Well, that was some playoffs, eh? From cruising to what looked like an assured victory against the Steeldogs, to penalty shots in the space of 30 minutes... and the pants shitting terror that only penalty shots can induce.
Never before have I seen the Phoenix faithful so nervous. The tension was almost literally palpable. The language being whispered and shouted from the stands was, er shall we say less than family friendly thanks to the appropriately named ref for the game, Roman Suchz (not sure on the exact spelling there). Add in the fact that for whatever reason most of the 'neutrals' seemed to be against us for whatever reasons, and it was truly the most amazing, frightening, and exilarating time I have ever been a part of in a hockey rink. The sheer noise when the winning penalty shot crossed the line will live with me forever. If you were not there, try to remember the noise and relief when the buzzer went at the end of the Swindon game that wrapped up the title in 2011, then magnifiy that by about twofold. 500 people have never made so much noise ever, I swear.
Sadly, the sheer passion of the semi final, and the physical toll it took on the boys, thanks to Payettes bullshit goon tactics (which allegedly included players on the Steeldogs bench squirting water on the visors of any Phoenix player who strayed too close) and the aforementioned shite officiating mean't that for the 3rd year on the trot we failed to be crowned play off champions. But still, what a weekend.
And off the ice....
Lots of booze, lots of laughs, and lots of great memories. From Pete 'Willy Wonka' Roden and his band of Ompah-Loompahs, through the LMFAO tribute fans, to the beer bottles sported by myself and my brilliant friends, the Phoenix fans brought the fun to the play-offs. Shit, not only did we have more fans there than anyone else (despite Guildford boats that they were bringing more than we were), to owning the Old Windmill pub, the 2011-2012 playoffs were owned by the Phoenix fans.
And even in defeat on the Sunday, we still kept the support and party going. From a group of 50 or so of us saluting the players on the long, lonely walk from the locker room to the coach after the final, to rocking the Old Windmill till closing time (with a surprise visit from long time Belfast fan Oxo, who bought a round of shots for some 20 people, most of whom he didn't even know), we showed that its not just about winning, its about just being. We are the Faithful. And we enjoy it.
And we cant forget some other highlights:
Brenda and Carla not getting off the train in Coventry, leaving Sophie stranded.
Buzz Bee in his highly inapproprite drag
'Beergate' (McPherson is a star)
and the wonderfull 'Watt is an anagram' chant (work it out, people...).
Shit, roll on next year.
