Post by Deleted on Mar 22, 2004 22:09:01 GMT
Last week’s events reminded me of the last time we won a major title in overtime.
In 1985 Alex Dampier came to Nottingham and saved our club from oblivion. We were going nowhere and in his first season he got us into the play offs for the first time, as well as getting rid of the ‘pussy cat’ tag we had been given by other teams who had pushed us around for years by coaching a season of fighting our way around the country (including one bench clearer v. Ayr and another game abandoned v Murrayfield as players fought all over the ice, in the penalty boxes, etc – the ref just skated off and left everyone to it. Those were the days).
Anyway I digress. In 1986/7 we started with the Norwich Union Trophy, predecessor to the B&H Cup. It looked a bit rocky when the club very controversially released Jamie Crapper and replaced him with a player called Fred. But this was no ordinary Fred, as Fred Perlini was an outstanding player. He started banging the goals in and we were soon in the English final (i.e semi) against Whitley. Disaster. We went up there for the first leg and early in the game Fred got clattered face first into the boards and had to go to hospital with a bad cut. We managed to win a rough one (with a big fight in the handshakes) and finish them off in the second leg (Fred 3+3) to earn a place in the final against Fife Flyers, who won the Scottish final.
This was no ordinary final. It was to be played at the NEC in Birmingham, the first time in the modern era that the game was taken to a big, neutral venue. Fife were the glamour team of the day. They signed what were in those days big name imports, and on this occasion boasted Al Sims, who had played 400+ NHL games and who went on to be a Head Coach in the NHL; Dave Stoyanovich, a forward with a ripper of a slap shot; and Mike Jeffrey, who was big and wonderfully skilled. They also had a lot of the top Scottish players of the day (e.g. Jim Pennycook, Dean Edmiston, Gordon Latto) and two good goalies – Andy Donald and Craig Dickson.
We were rated very much as underdogs, but we had a game up in Fife the Saturday before the final. It was a tough place to play and we had never won there ever, but this time we went up there beat them 12-3, a stunning result, with Fred getting 4+1.
Come the final and it was a much closer affair with never more than a goal in it. We first took the lead at 3-2 and looked in good shape with 6 minutes left when we were 4-3 up and on the powerplay. Cue Stoyanovich to skate the length of the ice right through us and tie the game shorthanded. We had never experienced anything like this before - a big game in front of a big crowd, live on Grandstand for the folks at home, and overtime looming.
Eventually it came and almost as soon as it started Stoyanovich smacked one which hit our post with a ding you could have heard in Birmingham. Cue mass fainting. I had a cigarette on, and I don’t smoke. But cometh the hour cometh the man and at 61.53 Layton Eratt got the heel of his stick on to a puck coming in from Gavin Fraser on the wing and sealed his place in history.
Our first ever overtime and our first ever trophy in the most exciting of circumstances. My recollection is that very few fans from either side left the Arena until the presentations were concluded. And I clearly remember sitting on the coach waiting to leave the car park and passing Fife fans coming on to say well done and shake hands etc. Which is how it should be, of course.
We got back here about 7 and went to The Castle. Dave the landlord had taped the game, so he brought his telly down, put it on top of a fruit machine and we watched it all again. The players turned up and watched it with us, passing the cup round for us all to hold up. When we had to leave, the Webers, who lived near me, offered me a lift. On the way back Randall wanted some chips, but I didn’t, so there I was alone in the car, cradling the cup, a surreal moment if ever there was one.
One more thing. We put out a team of 20 for the final, 10 of whom were lads who had come through our junior system. Not bad, eh? Not forgetting as well the legendary Jimmy Keyes and classy Terry Kurtenbach who together with Fred matched their more famous counterparts at Fife.
Oooh ‘eck. I’ve gone on a bit this time……………………..
In 1985 Alex Dampier came to Nottingham and saved our club from oblivion. We were going nowhere and in his first season he got us into the play offs for the first time, as well as getting rid of the ‘pussy cat’ tag we had been given by other teams who had pushed us around for years by coaching a season of fighting our way around the country (including one bench clearer v. Ayr and another game abandoned v Murrayfield as players fought all over the ice, in the penalty boxes, etc – the ref just skated off and left everyone to it. Those were the days).
Anyway I digress. In 1986/7 we started with the Norwich Union Trophy, predecessor to the B&H Cup. It looked a bit rocky when the club very controversially released Jamie Crapper and replaced him with a player called Fred. But this was no ordinary Fred, as Fred Perlini was an outstanding player. He started banging the goals in and we were soon in the English final (i.e semi) against Whitley. Disaster. We went up there for the first leg and early in the game Fred got clattered face first into the boards and had to go to hospital with a bad cut. We managed to win a rough one (with a big fight in the handshakes) and finish them off in the second leg (Fred 3+3) to earn a place in the final against Fife Flyers, who won the Scottish final.
This was no ordinary final. It was to be played at the NEC in Birmingham, the first time in the modern era that the game was taken to a big, neutral venue. Fife were the glamour team of the day. They signed what were in those days big name imports, and on this occasion boasted Al Sims, who had played 400+ NHL games and who went on to be a Head Coach in the NHL; Dave Stoyanovich, a forward with a ripper of a slap shot; and Mike Jeffrey, who was big and wonderfully skilled. They also had a lot of the top Scottish players of the day (e.g. Jim Pennycook, Dean Edmiston, Gordon Latto) and two good goalies – Andy Donald and Craig Dickson.
We were rated very much as underdogs, but we had a game up in Fife the Saturday before the final. It was a tough place to play and we had never won there ever, but this time we went up there beat them 12-3, a stunning result, with Fred getting 4+1.
Come the final and it was a much closer affair with never more than a goal in it. We first took the lead at 3-2 and looked in good shape with 6 minutes left when we were 4-3 up and on the powerplay. Cue Stoyanovich to skate the length of the ice right through us and tie the game shorthanded. We had never experienced anything like this before - a big game in front of a big crowd, live on Grandstand for the folks at home, and overtime looming.
Eventually it came and almost as soon as it started Stoyanovich smacked one which hit our post with a ding you could have heard in Birmingham. Cue mass fainting. I had a cigarette on, and I don’t smoke. But cometh the hour cometh the man and at 61.53 Layton Eratt got the heel of his stick on to a puck coming in from Gavin Fraser on the wing and sealed his place in history.
Our first ever overtime and our first ever trophy in the most exciting of circumstances. My recollection is that very few fans from either side left the Arena until the presentations were concluded. And I clearly remember sitting on the coach waiting to leave the car park and passing Fife fans coming on to say well done and shake hands etc. Which is how it should be, of course.
We got back here about 7 and went to The Castle. Dave the landlord had taped the game, so he brought his telly down, put it on top of a fruit machine and we watched it all again. The players turned up and watched it with us, passing the cup round for us all to hold up. When we had to leave, the Webers, who lived near me, offered me a lift. On the way back Randall wanted some chips, but I didn’t, so there I was alone in the car, cradling the cup, a surreal moment if ever there was one.
One more thing. We put out a team of 20 for the final, 10 of whom were lads who had come through our junior system. Not bad, eh? Not forgetting as well the legendary Jimmy Keyes and classy Terry Kurtenbach who together with Fred matched their more famous counterparts at Fife.
Oooh ‘eck. I’ve gone on a bit this time……………………..