #10 Stenton again on the blue line. The Sharks continued to apply the pressure, but Swindon finally found their feet and prevented the visitors extending their lead for the remainder of the opening period.
2nd period –
Swindon were determined to claw back a goal early in the middle frame; however, Solway displayed an excellent defensive performance as Jordan Marr made multiple saves in quick succession to retain the lead for his side. Neither side could find a way past the Marr brothers for over half of the 2nd period, but the hosts finally broke the deadlock at 32:30 through #19 Aaron Nell who fired the puck top-corner, assisted by #89 Tomasz Malasinski and #24 Tyler Plews to post the score at 1-2.
The Wildcats stepped up their offensive play, allowing Canadian import #26 Jake Bricknall to equalise at 36:26 after the feed from #24 Tyler Plews who picked up his 2nd assist of the evening. Solway found themselves a man short in the closing minutes of the second period as Captain #10 Liam Stenton was called for boarding Jones at 38:28. Seconds later, #21 Torran Anderson picked up an elbowing penalty, leaving the Sharks 3on5 momentarily. Swindon capitalised on the opportunity as #19 Aaron Nell rifled the puck past Marr at 39:39 to give the hosts the lead heading into the final period.
3rd period –
The Wildcats wasted no time and extended their lead to 4-2 at 40:26 thanks to a one-timer by #11 Chris Jones on the powerplay. The Sharks quickly looked to answer back which resulted in #73 Ed Bradley picking up a tripping call at 45:55, however Solway failed to punish the Wildcats. Despite their multiple efforts through Gardiner, Dunbar and Alderson, Marr made the stops between the pipes for the hosts allowing them to clench onto their lead.
The Swindon Captain, #13 Sam Bullas was then handed a hooking penalty at 52:23 giving the visitors another power-play opportunity, although it was the Wildcats who picked up a short-handed marker at 53:38 as #19 Aaron Nell claimed his hat-trick goal. Swindon found themselves a player short yet again at 57:00 after #11 Jamie Smith caught #14 Lewis Young with a high stick and Martin Grubb opted to pull Marr for a 6on4 advantage. However, #19 Aaron Nell fired the puck from the neutral zone into the empty net at 57:36 to secure a 6-2 victory for the Wildcats after a slow start.
MVPs were awarded to Solway captain, #10 Liam Stenton following both a strong defensive performance and claiming 2 assists. Meanwhile, #24 Tyler Plews claimed the award for the Wildcats after picking up 2 assists on the opening Swindon goals.
Solway Sharks vs Hull Seahawks 22.09.24
The Solway Sharks faced Hull Seahawks in the Shark Tank for their 2nd game in as many days, taking a narrow 3-4 defeat to the visitors after sudden death penalty shots.
The Sharks retained the same squad as the previous night, missing #16 Bailey Thomson, #37 Logan Reid, #55 Owen Rae and #88 Kyle Carruth whilst #15 Kieran Hair also sat out due to injury. Solway opted for #33 Jordan Marr to start for the Sharks once again, meanwhile, the hosts gave #34 Dmitri Zimozdra the nod between the pipes.
1st period –
The Sharks won the opening face-off and immediately turned onto the attack causing #11 Owen Bruton to pick up a tripping penalty inside the first minute at 00:30, however the hosts failed to punish Hull early. Solway soon set the tone for an exhilarating match-up after #22 John Dunbar sniped the puck from the blue line on the left wing over Zimozdra’s shoulder at 4:56 to hand his side the lead.
The Seahawks were eager to answer back and claimed more possession of the puck in the second half of the period, firing several shots on Marr who had answers for them all. Hull’s captain then led by example at 12:42 with a shot that snuck past Marr to level the game to 1-1. The visitors upheld their offensive pressure for multiple minutes, but Jordan Marr kept them at bay as he matched their efforts. Although, a low shot from #74 Lee Bonner slid past the goal line at 19:15 to give the Seahawks an advantage heading into the middle frame.
2nd period –
Both sides returned for the 2nd period eager to add to the scoreline which resulted in numerous tense battles in the neutral zone and a penalty for each team but neither could capitalise on the opportunities. Dmitri Zimozdra caused numerous problems for the Sharks as he prevented every shot which came his way during the first half of the period. However, Solway’s top-points scorer found a way past the Hull netminder soon after as he tipped the puck over Zimodzra’s shoulder at 30:35, following the shot from #91 Caly Robertson.
Tensions flared in the final moments of the second period as ex-shark #6 Calum McGill landed a hit on #14 Lewis Young in the Seahawks zone, which saw him receive a 5+game penalty for checking from behind at 37:14. This then handed the Sharks a 5minute powerplay opportunity to put themselves ahead once again.
3rd period –
Despite numerous efforts from the firepower of the forwards, Solway failed to find the go-ahead goal during the Seahawks penalty kill, maintaining a 2-2 scoreline. Both sides sent a flurry of shots into the respective zones, but neither netminder allowed rubber past them. After almost 20 minutes of goal-less hockey, Hull claimed the breakthrough goal after #17 Jason Hewitt slotted the puck past Marr following a feed on the left wing by #23 Lee Haywood.
The Seahawks landed themselves on the penalty-kill once more at 53:17 as #90 Dec Jones sat 2 minutes for interference. Sharks were clinical on the man advantage as #43 Nolan Gardiner claimed his 2nd goal of the evening after collecting the loose puck and firing over Zimozdra’s pads, following a major scramble in the Hull crease at 54:15. Solway landed themselves an opportunity to clench a game-winning goal at 59:12 as #74 Lee Bonner was called for slashing, however the buzzer sounded before they could punish the Seahawks, forcing the game into overtime.
The Sharks dominated the puck through #22 John Dunbar and #5 Olivier Arseneau during the 4on3 period of overtime, but they failed to fire it past Zimozdra to clench the win. Meanwhile, #71 Emil Svec pinged the puck the wrong side of the pipes for the Seahawks, taking the game into penalty shots.
Both #6 Stuart Kerr and #21 Bobby Chamberlain found the back of the net during the first round of 5 penalty shots, resulting in a sudden death shootout. After 7 turns of penalty shots, Canadian import #96 Owen Sobchak clenched the extra point for the Hull Seahawks after firing the puck into the bottom right slot of Marr’s goal.
MVPs were awarded to #33 Jordan Marr who displayed a superb performance between the pipes for Solway across the entirety of the game. Meanwhile, #74 Lee Bonner claimed the title for the Hull Seahawks following his late first period goal.
The Sharks are back at home this Saturday when they face-off against the Telford Tigers. Doors open at 5:30 pm and puck drops at 7:00 pm. Don’t miss any of the action by securing your tickets now either via the clubs website, https://sharksihc.com/tickets/, or in person at the Dumfries Ice Bowl.
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