HAWKS STUMBLE AND SOAR IN DOUBLE HEADER WEEKEND.
After clinching their first win of the season away in Wales, the Hawks returned this weekend for a hectic double header which saw both high and lows. Saturday’s jubilant homecoming back at the Hawks Nest was somewhat spoiled by an upset loss to the Nottingham Lions, with this disappointing defeat being rectified the next day by a thumping away win in Leeds.
A packed Blackburn Arena played host to the Hawks first home league match of the season on the Saturday. Whilst a small pride of Lions fans made the journey up north, their roars were no match for the Hawks faithful, whose cheers filled the Hawks Nest with an electrifying atmosphere. This —- reception by the fans was matched on-ice by a tense and heated first period of hockey. The scoring deadlock was broken 10 minutes into the action when defenceman Ethan Mayoh fired home his first goal of the season from forward Luke Watson’s first assist of the season. This home ice lead was short-lived however as under 2 minutes later Nottingham’s Alex Rushby got his name on the scoresheet, a sight that would become all too common over the course of the night for Hawks fans. Just before the first period concluded, Jacob Lutwyche clinched the final goal of the period, following on from last week’s hattrick heroics in Deeside. The second period saw a fight back from the Lions, who levelled the score again, this time through in-form import Ales Padelek. This fiery middle period finished with the Hawks taking the lead again, thanks to the trusted combination of Lee Pollitt assisting Adam Barnes. It was all to play for going into the final 20 minutes, however a final period collapse from the Hawks was capitalised on by a hungry Lions team. After Alex Rushby assisted Luke Birchnall for the equaliser, it was his turn to score the go-ahead goal, this time assisted by his older brother Harry. An empty-netted goal from the younger Rushby would not only complete his hattrick but would also mark a disappointing end to the Hawks’ opening home fixture. Whilst this 5-3 loss against last season’s 8th placed side was not the return to Blackburn that fans wanted, Defenceman Bobby Streetly noted how it shows ‘We can’t take anyone lightly in this league, if you do – you come unstuck’.
There was no time for Blackburn to lick the wounds inflicted by the Lions, as the next day would see a trip to Elland Road to face off against Leeds Knights 2. The importance of this game was immense for the Hawks. Not only did they need a statement performance as a response for the previous day’s disappointment, but this game would also double as their opening group game in the Moralee Cup. Streetly highlighted how the team went into the game ‘with a different mindset’, with this manifesting on the ice in emphatic fashion. A strong start saw the Hawks 3 goals up at the end of the opening period with goals from usual Hawks bagsmen Barnes and Royds along with a first Hawks goal for 16-year-old Daragh Spawnforth. Streetly notes how this is only the beginning for the young forward, who he states, ‘looks so good with the space that he manages to get into with the puck – as he goes further into this year, he’ll start to turn into one of the best players in the league’. However, the scoring didn’t stop there for Blackburn. Barnes doubled his account for the night and Lutwyche continued his impressive goal scoring streak with two goals, taking his season tally to 6 for the season. Leeds staged an attempted comeback with two goals coming either side of the second intermission, however James Royds strook back the Knights with a remarkable 21-second brace, making him the third Hawks player to register a hattrick this season. The final period saw Lee Pollitt convert on a Hawks powerplay, with Blackburn claiming a 9-2 victory. Whilst the whole team put on an impressive display in Yorkshire, a spotlight must be placed on both James Riddoch and Bobby Streetly, who registered 5 and 3 assists respectively.
In looking ahead to this Sunday’s clash against Solihull, treble assist-maker Bobby Streetly gives some insight into the opposition: ‘We know they’ve kept most of their team together, so I think it’s going to be a tough encounter. We know they had a good result against Billingham last weekend, so with us having a mixed weekend this is a big game to see where we are this year. If we want to finish on top, we need a result.’ After last Saturday’s upset, the Hawks are hoping to claim home ice triumph on their second time of asking. Streetly highlights how excited the players are to come back home, believing that when it comes to ‘big games with big crowds, there’s not many better places to play in this country than Blackburn’…
The Blackburn Hawks will play against the Solihull Barons @ Blackburn Ice Arena on Sunday 29th September, Face-Off: 6:00pm
ARTICLE COURTESY OF NATHAN DOVE.