lukef
Jade Galbraith
Posts: 27
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Post by lukef on Nov 9, 2008 19:18:32 GMT
3-1 up after Two
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Shaggy
Forum Moderator
Am I a cynical idealist or an idealistic cynic?
Posts: 10,995
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Post by Shaggy on Nov 9, 2008 21:04:55 GMT
Lions win 3-2
Joe Wightman got 2 goals, Chris Colegate got the other.
Apparently Blackburn thought they'd got the even-up score with only 8 seconds to go (washed out, apparently) - and one of the Blackburn players got a Match Penalty for taking a swing at one of the linesmen!!
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 10, 2008 10:40:42 GMT
A good result for the Lions - we were all over them in the first 30 minutes and managed to grind out a 3-0 lead. To be honest in that first period Blackburn were not all that good - passes were going astray. However the game changed in the last 30 minutes as Blackburn suddenly seemed to find their way - perhaps it was just that the Lions were tired as they iced without Sam Bullas and Ben Bliss due to injury and also missing a couple of the under-18's who were unavailable. Chris Colegate missed a 1-on-1 with the goalie after the Hawks coughed up the puck on their powerplay, but luckily for the Hawks the chance was saved. Joe Wightman's 2nd goal came after just 26 seconds of the 2nd period when he let rip with a shot from straight out in front of the goalie!
One of the Hawks had already recieved a 2+10+Game for (I think) tripping then Abuse of an Official as he disagreed with the referee's call. Lions' Tom Norton also got a 10 minute for disagreeing with Ref Evans - Norton had gone down after getting a punch to the head, but ended up with a 2 minute penalty.
Both teams had called timeouts by the time the final few minutes came about, and the Hawks had pulled their goalie but hadn't managed to find a way through. With 8 seconds left they shot at Alan Levers who lost the puck momentarily - the Hawks then pushed Levers into the net hoping that would force the puck across the line for the equaliser, however the puck had lodged in the top of his pads and when he stood up it popped out and landed in the crease. There was plenty of pushing and shoving when Simon Harrison and Chris Arnone skated away - both removing their helmets and gloves almost in unison. The fight ended with a clear win for Harrison - both managed a couple of punches, but Harrison brought down Arnone quickly. However before the fight Arnone had slashed the linesman with a 2-handed slash, and also swung a punch, earning himself and extra Match penalty, as well as the 2+2. Both players were originally given 2+2+10 but the extra 10's had been removed by the time the game ended. From what Mr Evans was saying at the end of the game, Arnone could find himself with a long suspension.
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Post by quoththeraven on Nov 10, 2008 12:30:41 GMT
A good win for the Lions against a struggling side - a slip-up here could have been costly in our playoff hunt. As for Arnone, I didn't see the incident, but in the spirit of the recent Russell Brand/Jonathan Ross scandal this puts me in the perfect position to criticise him. If he did in fact make a deliberate attempt to injure an official then he deserves a very long ban. It's a shame he probably won't allowed to play again when t'Hawks come back to Nottingham, because people like him deserve all the grief they get from people like me. So will the Friends of the Lions now be producing t-shirts saying "I was there when Blaine Evans called fewer penalties than he could have done?" . I actually think Blaine does a good job out there, it's idiotic players who are the problem. So it's away to Billingham and then home to Billingham next weekend - probably our toughest so far, considering that we are tied on points at the top of the table (we're second, they're third, Whitley are ahead having a game in hand). The Bombers always bring a good travelling support, so with the Panthers away this is a great alternative to sitting at home watching Antiques Roadshow. Long time hockey fans may be interested to know that Billingham's coach is the colourful Terry Ward. Now, people of a certain character and stature are often considered to have a Napoleon complex, but in fact it's more accurate to say that Napoleon had a Terry Ward complex.
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 10, 2008 13:41:31 GMT
So will the Friends of the Lions now be producing t-shirts saying "I was there when Blaine Evans called fewer penalties than he could have done?" . I actually think Blaine does a good job out there, it's idiotic players who are the problem. Nah, I don't think there would be any takers for those! Mr Evans is actually quite a nice bloke. Some refs are approachable on & off the ice and some aren't. The one thing is that our players know how to approach the ref. As you've already pointed out at least once, very few of our penalties are for backchat. We rarely question the ref's decision. We did last night, and Tom Norton got a 10 for his trouble, Evans had made the mistake but Tom probably shouldn't have reacted - however when you've already been sticked in the face once, then punched in the head, I suppose you do get frustrated! Also Evans could (and probably should have) given Josh Ward an illegal equipment call for not wearing his throat guard - he was wearing it, it had just slipped down. Instead he told him to go to the bench and fix it and gave him a warning.
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Post by quoththeraven on Nov 14, 2008 12:19:55 GMT
To anyone going to Billingham on Saturday, don't forget that this will be the first Lions trip where managers and coaches have to wear helmets on the bench. Note, this is not the reason I gave up managing - all hats suit me. However, in light of this joyous victory for health and safety, it was followed up by an edict declaring that from the start of the season all spectators must wear high-visibility vests and if you sit near the front you have to wear a hard hat too.
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 15, 2008 20:14:13 GMT
End 1st Bombers 2 Lions 0. Stevie Pritchard with both for the Bombers. PIM Bombers 4, Lions 0.
End 2nd. Bombers 2 Lions 3. Josh Ward, Sam Bullas (breakaway) and Rob Lachowicz (PP). PIM Bombers 16, Lions 12. Bombers Gibbon and Lions' Poynter with 10's.
Lions score all 3 goals in the final 7 minutes of the period, including one with just 48 seconds to go.
Going to setup a real nailbiter here.
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 15, 2008 21:08:00 GMT
Final Bombers 2, Lions 4.
Joe Wightman scored another PPG at 42.02. Lions hung on to take the points despite playing the last 90 seconds SH after the bench gets a minor for Too Many Men.
No SOG yet.
Man of th e Match awards went to Bombers' Stevie Pritchard with 2+0 and Sam Bullas with 1+1
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Post by bombersles on Nov 16, 2008 11:45:16 GMT
well played lions after the way the first period went i was expecting the bombers to win the game but once agian the bombers let them, selfs down in the second.full credit to your lads who showed why they are league champions and stepped it up a gear bombers lost all there belife from the first period and your lads sussed this and took the game right back to the bombers. lets hope we have a good game tonight but with the scores reversed.i belive we only have a short bench tonight but so did you last night and proved that if you belive in your self and your team mates anything can happen.well done on a well deserved win last night .
in respect les(member of the bombers barmy army)
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 16, 2008 13:47:15 GMT
Thank you Les.
To be honest, I didn't think we would win this one, and going 2-0 down only confirmed my thoughts - especially as it seemed that Flavell was on top form! I honestly couldn't say what happened to turn the game around for us but I'm glad it happened! I too hope tonight's is as good!
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 16, 2008 23:14:30 GMT
Just got back. Not going to say too much as I'm sure that others will, and the fact that I was busy so didn't really see much of the game anyway! But the Lions lost 2-1 with all the goals going in the final period.
Chris Colegate scored our goal. Not sure who scored for the Bombers as I don't have the gamesheet to hand. Man of the Match went to James Neil who played the whole game in D, and to James Flavell for the Bombers, who kept us out of the game for so long.
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 16, 2008 23:53:44 GMT
***NEWS ABOUT LIONS FORUM***
Please note that as of tonight the Nottingham Lions forum has been closed. It was hardly ever used, and I simply don't have the time to be the admin of the Forum any more.
The Owner & the Mods of The Cage Forum have been more than accommodating and I hope we'll have a thread here for many years to come.
If anyone has any questions, then post here or via PM and I'll do my best to answer them.
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Post by quoththeraven on Nov 17, 2008 12:40:06 GMT
The first period was incredibly dull. The second period was slightly better, and the third was one of the tensest periods of hockey I've seen in a long time. When Colegate scored his goal, I got a massive headrush the likes of which have only happened a few times, such as when Invicta scored first against Sheffield a few seasons back, or when Kev Parrish scored to tie up the 2nd leg of the EPL Cup final in 2002.
Billingham's first goal was a well worked move - after all, they'd had 110 minutes to work out the following things:
a) Flavell was standing on his head to keep them in it and rightly deserved to be Man of the Match.
b) Nottingham's defensive strategy seemed to be based around passing the puck without looking and then watching Billingham skate through them. It was really tough on Griff as he'd pulled off some fantastic saves as well.
At which point I said to Luke that the Bombers would win it, simply because of the way the Lions were playing.
Losing Joe Wightman, who I hope is back soon, was a big blow according to some, but it needn't have been that bad. We played half a season without him last year and our two top scorers from our championship winning season, Chris Colegate and Sam Bullas, were on the ice together. Trouble was, our most consistent d-man of the past few seasons, Scott Glover, was pushed up as the other winger. If it had worked, I would be hailing Martyn as a genius but as it is, it didn't. This left our D very exposed and fatigue set in as the game went on, despite the best efforts of Marcus Maynard, Jonny Bell and Simon Harrison.
It strikes me that in Colegate, Wightman and their linemate of the month, coupled with two of the league's outstanding goalies, the Lions have an excellent Plan A. Trouble is, below that, there is no Plan B for when the top line fails or goes down injured. Players below the top line, with the exception of Josh Ward, seemed off the pace and out of position constantly, which didn't help matters.
Next week the team's up in Whitley again. Let's hope they have time to stop off in La La land (as a wise man used to say) and pick up their defence. I might see everyone on the 30th for the Blackburn game, but I'll definitely be back for Coventry on the 7th.
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Post by bombersles on Nov 17, 2008 13:12:34 GMT
raven im sorry but i find it hard to accept that your a lions fans. all you ever do is have ago at the team last nights game for me could have been a better game than it was but this wasnt down to the players from either team and was only spoilt in my opinion by the inept reffing stopping the game flowing and calling stupid penaltys all the time .and when the bombers supporters had a go at him(not foul or abusive)he felt he had to get the rink manager to tell us to shut up or he will call the game off . that was one of them game that had a draw wrote all over it esp after the first two periods. when the lions scored first i feard the worst but the lads just kept at it and our third line done the job. was it my eyes or did you bench get smaller as the game went on?? well played both teams last night and im sure if you had any new supporters in last night they will be back. i think my flags upset some people in the bar agian last night se you all when we come back to your place in december in friendship and respect les
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 17, 2008 13:24:57 GMT
Les - don't worry about the people in the bar - that's partly the reason we asked the person putting the flags up to move them across! Also your fans are a credit to your team. You didn't give up, kept cheering and I think that had something to do with your win. I agree with all of your post apart from the ref. From what I saw I thought that he did an OK job, but I can see why you guys got frustrated with him. I agree that it should have been a draw, but that's how it goes. I posted on your forum to say that I've seen the penalty shot photo, and Sam had clearly beaten Flavell... However it's a shame that he lost control and it hit the post. Oh well. I didn't get to say Hi to you Les, but I know you were chatting to Luke before the game. Perhaps I'll get the chance to catch up when we meet again later in the season! Anyway, I was a tad annoyed last night, but I'm not now and that was one of the games that would be decided by an (un)lucky bounce. Our short bench threw us, losing Joe was a big loss - it's one thing to know a players missing (as it was when Joe worked in Europe last season) but to lose someone as important as him after just 10 minutes had to hurt the team. I'm not saying we'd have won it if he'd stayed on the ice, but it would have given us an extra chance. Same with Tom Norton - called up by the Panthers early yesterday morning.... He'd have given us an extra defensive option. Still, as I've said, you guys deserve your win and your place at the top of the table - enjoy!
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Post by bombersles on Nov 17, 2008 13:58:42 GMT
thats the good thing about forums diffrent people have diffrent opinions. good luck for the rest of the season exept when we play yas by the way your young player(i think he was the only one in a face cage) is a heck of a player and i belive will go a long way . in friendship and respect les
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 17, 2008 14:04:09 GMT
That would be Josh Ward. I agree, he's an awesome player, and, IIRC, he's only just 16! That goal he scored on Saturday was quality!
We've been quite lucky recently with the players that have come through, there's Lachowicz, Bullas, Norton who are all on 2-way deals with the Panthers. Currently we have Josh Ward and Joe Nicholls who are both promising youngsters, and there's also quite a few who regularly train with us who are not yet old enough to ice, but will be in January.
I'm still waiting for an update on Joe Wightman, and will post as soon as we have some news!
Anyway, I'm going to stop posting for a while and do some work!
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Post by oscarwightman on Nov 17, 2008 15:01:45 GMT
Joe has broken his wrist.
2-3 months.
Regards
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 17, 2008 15:31:34 GMT
Bad news. Thanks Oscar
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Post by bombersles on Nov 17, 2008 17:14:39 GMT
sorry to heard that its not nice to hear when any player gets hurt please pass on the bombers supporters best wishes for a speedy recovery
in friendship and respect les
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Post by Nottingham Lions on Nov 17, 2008 17:25:27 GMT
Thanks Les, I'll pass the message on.
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Post by quoththeraven on Nov 17, 2008 19:38:13 GMT
raven im sorry but i find it hard to accept that your a lions fans. all you ever do is have ago at the team that was one of them game that had a draw wrote all over it esp after the first two periods. when the lions scored first i feard the worst but the lads just kept at it and our third line done the job. was it my eyes or did you bench get smaller as the game went on?? i think my flags upset some people in the bar agian last night in friendship and respect les Les you appear to have only noticed the direction of my feelings whereas the sheer intensity of them is the real deal. I don't always just have a go at the team, merely say what went wrong and perhaps offer some advice. I know how good these players can be and it kills me that they don't play up to that level. I am a fan but I am not a butt-kisser. Saying things like "well I think they were brilliant, it doesn't matter who wins because I think sport wins" doesn't achieve anything. After all, you guys won the league a few seasons back, so you must know how frustrating it is when your team doesn't match up to it the following season. If people do well then they deserve praise - if you re-read I did single out some players for praise. If things go badly, they deserve criticism - if you re-read my post you will see I do not single out any players for criticism. You'd also be surprised how many people in Nottingham are vexillologists - people who would rather sit in a bar and see the back of a flag than pay to watch a game - so thank you for that. My only regret is that the Lions don't have any anymore to put across the whole balcony (leaving space for the Bombers on tour one, of course). There was a thing in the programme about ticket prices maybe going up because people are too selfish to pay £5 to come in and watch. If there are any of these people reading this, then look closely - you people are ruining hockey. That is all.
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tigger
Jade Galbraith
Posts: 10
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Post by tigger on Nov 18, 2008 20:59:17 GMT
Hi Quoth, In your opinion the D strategy was incorrect, well I don't think it was their intention to let bombers skate past them. Yes pucks were intercepted and Dmen sometimes do play the puck blindly around the boards especially if they get a "man on " call, but if when doing this the opposition hold the puck in the zone then you could argue where are the forwards doing their D role. As for the game it was a dissappointing result but Notts puck posession must have been around 70%. 1 pen shot missed ( you can't score them all) 1 pen shot not given ( bomber throwing stick, ref didnt see it linesmen didnt give it???) Flavell Brill game?? Griffiths Great game. I dont have stats but shots must have been 3 to 1 (33 to 13 end 2nd) so do we blame our forwards for missing all those chances except the 1 and making Flavell look good If a Dman makes an error then he hopes the goalie bails him out, if the goalie makes an error it's obviously a goal, but if a forward misses the chance to score then it's forgotten in a few seconds but that's hockey! This won't be the last game this season where the lions will have most of the play and chances and still loose. I've seen many games like the game at the weekend covering junior to senior and even NHL do don't be surprised if you get a de ja vu game this season.
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Pucky
Pat Casey
Posts: 250
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Post by Pucky on Nov 19, 2008 12:25:55 GMT
Les you appear to have only noticed the direction of my feelings whereas the sheer intensity of them is the real deal. I don't always just have a go at the team, merely say what went wrong and perhaps offer some advice. Are you a Level 3 coach? No? Then I don't think your "advice" is necessary. We have coaches available at all levels. Including one of the highest-qualified Level 3 coaches in the UK, so we're OK for advice thanks. I know how good these players can be and it kills me that they don't play up to that level. I am a fan but I am not a butt-kisser. Saying things like "well I think they were brilliant, it doesn't matter who wins because I think sport wins" doesn't achieve anything. After all, you guys won the league a few seasons back, so you must know how frustrating it is when your team doesn't match up to it the following season. You don't think they players don't know that they can play well? You don''t think that they don't get frustrated when things don't go right? Problem is, they don't live in the past and live on past glories. What's done is done. Yes we're defending League Champions but if we don't defend our title then we don't, it's someone else's turn. If people do well then they deserve praise - if you re-read I did single out some players for praise. If things go badly, they deserve criticism - if you re-read my post you will see I do not single out any players for criticism. Thing is, players will only listen to criticsm from people they respect - like coaches. There was a thing in the programme about ticket prices maybe going up because people are too selfish to pay £5 to come in and watch. If there are any of these people reading this, then look closely - you people are ruining hockey. That is all. Actually putting ticket prices up is more to do with trying to cover costs. It's not nice for people to rip off others by watching for free, but whatever we say or do that's not going to change. I don't think we'll need to put prices up but it's an option we have.
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Post by quoththeraven on Nov 19, 2008 13:13:57 GMT
In your opinion the D strategy was incorrect, well I don't think it was their intention to let bombers skate past them. Yes pucks were intercepted and Dmen sometimes do play the puck blindly around the boards especially if they get a "man on " call, but if when doing this the opposition hold the puck in the zone then you could argue where are the forwards doing their D role. I didn't necessarily mean "defence" as defencemen - I meant it as team defence. It wasn't just d-men who turned the puck over, but the team as a whole. In my opinion the team attacks as a unit of five and defends as a unit of five. I agree with you that the forwards could have been in better positions on occasion, but also some of the worst clearances from behind the red line - most of which were by d-men - could have been better. I know no one intends to watch forwards skate through the (team's) defence, except maybe the attacking team's fans, but when it's your (team's) defence it's infuriating. Are you a Level 3 coach? No? Then I don't think your "advice" is necessary. We have coaches available at all levels. Including one of the highest-qualified Level 3 coaches in the UK, so we're OK for advice thanks. Did it hurt where I touched that nerve? Surely it's irrelevant as to whether I'm a Level 3 coach. By the same token, you have to have a doctorate in film studies to watch a film, and be nominated for the Turner Prize before you can judge a painting. As Les put it earlier, "thats the good thing about forums diffrent people have diffrent opinions". If I didn't think my opinion is right, it wouldn't be my opinion and I wouldn't express it at all, least of all at high volume on a Sunday night having paid to watch my favourite time roll over in the dying seconds of a game. You don't think they players don't know that they can play well? You don't think that they don't get frustrated when things don't go right? Problem is, they don't live in the past and live on past glories. What's done is done. Yes we're defending League Champions but if we don't defend our title then we don't, it's someone else's turn. It's only the past because it's last season, yet we go into every game as the current defending champions. Additionally, with the players we've got and the coaching credentials you told me we have, it doesn't need to be someone else's turn yet. Thing is, players will only listen to criticsm from people they respect - like coaches. Oh no the players won't like me if I don't say nice things about them! I'm not a puckbunny so I don't need their approval. If they want to take or reject what I say at face value that's up them, but if they think about what I say and why I say it they might react a little differently. Actually putting ticket prices up is more to do with trying to cover costs. It's not nice for people to rip off others by watching for free, but whatever we say or do that's not going to change. I don't think we'll need to put prices up but it's an option we have. That's good news about the prices.
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