Block 12 Backcheck

Five games to go and just three points covering the top three. ENL1 North's in for a rousing finish.

With Billingham wobbling a bit in the last few weeks, both Whitley and the Hawks have hit form at just the right time - Warriors are now unbeaten in eight, while Hawks haven't lost in eleven.

All three have tricky looking run-ins and with Warriors and Stars still to meet, it's difficult to predict a winner - but let's have a go. Whitley. No. Billingham. No. Blackburn. See - difficult.

Hawks can lay claim to being February's form team with six wins out of six. If there was a Manager of the Month award it'd be going to Jared Owen. But there isn't - so it won't.

An impressive win at Telford was followed by home successes over Solihull and Sheffield, but it's the last three games which have impressed the most.

Sheffield, Coventry and Solihull are never the easiest places to go, but Hawks won all three and managed a shut-out in eight periods out of nine - brilliant stuff.

Now it's just a matter of keeping it going for five more games and hoping a couple of results elsewhere fall the right way. Failing that let's settle for winning the play-offs.

Whatever happens, we can finally say the Hawks are heading in the right direction. It's only taken two decades but we'll gloss over that.

So good luck to all three teams down the stretch - may the best team win. As long as they're from Blackburn.

Ice Hockey - UK round-up (from Blackburn Hawks match programme 4/03/12)

The race to be crowned ENL1 North champions is set to go down to the wire, with three points separating the top three teams. Billingham Stars still lead the way, but Whitley Warriors’ 5-2 win over Trafford Metros puts them just two points behind.

Blackburn Hawks kept up the pressure with a 5-3 win at Coventry Blaze - Sami Narkia (3) and Rick Hughes (2) got the goals – and a 3-0 success at Solihull Barons – Jordan Bannon (left) scored twice. Sheffield Spartans eased their relegation worries, drawing 4-4 at Trafford and winning 5-3 at Nottingham Lions.

Sutton Sting look strong favourites to claim the ENL2 promotion play-off place after crushing Lancashire Raptors 22-1. Rivals Flintshire Freeze slumped to a 3-1 defeat at Hull and now find themselves under pressure for third with the Stingrays also beating the Raptors (9-2).

Romford Raiders lost 3-2 at Cardiff Devils but still lead ENL1 South by two points from Chelmsford Chieftains. Wightlink forward Joe Rand bagged a hat-trick in a 4-4 draw at Bristol Pitbulls and followed up with two as the Raiders strengthened their grip on third with a 7-4 win at Streatham Redskins. Cardiff drew 5-5 at Bristol and are now only two points ahead of Invicta Dynamos having played a game more.

Guildford Flames’ Jozef Kohut (right) grabbed a hat-trick as the EPL leaders beat Sheffield Steeldogs 4-1. Flames are eight points clear of Manchester Phoenix who beat Bracknell Bees twice (5-3 & 3-2). Sheffield leapfrogged Slough into third after a 5-3 win over the Jets.

Slough picked up a couple of points with a 5-1 win over Bracknell – Mindaugas Keiras scored three – but crashed 4-0 at MK Lightning – Adam Carr hit three. Lightning also won 9-3 at Peterborough, but Phantoms kept their play-off hopes alive with an 8-5 win at Basingstoke Bison. Jonas Hoog scored three as Swindon Wildcats beat Telford Tigers 7-2.

Guildford will play Sheffield in the EPL Cup Final. Flames beat Manchester 3-2 on home ice to complete a 5-4 aggregate success.

Belfast Giants enjoyed a perfect road trip to stay clear at the top of the Elite League. They won 8-0 at Hull Stingrays and 5-0 at Coventry Blaze and are now seven points ahead of Sheffield.

The Steelers beat Fife Flyers twice (5-3 & 5-1) and Edinburgh Capitals (7-0) but missed the chance to close the gap further, losing 2-1 at Braehead Clan. Nottingham Panthers stay third after beating Cardiff Devils 6-3 and Fife 4-3.

(Jozef Kohut image by kind permission of David Steadman)

Ice Hockey - UK round-up (games played 15th, 18th & 19th February)

Whitley Warriors have closed the gap on Billingham Stars at the top of ENL1 North. Shaun Kippin and Callum Watson both scored twice as Warriors beat Solihull Barons 8-4. They now trail Stars by four points with a game in hand with the teams set to meet at Hillheads on March 4th. Blackburn Hawks are three points further back in third after winning 5-0 at Sheffield Spartans.

Telford Titans are in the final play-off place after drawing 1-1 at Billingham. Coventry Blaze boosted their hopes of avoiding the drop with a 6-3 win over Solihull – Josh Nicklin (3) & Rikki Bryniarski (above - 2) led the scoring.

Solway Sharks have won the ENL2 North title after being awarded a default win over Bradford Bulldogs. Sutton Sting remain in the promotion play-off position after an 8-1 win at Lancashire Raptors. Flintshire Freeze beat Bradford 6-1 to stay third. Fylde Flyers were surprisingly held 3-3 at home to the Raptors, but won 5-2 at Sheffield Senators to move out of the bottom two.

Romford Raiders still lead ENL1 South after a 5-2 win at home to Invicta Dynamos. Danny Hammond scored twice as second placed Chelmsford Chieftains beat Streatham Redskins 8-1. Wightlink Raiders strengthened their grip on third with a 5-2 win at MK Thunder. Egidijus Bauba grabbed a hat-trick as Bristol Pitbulls won 6-3 at Invicta.

EPL leaders Guildford Flames kept their title push on track with a pair of wins. They beat Basingstoke Bison 3-0 and followed up with a 9-1 demolition of Swindon Wildcats – Nathan Rempel scored three. Manchester Phoenix are second after beating MK Lightning 5-2, while third placed Slough Jets recovered from a 5-3 loss at Swindon to record wins over Peterborough Phantoms – 5-4 after overtime – and Telford Tigers 5-1.

Stuart Brittle’s overtime winner sealed a 3-2 win for Sheffield Steeldogs at Bracknell Bees. Basingstoke are up to fifth after a 3-1 win over the Bees and a 7-6 shoot-out success at Peterborough – Steve Moria (above) scored the winner. Tuomas Tikkanen and Grant McPherson both scored two as Lightning beat the Wildcats 6-3.

Sheffield secured a place in the final of the EPL with a 1-0 aggregate success over MK Lightning. They will meet the winners of Manchester and Guildford who drew their first leg 2-2.

Belfast Giants keep their nine point lead at the top of the Elite League after two home wins. They eased past Hull Stingrays 6-1 and followed up with a 7-1 win over Fife Flyers. Sheffield Steelers stay second after beating Dundee Stars 5-4 and Nottingham 4-2, but missed the chance to close the gap with a 5-1 loss to the Panthers.

(Image permissions: Rikki Bryniarski - Scott Wiggins; Steve Moria - David Steadman)

Ice Hockey - UK round-up (games played 8th, 11th & 12th February)

Billingham Stars got their ENL1 North title challenge back on track with a 3-0 win at Solihull Barons – James Moss, Andy Thornton and Simon Hehir got the goals. Telford Titans boosted their play-off hopes beating Nottingham Lions 8-3 and Coventry Blaze 9-4.

Two goals by Dave Meikle (left) helped Blackburn Hawks to a 4-2 win over Sheffield Spartans and keeps them in the play-off picture. Trafford Metros’ hopes are fading as they slumped to a 2-0 defeat in Nottingham. Solihull’s 8-0 loss to Spartans keeps them bottom.

Solway Sharks need one more win to clinch ENL2 North. Two goals from Nathan Salem helped them to a 7-3 win over Sutton Sting and they followed up with a 12-0 win at Sheffield Senators – Marc Fowley scored four. Simon Furnival and James Parsons both grabbed hat-tricks as Flintshire Freeze beat Lancashire Raptors 10-1. Fylde Flyers also hit double figures as they smashed eleven without reply against the Raptors.

Romford Raiders still lead ENL2 South despite losing 5-2 at Wightlink Raiders. Chelmsford Cheiftains beat Cardiff Devils 7-2 and could have gone level on points with Romford if they won at Invicta, but Dynamos’ Ryan Ellis grabbed the winner in a 3-2 win for the Kent outfit.

Guildford Flames have an eight point lead at the top of the EPL. They twice beat Peterborough Phantoms (6-2 & 7-3) before taking a point in a 6-5 shoot-out loss at Bracknell Bees. Manchester Phoenix are second after a 9-1 win at home to Telford Tigers and a 2-1 loss in overtime at Sheffield Steeldogs. The win completed a remarkable weekend for Sheffield who also won 9-2 at Slough Jets – Janis Ozolins (4) and Edgar Bebris (3) led the scoring.

MK Lightning’s Lukas Zatopek bagged an overtime winner as they beat Bracknell 3-2, but their inconsistent form continued as they fell by the same score at Basingstoke Bison. Aaron Nell scored three as Swindon Wildcats beat Bison 7-5, while James Ferrara (right) also hit a trio as Peterborough Phantoms crushed Telford 12-2.

Belfast Giants are nine points clear at the top of the Elite League. They faced a weekend double header at Nottingham and claimed two wins – 4-3 after a shoot-out and 3-2. Sheffield Steelers are up to second after a pair of wins over Coventry Blaze (3-2 & 5-3).

(Image Permission: James Ferrara - Paul Young)

Ice Hockey - UK round-up (from Blackburn Hawks match programme 12/02/12)

Whitley Warriors have closed the gap on Billingham Stars at the top of ENL1 North. Goals from Jamie Tinsley (2), DJ Good and Shaun Kippin helped them to a 4-3 win over Trafford Metros. Billingham’s lead has beeen cut to three points after their 4-2 loss at Trafford Metros.

Blackburn Hawks are now third after a 6-2 win at Telford Titans – Rick Hughes (left) scored four – and a 5-0 win at home to Solihull Barons. Telford are fourth after beating Sheffield Spartans 4-2. Nottingham’s Joe Wightman scored twice as the Lions moved out of the relegation zone with a 4-0 win against Coventry Blaze.

Solway Sharks moved a step closer to the ENL2 title with a 14-3 success at Fylde Flyers – Nathan Salem (4), Bob Chalmers (2) and Adam Reynolds (2) led the scoring. Second placed Sutton Sting strengthened their promotion bid, beating Bradford Bulldogs (14-1) and Sheffield Senators (5-1). Hull Stingrays fell to a surprise 6-5 loss to the Senators but recovered to beat Fylde 3-1.

Romford Raiders remain top of ENL1 South after beating Bristol Pitbulls 9-1. Chelmsford Chieftains stay second after a 7-1 victory at Streatham Redskins. Wightlink Raiders beat Bracknell Hornets 11-7, while Cardiff Devils beat Slough Jets 6-1 to keep up their push for a top four finish. Ryan Ellis scored six as Invicta Dynamos beat Streatham 13-5.

Guildford Flames have a six point lead at the top of the EPL. Jozef Kohut grabbed the winner as they beat Slough Jets 5-4 after overtime and they followed up with a 4-2 win over MK Lightning. Manchester Phoenix are up to second after a 3-1 success over Lightning and a 6-3 win at home to Swindon Wildcats.

Darius Pliskauskas (right) scored a hat-trick as third-placed Slough beat Basingstoke Bison 3-0, while Sheffield Steeldogs stay fourth after beating Peterborough Phantoms by the same score. Bison closed the gap on fifth placed Lightning to one point with a 5-4 win over the Wildcats. At the foot of the table Bracknell Bees beat Telford 1-0 and the Tigers completed a miserable weekend, losing 8-6 at home to Peterborough - Maris Ziedins scored four for the visitors.

Elite League leaders Belfast Giants are seven points clear after a pair of wins. The beat Cardiff Devils 4-1 and followed up with an impressive 4-2 win against Sheffield Steelers. Nottingham Panthers stay second after a 6-2 win over Dundee Stars, while Sheffield are two points behind in third after beating Hull Stingrays 3-0.

(Image Permission: Darius Pliskauskas - Chris Turner)