Online Programme Booklet - 27.12.16

MANCHESTER TELFORD OFFICIAL MATCH NIGHT PROGRAMME PHOENIX TIGERS TUESDAY 27th DECEMBER 2016 MANCHESTER HULL PHOENIX PIRATES MONDAY 2nd JANUARY 2017 WWW.PHOENIXIHC.CO.UK SEASON 16/17

Beginner’s Guide to Ice Hockey Phoenix MEN OF IRON Ice Hockey Club 2

FEATURING 2 BEGINNERS GUIDE 3 FEATURING 5 REFEREE SIGNALS 6 THE OWNER Managing Director Neil Morris 7 THE COACH Head Coach Tony Hand MBE 8 2016/17 FIXTURES & RESULTS Operations Director Michele Marsh 10 NEXT WEEKS MATCHES Equipment Manager 11 SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT Craig Cooke Assistant Equipment Manager 12 PHOENIX SPONSORSHIP Mark Forster Team Doctors 18 PHOENIX SUPPORTERS CLUB Ken & Alex Vickers Team Chiropractor 22 TEAM ROSTERS Doug Clark Team Physio 25 KNOW YOUR ENEMIES Paul Staines, Donnicha Murphy & Dave Campbell Timekeeper 26 SEASON SO FAR... Russ Chenery-Preen GM 27 HOCKEY ACROSS THE POND Stuart Kilburn 30 MATCH NIGHT REPORT Penalty Box Attendants Chris Jones 34 CHOIRBOYS CORNER Media & Live Production Comtec Live Academy Webmaster 36 STATS & TABLES Carl Johnstone Designers Helen Ridgeway & Aaron Gibbons Front of House Co-ordinator Mags Pullen Media Officer Jim Piper Social Media Jess Morrissey Match Night Announcers Jake Harrison & Andy Wood Commentator Chris Beesley Podcast Ben Knight The Menace Him/Herself Match Night Programme Comtec Club Photographers Hollie Godber & Andrew Sobutta Team Mascots Harry Brown & Emily Cooke 3

ICE HOCKEY CLUB CALL US FREE ON 0161 928 9981 www.jdavidsonscrap.com

REFEREE SIGNALS Boarding Cross Delayed Strike the clenched fist CHECKING Roughing of one hand into the open A single forward Calling of Fist clenched, fully palm of the other hand and back motion Penalty extending arm from directly in front of the chest. with both fists Extend arm to the side. clenched in front of upright position. the chest. High-Sticking Holding Interference HookinG Holding both fists, Clasp wrist of whistle series of tugging motions A clenched, one a short hand with the other Crossed arms with fists with both arms, as if pulling space immediately above hand well in front of clenched stationary in front something toward the the other to the side the chest. of chest. stomach. of the head. Misconduct Penalty SHOT Slashing Tripping Hands should be moved One shop with the nonwhistle Keep both skates on the ice once from sides down to Arms crossed hand across the straightened when signaling, using right hips. Thus, point to player (fists clenched) forearm of the other hand. first, hands to hips second. above the head. hand on the leg. 5

THE OWNER NEIL MORRIS Well, Faithful, I would like to start with an apology. Tony and myself are both sorry that we won’t be able to keep our promise of returning the Phoenix to Manchester this season. The simple fact is we ran out of statutory time with the application due to the number of extra reports and changes we needed to make. As such, we felt it best to withdraw the application and to resubmit all the paperwork, which now includes all the extras, straight away. Of course, this means we will be playing the remainder of our season here in Blackpool. Now, I know this is far from ideal, and it puts a lot of pressure on everyone. Believe me when I say that had I known in the summer that we would have to play the entire season outside of Manchester, I would have not iced a team at all. It is extremely difficult for everyone to do this week in, week out, and I am eternally grateful to everyone who manages it. Now, let’s try to be positive. Tony and the guys have been working extremely hard over the past few weeks, and I truly believe we are now going to see the benefits on the ice. We have a great bunch of guys, and Tony assures me that they are more than capable of making a sustained push for the play off places . Remember folks, “Serva Fidem” 6

THE COACH TONY HAND Well, the last few games have certainly seen the hard work myself and the guys are putting into training start to pay off. The systems are starting to work, and the team is beginning to show the promise we all knew was there from the start. Despite being away with the GB u20s, I saw the recording of the last home game against Sheffield, and I was very impressed with our lastest acquisition Craig Thurston. He approached me with an interest in playing, and came with an excellent pedigree. He looks like he is fitting in nicely, and should be an exciting and valuable member of the team. And I’d like to extend my congratulations to our captain Luke Boothroyd, who has finally surpassed myself as the clubs all-time leader for games played. He is still a young man, so I fully expect him to add many more appearances to his tally before the time comes for him to hang the skates up. Now, we know the remainder of the season will be difficult for everyone, but I assure you that the guys and myself will do everything we can on the ice to make you all proud to call yourselves Phoenix supporters. We all want to get back to Manchester, not only to make it easier on ourselves regarding travel and training, but also to begin building the foundations for the future of the club with the hockey school. So thank you all for your continued support. 7

2016/17 FIXTURES & RESULTS Date Face off Opponents Competition Venue/Result Sat 10th Sep 2016 16:30 Hull Pirates EPL Home 4 - 11 SEPTEMBER Sat 17th Sep 2016 TBC Swindon Wildcats EPL Away 2 - 5 Sun 11th Sep 2016 TBC EPL Telford Tigers Away 4 - 1 Milton Keynes Lightning Home EPL Sun 18th Sep 2016 17:00 1 - 3 EPL Bracknell Bees Home Sat 19th Sep 2016 17:00 2 - 7 Sun 20th Sep 2016 TBC 2 - 4 Away Sat 1st Oct 2016 TBC Bracknell Bees EPL Away 5 - 0 EPL Telford Tigers Sun 2nd Oct 2016 17:00 Swindon Wildcats EPL Home 1 - 5 Sun 8th Oct 2016 19:30 Sheffield Steeldogs EPL Away 1 - 4 OCTOBER Sat 15th Oct 2016 18:00 Guildford Flames EPL Away 4 - 3 Guildford Flames Home 2 - 4 Sun 9th Oct 2016 17:00 EPL Basingstoke Bison Home EPL Sat 16th Oct 2016 17:00 2 - 7 Sat 22nd Oct 2016 19:00 8 - 5 EPL Away Sun 23rd Oct 2016 19:00 Milton Keynes Lightning EPL Away 2 - 6 Bracknell Bees Wed 26th Oct 2016 19:30 Hull Pirates EPL Away 6 - 2 Sun 30th Oct 2016 17:00 Hull Pirates EPL Home 3 - 4 Sat 5th Nov 2016 18:00 Bracknell Bees EPL Away 2 - 3 Sun 6th Nov 2016 17:00 Peterborough Phantoms EPL Home 1 - 6 NOVEMBER Sun 13th Nov 2016 17:00 Milton Keynes Lightning EPL Home 3 - 12 EPL Away Basingstoke Bison 2 - 5 Sat 12th Nov 2016 18:30 Away EPL 2 - 3 Sun 19th Nov 2016 17:45 Swindon Wildcats EPL Sheffield Steeldogs Sat 20th Nov 2016 17:00 5 - 2 Home Sat 26th Nov 2016 17:00 Sun 27th Nov 2016 17:30 Telford Tigers EPL Home 2 - 5 Away Peterborough Phantoms EPL DECEMBER Sat 3rd Dec 2016 18:00 Guildford Flames EPL Away 3 - 5 2 - 1 EPL Home Basingstoke Bison Sun 4th Dec 2016 17:00 Home Sheffield Steeldogs EPL Sun 11th Nov 2016 17:00 4 - 2 2 - 8 Sheffield Steeldogs EPL Sat 17th Nov 2016 19:30 Away 17:00 Tue 27th Nov 2016 Home EPL Telford Tigers 8

2016/17 FIXTURES & RESULTS Date Face off Opponents Competition Venue/Result Mon 2nd Jan 2017 17:00 Hull Pirates EPL Home Sat 7th Jan 2017 17:00 Guildford Flames EPL Home Sun 8th Jan 2017 17:30 Hull Pirates EPL Away JANUARY Sun 15th Jan 2017 17:00 Peterborough Phantoms EPL Home Away EPL Guildford Flames Sat 14th Jan 2017 18:00 EPL Swindon Wildcats Away Sat 21st Jan 2017 17:45 Fri 27th Jan 2017 19:30 Away EPL Bracknell Bees Sat 28th Jan 2017 18:00 Sheffield Steeldogs EPL Away Sun 29th Jan 2017 17:00 Swindon Wildcats EPL Home Fri 3rd Feb 2017 19:45 Milton Keynes Lightning EPL Away Sat 4th Feb 2017 18:00 Hull Pirates EPL Away FEBRUARY Sun 12th Feb 2017 17:00 Telford Tigers EPL Home Swindon Wildcats Sun 5th Feb 2017 17:00 Home EPL EPL Peterborough Phantoms Away Wed 15th Feb 2017 19:45 Away EPL Fri 17th Feb 2017 19:30 Basingstoke Bison Sat 18th Feb 2017 17:00 Sat 25th Feb 2017 18:30 Sheffield Steeldogs EPL Home Away EPL Basingstoke Bison Sun 26th Feb 2017 17:00 Guildford Flames EPL Home Sat 4th Mar 2017 18:00 Telford Tigers EPL Away EPL Peterborough Phantoms Home Sun 5th Mar 2017 17:00 MARCH Sat 11th Mar 2017 17:00 Basingstoke Bison EPL Home Sun 12th Mar 2017 17:30 Away Peterborough Phantoms EPL Sat 18th Mar 2017 19:00 EPL Home Sun 19th Mar 2017 17:00 Milton Keynes Lightning EPL Away Bracknell Bees 9

NEXT WEEK’S MATCHES HOME EPL MATCH VS Monday 2nd January 2017 VS Hull Pirates Face-Off: 17:00 HOME EPL MATCHES VS Saturday 7th January 2017 VS Guildford Flames Face-Off: 17:00 SEE YOU NEXT WEEK! 10

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PHOENIX SPONSORSHIP Leg Tape, photo of favourite player, name in programme all season £5.00 Stick Tape, photo of favourite player, name in programme all season £5.00 SPONSORSHIP DEALS Socks, photo of favourite player, name in programme all season £10.00 Laces, photo of favourite player, name in programme all season £5.00 Polo shirt, photo of player, name in programme all season £20.00 Gloves, photo of player, name in programme all season £30.00 Kitbag, photo of player, name in programme all season £40.00 Skates, signed photo with player, name in programme all season £50.00 Sticks, signed photo with player, name in programme all season Helmet, signed photo with player, name in programme all season £50.00 Tracksuit, signed photo with player, name in programme all season £50.00 £50.00 Individual Puck Sponsorship £30 Photograph with player on ice at the end of the game. Receive a signed puck and signed photograph. Photograph in the following weeks programme. Individual Birthday Package £35 Photograph with your favourite player on ice at the end of the game. Birthday cake SPONSORSHIP PACKAGES Full Birthday Package £65 presented on ice. Card signed by favourite player. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. 2 Adult tickets and 2 Child tickets. Photograph on ice with your favourite player at the end of game. Photograph in the match night programme the following week. Birthday cake. Card signed by favourite player. £80 Game Mascot Replica jersey with name and number Photo on the ice with favourite player, at the end of the game. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. 1 child and 1 adult ticket to the game. Home/Away replica jersey sponsorship £80 Replica jersey (home or away) with name and number. Shirt presented by the player on the ice at the end of the game. Signed photograph with sponsored player. Name in match night programme for entire season. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. 12

PHOENIX SPONSORSHIP Own & Loan Warm up jersey sponsorship £150 Signed Warm up jersey (take possession after the Play Offs). Signed photograph taken on the ice, during the season, with sponsored player. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. Your name on the players back all season. Name in the programme for the entire season. Own & Loan Shirt Sponsorship £175 SPONSORSHIP PACKAGES featured in the following weeks programme. £175 Home game worn jersey (take possession at the end of the season). Signed photograph taken on the ice, during the season, with sponsored player. Name in the match night programme for the entire season. Your name on the players back all season. Photo Own & Loan Away Shirt Sponsorship Away game worn jersey (take possession at the end of the season). Signed photograph taken on the ice, during the season, with sponsored player. Name in the match night programme for the entire season. Your name on the players back all season. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. £175 Own & Loan Home Cup Competition Shirt Sponsorship Game worn home jersey (take possession after the Play Off’s). Signed photograph taken on the ice, during the season, with sponsored player. Name in the match night programme for the entire season. Your name on the players back all season. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. Own & Loan Away Cup Competition Shirt Sponsorship £175 Game worn away jersey (take possession at the end of the season). Signed photograph taken on the ice, during the season, with sponsored player. Name in the match night programme for the entire season. Your name on the players back all season. Photo featured in the following weeks programme. 13

PHOENIX SPONSORSHIP TONY HAND LUKE BOOTHROYD C JAMES NEIL A Away Shirt: Victory Hockey Home Replica Margaret Birnie COACH 4 Home Shirt: Andrew Ellis 12 Away Shirt: Norma Shirt: SCOTT BAILEY DENIS BELL NM Home Shirt: Norma JONI TUOMINEN Away Shirt: Fiddlesticks 26 19 22 EDGARS BEBRIS NEIL MORRIS OWNER 71 14

PHOENIX SPONSORSHIP LEWIS BALDWIN BEN WOOD A Vaclav Meidl (61) Home Shirt: Max Gibson @ Home Shirt: Lady Gill Away Shirt: Neil & Julie Kris Gibson Home Replica George Birnie Construction Shirt: Home Replica Peter Craven Warm Up Shirt: Norma Shirt: 14 Away Shirt: Nic, Von, Lorna 15 18 Socks: Lisa Botting STEVEN FONE NM ROAMN MAILINIK MAREK INDRA 31 51 34 GREG PICK ROBIN KOVAR Home Shirt: Canada Interns Home Shirt: Andy Brindle Away Shirt: DWAIN 55 66 15



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We’ve Come Home join us at the dome Because of your help, the Supporters Club managed to keep the Phoenix from folding last season, and help bring us home We have raised in excess of £85,000 since our inception to help with all aspects of the hockey club Help shape the future of our club, as we look forward to our first season back in Manchester BECOME A MEMBER JOIN TODAY www.phoenixsupporters.co.uk @PhoenixSupport PhoenixSupporters Please Note: Due to having received a mixed reception in the past, it has been decided that we will not be offering membership packs this year. Instead we are offering one lucky member the chance to win a season ticket for the 2017/18 season.

The 200 Club is the Phoenix’s monthly draw where you could currently win up to £100. The club has been set up to allow all fans, their families and friends, to join in and help raise funds for the Phoenix team. The money raised will be used to help support the team throughout the season. Our aim is to reach the maximum of 200 members; Manchester Phoenix is pleased to continue the Phoenix 200 Club for the 2016/2017 Season. How the club works: 1. To become part of the Phoenix 200 Club pick up an application form from the Supporters Club desk, or download it from www.phoenixsupporters.co.uk/200club. 2. Current prize money stands at £100.00 to the winner, £50.00 2nd prize and two 3rd prizes of £25.00. The prize amount will rise with an increase of participants. 3. For maximum prize money 200 members will be required. 4. Each member pays £8.67 per calendar month per entry which entitles them into the end of the month draw. 5. Payments can only be collected by standing order payable on the first of the month. 6. Everyone that has fully paid will be entered into the monthly draw. 7. We propose to announce the winners on match night, where the draw will take place during a convenient interval break. Results will be published on the Supporters Club website, facebook, twitter and the following week in the match night programme (during the season). 8. The 200 Club will run for the entire year. Out of season winners will be sent a cheque by post. PLEASE NOTE THIS IS OPEN TO ANYONE OVER 18 WHO WISHES TO JOIN. GOOD LUCK

CLUB NEWS Birthday announcements...... We would like to send best wishes to Jenny Brown, Margaret Birnie and Brenda Walsh who will be celebrating their birthday this coming week, hope you all have a good one. We would also like to wish a special 70th birthday to Dave ‘the Hat Man’ Pullen and hope that he has a fabulous time celebrating with family and friends at his party. Player of the Month Don’t forget to vote for your December Player of the Month or you could miss out on the opportunity to present them with their award on ice. The draw will be made tonight at the end of the second period break. 200 Club The draw for December will be made tonight so make sure you listen to the announcements as you may be one of four lucky winners with a top prize of £100.00. The players were Sheffield bound the week before Christmas and a large contingent of noisy Phoenix fans made the trip over the Pen- nines to watch their team take on the Steeldogs. Kath Carter was one of these fans who participated in our away game sweep and was the lucky recipient of the £15.00 prize money when Rockin’ Robin Kovar scored the opening goal. Thank you to all who took part and for the continued support. Congratulations to Mandy Johnson who every week has a go on the hockey card and always has her favourite NHL team the Pittsburgh Penguins as one of her choices. Well they finally made her a winner and she is pictured with her £30.00 winnings. Congratulations and thank you to all who took part. Thank you to all who took part and for the continued support. The Supporters Club Board hope that you all had a Merry Christmas and send our very best wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year, enjoy and stay safe.

PHOENIX G A PIM G A A TIME PL PEN OFFENCE TIME 04 Luke Boothroyd (C) 12 James Neil (A) 14 Lewis Baldwin 15 Ben Wood (A) 16 Michael John Stratford 18 Vaclav Meidl (61) 19 Scott Bailey 22 Denis Bell (NM) 26 Joni Tuominen 31 Steven Fone (NM) 34 Roman Mailinik 51 Marek Indra 55 Greg Pick 66 Robin Kovar 71 Edgars Bebris 73 Gareth O’Flaherty Period S.O.G P.I.M SCORE FIRST MATCH OFFICIALS SECOND THIRD REFEREE TOTAL LINESMAN 1 M.O.M LINESMAN 2 To print this page please select page 22-23 and click on the printer icon 22

TELFORD TIGERS G A PIM G A A TIME PL PEN OFFENCE TIME #2 Adam JONES #4 Sam ZAJAC #12 Daniel ROSE #13 Joseph ASTON #14 Jonathan WEAVER (A) #16 Corey GOODISON #17 Rick PLANT #22 Jason SILVERTHORN #23 Warren TAIT #24 Milan KOLENA (NBT) #26 Matthew DAVIES #27 Sam OAKFORD #28 Lubomir KORHON #31 Sam GOSPEL (NM) #61 Adam TAYLOR #71 Corey McEWEN #77 Brodie JESSON #93 Doug CLARKSON (NBT) #94 Ted THOMPSON (NM) Period S.O.G P.I.M SCORE MATCH SPONSOR FIRST SECOND THIRD TOTAL M.O.M 23

HULL PIRATES G A PIM G A A TIME PL PEN OFFENCE TIME #2 Stanislav LASCEK (A) (NBT) #3 Marcus MAYNARD #5 Jordan STOKES #6 Martin ONDREJ #9 Dominic OSMAN (NBT) #11 Bradley BETTERIDGE #13 Ugnius CIZAS (NBT) #15 Jamie CHILCOTT (A) 19 Leigh Jamieson (A) #17 Jason HEWITT (A) #20 Cain TAYLOR #22 Jordan FISHER #33 Jordan MARR (NM) #35 Ashley SMITH (NM) #49 Ryan WATT #56 Lee HAYWOOD #71 Josh GENT #74 Lee BONNER #88 Andrej THEMAR (NBT) #90 Jonathan KIRK #91 Nathan SALEM (C) Period S.O.G P.I.M SCORE FIRST MATCH SPONSOR SECOND THIRD TOTAL M.O.M 24

TELFORD TIGERS HULL PIRATES KNOW YOUR ENEMIES HOCKEY HOMECOMINGS: SALEM AND TAIT Telford - Hull: Nathan Salem Cast your mind back to this time last season, with the Hull Pirates midway through their first campaign in the Premier League and struggling at the foot of the table. In need of a spark, they were the beneficiaries of Nathan Salem’s need to leave Telford and return closer to his native north east. Salem’s switch from orange to green may not have helped the Pirates make last season’s playoffs, but this season he has played a pivotal part in the Yorkshire side’s rapid ascent up the EPL table. Proudly wearing the captain’s C for Hull, Salem is the kind of player who his teammates love but opponents love to hate. Hull - Telford: Warren Tait Nathan Salem may be the Pirates’ second captain, but their first had a homecoming of sorts of his own over the summer. Returning back to his native Midlands, and continuing a remarkable second coming at Premier League level, Warren Tait has proved to be a shrewd acquisition by the Tigers. He may not be the highest scorer, but Tait’s strengths lie in his all around game and abilities as a true two way forward. Having stuck with Telford during their recent well-pub- licised troubles, he will be counted upon to step up to the mark if the Tigers are to remain atop the table come March. 25

SEASON SO FAR... 26

HOCKEY ACROSS THE POND It was a night of history in Florida last week as hockey legends Roberto Luongo and Jaromir Jagr both put themselves firmly in the history book. Luongo became the goalie with the 5th most wins in the National Hockey League surpassing the great Terry Sawchuck. Luongo’s career has been a mix of highs and lows and while the veteran netminder still waits for a Stanley Cup ring, he has been back to his best since leaving Vancouver for Florida. For 44 year old Jaromir Jagr he just shows no signs of slowing down. His three point game last Tuesday night tied him on points alongside Mark Messier in second of all time and no doubt by the time you are reading this, Jagr will have overtaken “the moose”. Open equalling Messier’s tally, Jagr commented “When I retire I’ll look back at what I did, maybe I’m going to think about it a little more, but right now I just enjoy every moment I get a chance to play in this league and try to do everything I can to stay in this league,” Jagr said. “I love it so much. I know when I said I want to play till 50 everybody was laughing at me, but I’ll work every day to do it.” Jaromir Jagr(left) and the man he has overtaken in all time points - Mark Messier. Elsewhere in the NHL the fans have been voting for the captains of this year’s All Star Game. And it is looking like Montreal’s Carey Price, Nashville’s PK Subban, Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby will lead their respective Divisions. After the Christmas break we will look more into the 2017 All-Star game and also where the Stanley Cup will be heading. 27

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MATCH NIGHT REPORT Phoenix resilience shines through Sheffield Steeldogs - 2 Manchester Phoenix - 4 The Manchester Phoenix once again claimed the Roses honours with a 4-2 win over the Sheffield Steeldogs. A quiet opening saw the best chance fall to Phoenix but James Hadfield made a good shoulder save to deny Edgars Bebris, before the visitors took the lead as a Pavel Mrna effort at 8:22 deflected off a Phoenix defenceman and in. Robin Kovar was then kept out with a glove save before Sheffield exerted considerable pressure on the Phoenix net as Steve Fone made 18 saves throughout the period. Early in the second, a power cut to the building saw the game delayed by 15 minutes. Following the resumption, Fone made a great pad save to keep out Arnoldas Bosas one-on-one, and despite a couple of powerplay opportunities, Sheffield were unable to register any shots. Phoenix started to grow into the game as Kovar hit the post, before the equaliser arrived at 37:06 as Roman Malinik worked his way into the zone and fired past Hadfield. The game’s key moment occurred with only 0.8 seconds left in the period as Bebris set up Kovar who slammed the puck home from the slot. Phoenix extended their lead early in the third shorthanded, as Bosas gave the puck away, and Vaclav Meidl took full advantage, rounding Hadfield to score at 42:08. Sheffield did manage to score on the same powerplay as a shot from Lewis Bell through traffic found its way in at 42:47. Phoenix had to rely on Fone to make a number of saves late in the game, whilst Michael Stratford hit the post at the other end. Sheffield pulled their netminder in an attempt to level however Bebris found the empty net at 59:32 to wrap-up a 4-2 win. Phoenix are next at home after Christmas, on Tuesday 27th December, when the Telford Tigers visit Blackpool for a 5pm face-off. 30

MATCH NIGHT REPORT Sheffield get Roses revenge Sheffield Steeldogs - 8 Manchester Phoenix - 2 The Manchester Phoenix were unable to follow-up last weekend’s win over the Sheffield Steeldogs, as the hosts recorded an emphatic 8-2 win in Ice Sheffield on Saturday night. Phoenix started brightly and took advantage of an early powerplay opportunity as Craig Thurston set up Robin Kovar, whose blast from the blue line beat Brandon Stones at 6:12. Phoenix were unable to build on their positive start and Sheffield created numerous opportunities before Arnoldas Bosas levelled the game at 11:53. Shortly after, defenceman Tomas Brcko put Sheffield in front at 13:26 following a spell of good puck possession. Phoenix created little in the way of chances in the second period, recording only three shots, but Edgars Bebris did manage to force an equaliser as he capitalised on a breakaway to score at 24:55. The parity didn’t last for long however as Bosas scored his second of the night on the powerplay at 30:18 before Macauley Heywood made it 4-2 at 33:07. Bosas went onto complete his hat trick at the 36 minute mark as the game drifted away from Phoenix. The third period followed a similar pattern as although Phoenix managed to create a significant number of chances, it was Sheffield who were able to take theirs. Ben Morgan got the sixth goal at 48:36, followed quickly by Ashley Calvert at 49:09. Heywood got his second of the night at 53:32 to round off the scoring, and a tough night for Phoenix. Phoenix are next at home after Christmas, on Tuesday 27th December, against the Telford Tigers with a 5pm face-off in Blackpool. 31

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CHOIRBOYS CORNER Good afternoon and a very merry Christmas to all at the Manchester Phoenix. I’d like to see I miss you all at the game today but the truth is I will be sat somewhere in the Caribbean while you are reading this, drinking a glass of rum punch, probably too merry to even remember there is a game on! I’m sure you’ll be cheering the guys on as loud as ever though in my absence however and I’ll be back in Blackpool soon. I don’t know about you but after the disappointment of last Saturday’s game against the Steeldogs I took a little break from hockey and didn’t even check the scores from the rest of the league til Wednesday! Now I’ve put it all into perspective without the coach their and against a Sheffield team desperate to break their losing streak, plus the year that everyone in the club has had, maybe we were due an off night. I’m sure though that coach Hand won’t want to see another blip like that though as we look to cut the gap between us and a playoff spot. The result may have not gone our way but us Choirboys tried our hardest not to let it spoil our enjoyment and it certainly helped Ice Sheffield’s bar sales as the beers were flowing in the Phoenix block. Back at ‘Chief’s Bar and Grill’ it was shots a plenty and it was about 3.30 am by the time we finally called it a night. I hope to join you all for a beer or two in the new year whether it be at an away game somewhere, in shooters or maybe in Coventry! Wherever it is though I’ll see you all in the new year! Until next year, this is Martin from the Phoenix Choirboys signing off! 34



STATS & TABLES ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE GP W OW OL L F A Pt Telford Tigers 32 20 5 3 4 134 86 53 Milton Keynes Lightning 29 18 4 1 6 113 73 45 Basingstoke Bison 29 17 0 2 10 100 70 36 Peterborough Phantoms 28 15 2 1 10 105 76 35 Hull Pirates 29 16 1 0 12 119 106 34 Guildford Flames 30 13 1 4 12 113 105 32 Swindon Wildcats 28 10 3 2 13 93 99 28 Sheffield Steeldogs 30 8 1 3 18 101 126 21 Bracknell Bees 29 6 0 2 21 75 144 14 Manchester Phoenix 28 4 2 1 21 71 139 13 ENGLISH PREMIER CUP QUALIFYING GP W OW OL L F A Pt Peterborough Phantoms 18 12 1 3 2 82 44 29 Q Guildford Flames 18 8 3 1 6 63 55 23 Q Basingstoke Bison 18 9 2 1 6 69 55 23 Q Milton Keynes Lightning 18 8 3 0 7 72 52 22 Q Swindon Wildcats 18 8 2 0 8 69 66 20 Telford Tigers 18 10 0 0 8 77 48 20 Manchester Phoenix 18 8 0 2 8 53 67 18 Sheffield Steeldogs 17 6 0 2 9 57 83 14 Bracknell Bees 18 6 0 1 11 57 72 13 Hull Pirates 17 1 2 3 11 33 90 9 Teams play 18 games in Qualifying Top 4 qualify for semi finals 36

TOP 10 GOAL TENDERS Name Team Played GAA SVS% Janis Auzins Peterborough Phantoms 23 2.26 0.932 Przemyslaw Odrobny Milton Keynes Lightning 29 2.37 0.931 Jordan Marr Hull Pirates 27 3.3 0.913 Dean Skinns Guildford Flames 13 2.47 0.91 Tomas Hiadlovsky Basingstoke Bison 29 2.27 0.908 Stevie Lyle Swindon Wildcats 28 2.34 0.905 Sam Gospel Telford Tigers 15 3.11 0.9 James Hadfield Sheffield Steeldogs 29 4.12 0.894 Stephen Fone Manchester Phoenix 27 4.8 0.888 Adam Long Peterborough Phantoms 12 3.95 0.885 TOP 10 FORWARDS Name Team GP G A PTS Andrej Themar Hull Pirates 27 32 25 57 Arnoldas Bosas Sheffield Steeldogs 30 24 25 49 Stanislav Lascek Hull Pirates 29 14 35 49 Tomasz Malisinski Swindon Wildcats 27 20 26 46 Jonas Hoog Swindon Wildcats 28 13 32 45 Mattew Davies Telford Tigers 25 10 34 44 Michal Satek Guildford Flames 31 16 24 40 Matic Kralj Guildford Flames 25 13 26 39 Jason Silverthorn Telford Tigers 32 21 17 38 Doug Clarkson Telford Tigers 31 22 15 37 37

PHOENIX STATS GP G A Pts PIM 4 Luke Boothroyd “C” 28 0 7 7 44 12 James Neil “A” 28 2 12 14 8 14 Lewis James Baldwin 28 1 1 2 8 15 Ben Wood “A” 23 2 3 5 8 16 Michael John Stratford 17 0 2 2 6 18 Jakub Langhammer 16 4 5 9 8 19 Scott William Bailey 28 0 2 2 4 22 Denis Bell 26 0 0 0 0 25 Craig Thurston 2 0 2 2 0 26 Joni Tuominen 24 4 16 20 46 31 Stephen Fone 28 0 0 0 0 34 Roman Malinik 28 19 13 32 8 51 Marek Indra 20 5 10 15 20 55 Gregg Pick 28 0 2 2 18 61 Vaclav Meidl 11 3 4 7 20 66 Robin Kovar 28 14 19 33 39 71 Edgar Bebris 28 16 21 37 24 73 Gareth O’Flaherty 18 3 2 5 0 James Riddoch (LOAN) 1 0 0 0 0 25 Phillip Mulcahy (LOAN) 3 0 0 0 0 Bench 8 38