OK, here is yet another 'warning'

If you are reading this blog, then you will have clicked through a warning page from Blooger/Google, notifying you that there may be contnent that is classified ad 'adult' within. You will have also noted the bright red warning which sits atop each page, composed by myself, which further warns specifically about the type of language which can be found within.

I would like to think that most internet users would understand that these are there for a reason. They are not 'general' warnings which serve no purpose. They are there for a reason. This blog can, and often does, contain language which is classified as 'adult'. For the purposes of this posting, I'm not going to repeat these words, as I assume that you can guess most of them.

I write emotionally. I use the words which best sum up my emotions when composing a missive on here, and on occasion this is somewhat 'industrial' in nature. For this I make no apologies.

Thank you for your time.

And so it begins.....

Indeed. Sunday saw the mighty Phoenix take to the ice at the Ice Dome (well, they wouldn't take to the pitch would they?) and face the Sheffield Steelpups, sorry Steeldogs in the 2nd leg of the annual War of the Roses trophy series.

And guess what? The Pups only went and bloody won the thing! Well, they won on aggregate as the fairly sizeable crowd on hand saw a true rarity: Both netminders gained shut outs leading to a 0-0 draw. Which isn't to say the game was boring.

Far from it, in fact.

As per usual, Coach Payettes Pups took a few 'liberties' during the game. And, also as per usual, the officials were simply shite. There. I said it. Even with 4 of them on the fucking ice, they still missed some of the most blatant cheating seen in the borough of Trafford since the last time Christiano Ronaldo took to the pitch at Old Trafford! Seriously, there was a distinct lack of any attempts to apply any degree of control to the play. If this is what we can expect this season, then there will be a lot of pisse doff players and fans in the Dome over the coming months.

 New import Pozivil took a bit of a battering from ex-Phoenix player Derek Campbell during the 1st period. Campbells reaction was way out of proportion, and I highly doubt he would have tried the same shit with, oh say Schnabel unless he wanted to be eating his post match meal through a straw. Speaking of Big Rob, Payette seemed to be trying to draw a scrap out of him all game, continually having cheeky digs.... before speeding towards the bench as fast as his shall we say 'increased' frame would allow. Big Rob was wise to this, however and treated Payettes dihgs with the lack of response they deserved.

And Poor old Tom Duggan. The lad almost had his head ripped off by one of the Pups, who reached over his helmet and appeared to pull it backwards over himself. Which unsurprisingly neither of the Refs saw. Not only was this blatant cheating, it was also fucking dangerous. Idiots.

Beyond that, the Phoenix looked exactly like you would expect from a team who had only had a couple of training sessions and 1 game before hand. I personally am not worried about the season base don this showing. Once the rink rust is properly blown off, this bunch of players are going to rack up the points for fun. All 4 imports showed signs that they will be weel worth the wages, and the Brit lads, new and old, looked as smooth as we have come to expect. And for tjhose who were not there, this is a seriously fucking huge squad of players. For once, Ben Wood does not look like he has strayed in from a episode of Land of The Giants. Schnabel in particular is HUGE.

And the highlight of the night was watching the Pups players celebrate. Seriously, you would have thought they had won the fucking playoffs, such was the jubilation on display. Calm down, dears. Its only the War of the Roses Cup (which we own. We have the receipt and everything!).

See y'all on Sunday!

Its the final countdown.....

Yes, there is just a week to go til the new season begins with our annual 'friendly' fixtures against the Steeldogs. I say 'Friendly', but after last seasons play off semi final, I'm expecting this game to be anything but. I know a number of our returning players were somewhat less than impressed with the antics of the Steeldogs squad during the game, so the chance to , ahem, say hello will surely be taken. Payettes thugs won't find it as easy to push our guys around this season, either.

And the (almost) final make up of the squad looks good. The final imports all appear to have the hallmark of THs careful signing policy, and will hopefully do us a very good job indeed.

And the TH question? Will he play, wont he play? Fucked if I know to be honest, but my gut feeling is that he probably will.

Anyways, onto other stuff....

Predictions for the season: League champions to be either us, or Guildford. I honestly can not see past the two of us again. The battle for 3rd thru 5th should be a close fought run between B-Stoke, Sluff, and MK with my gut feeling being that the Bison will (finally) come good this season. I'd reckon the 3rd place team could be up to 10 points adrift of the top 2 though. Behend them, the scrap for the remaining play off spots should be between Swindon, Potty, and the Puppies. Despite the sucess of last season, Payettes thug squad are going to find it much harder this season without talismanic nettie Bowns to keep them in games, but I still see them qualifying for the quarter finals. And once again poor old Bracknell and Telford will miss out, although don't be surprised if it comes down to the wire for the 8th and final play off spot.

And thats your lot (for now).

See you at the rink!

Fan Liason...

Ok, I'm sure most of you know that I am currently the 'Fan Liason' officer for the club. Over on the forum I've asked a simple question:

What should I be doing as Fan Liason?

To expand: I want to know what you folks think that I should be doing as your Fan Liason. It's easy for me to come up with ideas for things I think I should be doing, but these may not be the same as you think i should be doing.

So let me know. This feedback is important to me!

Its cold, its wet, it must be hockey seas... no, wait its still summer!

Despite all apperances to the contrary outside your windows, it is still summertime, and therefore off season. And as I'm laid up at home today after tweaking my back pretty badly, I thought I'd commit a few more thoughts to the digital domain...

So, the squad building is continuing nicely. Joachim Flaten was confirmed, and looks to be a solid signing. Based on his stats, and the level at which he has played, I'm going to stick my neck out and say he will be the next 'Kristofferson'. I fully expect at least 40 goals, and the best part of 100 points from him. Liam Chong looks like another good young British pick up and should log decent ice time on the 3rd line. And Tom Duggan is returning after a brilliant season at the Dome last time out. Big things are expected of this young man.

Sure, the D looks a little lightweight right now, with just James Neil and Ben Wood announced, but I fully expect Coach Hand to announce 2 import D man before long (hopefully one of Harabin or Spelda, who knows, amybe even both), and hopefully we shall see Captain Fantastic Luke Boothroyd return for another season.

Beyond that...

Things are just ticking over. The shirt launch is on the 29th, so I would expect one signing to be announced, and likely revealed at this event, alnogside our jerseys for the forthcoming season. Jersey prediction: I expect to see the 'Serva Fidem' logo used more prominently.

Over in the shadow zone known as the EIHL, the leagues conference based re-alignment has caused some consternation/ despite being a fairly even geographical split, the Southern Conference appears to be the stronger of the 2 (And keeps the Steelers and Panthers together, maintaining their 'need' tpo play each other 8 times a season). Given the relative strengths of the teams in each conference, it is likley that the Southern will dominate the playoffs. Interestingly enough, when regional conferences were suggested in the past, the EIHL board was uninterested, nay dismissive of the concept, saying it was financially unviable. I wonder what made them change their minds? (Hint: travel will have played a large part in it)

And thats your lot for now!