Match Report: Mayhem 0 - Sheffield Steelkings 3 (BPIHL Match #4)

Ben O'Brien and Dan Hartshorn were the respective MVPs for the Steelkings and Mayhem on Sunday (Photo by Paul Breeze)

Sunday 7^th June 2026 – BPIHL Match #4: Mayhem 0 - Sheffield Steelkings 3

The Mayhem sledge team put in a battling performance against defending champions Sheffield Steelkings but ultimately succumbed to a 0-3 defeat at Planet Ice Widnes on Sunday.

It was a very closely-contested, high octane encounter - and a great advert for Para Ice Hockey - which could have gone either way for much of its duration.

After a tense opening, with chances for both sides, Sheffield eventually took the lead in the 12^th minute with a goal from summer signing Gary Farmer and the score remained 0-1 at the first period break.

The second period was just as close until the Steelkings doubled their lead with just 39 seconds left on the clock to put daylight between the two teams at the second break.

The third period followed a very similar pattern – with the Mayhem enjoying plenty of puck possession but not being able to convert that into scoring opportunities.

It was quite a physical game although this was not reflected in the penalty count – 8 for the Mayhem and 4 for Sheffield – as, for the most part, the match officials let the play flow rather than repeatedly blowing the whistle for constant stoppages.

Just as it looked as if the third period would play out goal-less, Sheffield struck another late goal – this time with just 24 seconds left in the game – and secured a 0-3 victory.

The MVP (Most Valuable Player) awards were presented by Mayhem sponsor Alex Graham of Swisspine Galston and went to Ben O’Brien for Sheffield and netminder Dan Hartshorn for the Mayhem.

Sunday’s result means that an incredible FOUR teams are now level on points at this early stage of the league competition, all having one win each.

Sheffield Steelstings remain top of the league table on goal difference courtesy of their 8-1 win over Peterborough the previous weekend while their rink-mates the Steelkings now move into second place.

Manchester Mayhem are third – just above Cardiff Huskies, over whom they have a marginally superior playing record from the two matches between the two teams - and Peterborough Phantoms occupy bottom spot with “null points” after their loss to the Stings in their only game to date.

There is just one game this weekend when Cardiff Huskies take on Peterborough Phantoms on Saturday 13^th June down in the Welsh capital, 6.25pm face off. 

The Mayhem are next in action the following Saturday - 20^th June – when they entertain the Phantoms at Planet Ice Widnes, 5.25pm face off.

Sledge Hockey 2026: Weekend Round-Up #3

Defending champions Sheffield Steelkings opened their 2026 British Para Ice Hockey League campaign with a hard-fought 0-3 win away at Manchester Mayhem on Sunday.

It was a very closely-contested, high octane encounter - and a great advert for Para Ice Hockey - which could have gone either way for much of its duration.

After a tense opening, with chances for both sides, Sheffield eventually took the lead in the 12^th minute with a goal from summer signing Gary Farmer and the score remained 0-1 at the first period break.

The second period was just as close until Ben O Brien doubled the Steelkings’ lead with just 39 seconds left on the clock to put daylight between the two teams at the second break and a further strike late in the third – from Daniel Clarke, with 24 seconds left in the game - handed Sheffield a 0-3 victory.

The netminders at both ends were in fine form – although the Mayhem’s Daniel Hartshorn was the busiest – and Jonathan Gill and Damien Barker shared a shut-out in the Sheffield goal.

The result means that an incredible FOUR teams are level on points at this early stage of the league competition, all having one win each.

Sheffield Steelstings remain top of the league table on goal difference courtesy of their 8-1 win over Peterborough the previous weekend while their rink-mates the Steelkings now move into second place.

Manchester Mayhem are third – just above Cardiff Huskies, over whom they have a marginally superior playing record from the two matches between the two teams - and Peterborough Phantoms occupy bottom spot with “null points” after their loss to the Stings in their only game to date.

There is just one game this weekend as we see Cardiff Huskies take on Peterborough Phantoms on Saturday 13^th June in the Welsh capital, 6.25pm face off. 

The following Saturday - 20^th June - sees Manchester Mayhem entertain the Phantoms in Widnes (5.25pm face off) and the Sheffield Steelkings take on Cardiff at iceSheffield, 6.20pm start.

For more information about the British Para Ice Hockey League, check out the official website HERE

and follow the latest news on their Fabebook page HERE

D2 Dragons Confirm Coaches For New Season

Deeside D2 Dragons
Head Coach Gary Shaw
(Photo by Paul Breeze

The Deeside D2 Dragons Laidler Division team have confirmed that Head Coach Gary Shaw will be back at the helm for the forthcoming 2026/27 Laidler Division season, with Simon Hughes and James Parsons also returning as assistant coaches.

The Division 2 development side – known as the Ducks for their first season – was formed in 2024 to offer a stepping stone between the Deeside junior programme and the main Dragons Moralee Division team, giving promising younger players the opportunity to benefit from playing regular competitive hockey to help with their development.

In the past two seasons, the Ducks / D2 Dragons set up has given NIHL debuts to 27 such players and a number of them have also had opportunities to play up with the senior Dragons team.

After finishing in 9^th place out of 9 teams in their first season, the D2 Dragons showed a great improvement this time around, finishing 6^th in the final league table and going on to surprise a lot of people by beating higher ranked opposition in both the quarter-final and semi-final of the playoffs to win through to the final, only to lose out to league champions Sutton Sting.

Gary Shaw has a decades-long connection with Deeside and is a former player with both the Deeside Dragons and Flintshire Freeze. He has also served as Assistant Coach and Head Coach with the Deeside Dragons, Head Coach of the Deeside Dragons U18 programme, and most recently leading both the Deeside Ducks and D2 Dragons.

Simon Hughes brings valuable hockey experience, having played senior hockey with both the Deeside Dragons and Trafford Metros and was an Assistant Coach under Gary Shaw with the Deeside Demons second team back in the late 1980s. His knowledge of the game, calm approach, and dedication to player development make him a key member of the coaching staff.

James Parsons is another long-time Deeside favourite with over 20 years’ experience playing for the senior Dragons. He made a great impression with the development side last season both as coach and also as a player where he scored 17 goals and 13 assists in 26 games.

Match Report: Cardiff Huskies 5 - Manchester Mayhem 4 (BPIHL Match #2)

Craig Riley was the Mayhem MVP away at Cardiff (Photo by David Tattum)

Saturday 30^th May 2026 – BPIHL Match #2: Cardiff Huskies 5 – Mayhem 4

The Mayhem sledge team put in a battling performance in their second game of the new British Para Ice Hockey League season, narrowly losing out 5-4 to Cardiff Huskies in the Welsh capital.

The two teams had already met up in Widnes two weeks earlier, with the Mayhem winning 2-0 but both teams had additional players available for Saturday’s clash, with GB internationals Karl Nicholson and Tyler Christopher lining up for the Mayhem and Huskies respectively.

Cardiff opened the scoring early in the first period and went on to double the lead before Karl Nicholson pulled a goal back for the Mayhem with just 23 seconds left on the clock.

The Huskies scored again on 26 minutes but Nicholson fired in for the Mayhem again two minutes after that and the score stood at a very close 3-2 with one period left to play.

The Mayhem had plenty of chances on goal in this game – hitting the post 4 times – and actually narrowly out-shot the Huskies by 25 to 23 over the course of the game but were just not able to make them count. Cardiff edged further ahead again with a goal 2 minutes into the third period and, once again, Karl Nicholson responded almost immediately with his hat-trick goal. 

The game continued on a knife-edge and the tension mounted around the South Wales rink as the clock slowly ticked down.

The Huskies scored again with two minutes left to play but Dean Lahan pulled a goal back for the Mayhem with just 32 seconds left on the clock.  Unfortunately, it was too late to spark a late rally and the game finished in a narrow 5-4 victory for the Welsh team.

Craig Riley – playing only his second ever Para Ice Hockey match – was named Player of the Game for the Mayhem. 

Head Coach Peter Hagan commented afterwards:  “Lady Luck wasn’t with us today but there was some good play out there. There are few things to look at to improve upon - but we can take lots of positives from the game. We are definitely on the right track!”

The other game of the weekend saw the Sheffield Steelstings - the Steel City’s  “development “ team – trounce last year’s league runners up Peterborough Phantoms 8-1.

The Steelstings have been the league’s whipping boys in recent years and only managed to score two goals in their 8 league games last season - so this was quite a turn-around in fortunes. 

Senior Kings players Jake Oakley and Barry Grayson have switched to the Stings for this season  to give some extra experience and depth to the development side that had 6 new players icing in their first ever game and, judging from this initial result, the BPIHL competition is going to be a lot closer this year.

The weekend results saw the Steelstings take over at the top of the BPIHL table – quite possibly for the first time ever- leading a pack of 3 teams that all have 1 win each. 

The Stings are top of the pile on goal difference while the Mayhem are in second due to a superior playing record over Cardiff in the games between the two teams.  Peterborough have “null points” from their defeat away in Sheffield and the Sheffield Steelkings – last year’s league and play off champions - have yet to play this season.

The Mayhem are at home this Sunday 7th June when they take on the Steelkings at Planet Ice Widnes, 5.15pm start.

Find out more about the Manchester Mayhem on their official website HERE

and about the British Para Ice Hockey League HERE

Sledge Hockey 2026: Round-Up #2

Sledge Hockey 2026: Round-Up #2

It’s all change at the top of the BPIHL table after Sheffield Steelstings notched up an 8-1 win over Peterborough Phantoms at iceSheffield on Saturday.

A new-look Stings team saw 6 players making their BPIHL debuts, supported by senior Kings players Jake Oakley and Barry Grayson who have switched to the Stings for this season to give some extra experience and depth to the development side.

Dutch player Jurrian Raa scored 5 goals on his UK league debut and Jake Oakley fired in the other three. D-Jay Hall got the consolation goal for the Phantoms.

The other game of the weekend saw Cardiff Huskies beat Manchester Mayhem 5-4 in a highly entertaining and closely fought match that could have gone either way until the very last second.

Karl Nicholson scored a hat-trick for the Mayhem with Dean Lahan scoring the last goal. Tyler Christopher and Jon le Galloudec both bagged a brace for the Huskies and Josh Davies got the other one.

The league table has three teams all with one win each at this early stage of the season. The Stings are top of the pile on goal difference while the Mayhem are in second due to a superior playing record over Cardiff in the games between the two teams. 

Peterborough have “null points” from their defeat away in Sheffield and the Sheffield Steelkings – last year’s league and play off champions - have yet to play this season.

This weekend sees the Mayhem take on the Steelkings on Sunday 7^th June at Planet Ice Widnes, 5.15pm start.

League Leaders Mayhem Head To Cardiff On Saturday

The Mayhem team after their table-topping victory over Cardiff (Photo by Kat)

The Mayhem sledge team head to South Wales this Saturday 30th May to play their second game of the new British Para Ice Hockey League season away to Cardiff Huskies (face off 6.30pm)

The two sides met in a highly entertaining season opener at Planet Ice Widnes two weeks ago in a game that the Mayhem narrowly edged 2-0 to leave them top of the league table at this early stage of the season.  Mayhem team captain Mark Colquitt also leads the BPIHL scoring standings for the time being with his one goal and one assist from the first game but there is, obviously, still a long way to go, with other teams yet to play.

Also on Saturday, the Sheffield Steelstings development team take on Peterborough Phantoms in the first game of the season for both teams in Sheffield. 

The Mayhem are next at home on Sunday 7th June when they take on the last season’s league and play off champions, Sheffield’s senior side - the Steelkings - at Planet Ice Widnes, 5.15pm start.

Flintshire Phantoms In 17 Goal Thriller

Ondra Liebelt was on target for the Phantoms against the Huskies (Photo by Greg Grogan)

Sunday 24th May: Flintshire Phantoms 5 – Halton Huskies 12 

The Flintshire Phantoms played out a 17-goal thriller against the Widnes-based Halton Huskies, unfortunately ending up on the wrong end of a 12-5 defeat on Sunday.

Games between Deeside and Widnes based clubs are always keenly contested, passionate affairs due to the relative proximity of the two venues and a regular migration of players over the years in both directions, are rarely dull – and this was no exception.

The game was actually a home game for the Phantoms but had to be played at Widnes as there wasn’t any suitable ice time available at Deeside Leisure Centre due to a weekend hockey training camp being held at the venue.

The Huskies – the “visitors” in this case – took the lead after 7 minutes and were 0-3 ahead at the first period break. They scored twice more in the second period before the Phantoms finally found the back of the net themselves with a goal from Geoffrey Coombs on 26 minutes.

Flintshire further narrowed the deficit with goals from former Deeside Ducks league player Louis Ellwood and Ken Valyear but 4 more goals for the Huskies saw them leading 3-9 at the second interval. 

The Phantoms scored again on 48 minutes with a second Valyear strike but three more goals followed for the Huskies – rounding off an impressive 4-goal haul for Jack Davies, another former Deeside Duck – to bring their tally to 12, before Ondra Liebelt rounded off the scoring for the game with the Phantoms’ fifth goal.

The two teams will meet again in the return match on 27th June which will officially be the “away” game for the Phantoms and will, once again, take place at Widnes.

Halton Huskies in 17 Goal Thriller

Jack Davies scored four goals for the Huskies against Flintshire (Photo by David Tattum)

Sunday 24th May:  Flintshire Phantoms 5 – Halton Huskies 12 

The Halton Huskies played out a 17-goal thriller against the Deeside-based Flintshire Phantoms coming out 12-5 winners at Planet Ice Widnes on Sunday.

Games between Deeside and Widnes based clubs are always keenly contested, passionate affairs due to the relative proximity of the two venues and a regular migration of players over the years in both directions, are rarely dull – and this was no exception.

This game was actually a “home” game for the Phantoms but had to be played at Widnes as there wasn’t any suitable ice time available at Deeside Leisure Centre due to a weekend hockey training camp being held at the venue.

The Huskies – the “visitors” in this case – took the lead after 7 minutes with goal from David Hrubovsky and were 0-3 ahead at the first period break after further strikes from Jack Davies and Edward Ridding.

Halton scored twice more in the second period – with goals coming from Valerica Florea and Jordan Birtwistle - before the Phantoms finally found the back of the net themselves on 26 minutes. Flintshire further narrowed the deficit with 2 more goals but 4 strikes for the Huskies – from Hrubovsky, Davies, Gez Evans and Dominic Harbour - saw them leading 3-9 at the second interval.

The Phantoms pulled another goal back on 48 minutes but three more goals followed for the Huskies – two more for Davies, rounding off an impressive 4-goal haul, and a second for Evans – to bring their tally to 12, before Flintshire finished off the scoring for the game with their fifth and final goal.

The two teams will meet again in the return match on 27th June which will officially be the “home” game for the Huskies and will, once again, take place at Widnes.

Deeside Dragons Launch Women's Team

Deeside Dragons Coaches Emma Dutton, Phil Pearson, Emma Pearson and Josh Grocutt (Photo by Katy Lennon)

The Deeside Dragons club have announced the formation of a new senior women’s team.

The club has run an Under 16 girls team for the past two seasons and this latest decision follows two successful sessions at the North Wales rink that were well attended by girls and women players of varying ages and experience from across the region.

This won’t be the first time that Deeside has had a women’s ice hockey team as the previous Flintshire Furies club played league hockey at the venue from 2002 to 2010, winning two league championships during that period - and a number of former Furies players are still active with other clubs.

There are currently three other women’s league teams in the North West – at Altrincham, Blackburn and Widnes – so it will be interesting to see what happens when the new Dragons outfit joins the mix.

The overall lead for Deeside girl’s and women’s programme is Emma Pearson, who is currently head Coach of the U16 Girls team and has been involved with the Dragons juniors for a number of years.

Emma has a huge experience of women’s ice hockey having played some 250 competitive matches over a 20 year period, with spells at Altrincham Deeside, Kingston, Sheffield and Widnes, winning league titles with Flintshire in 2003, Manchester Phoenix in 2015 and the Widnes Wild Women in 2020.

Emma’s husband Phil Pearson will already be a familiar face to many at Deeside as he is a netminder for the senior Dragons NIHL team, however, he has also been heavily involved in coaching the Deeside juniors and girls and he will be the Head Coach for the new women’s team.  Phil already has a good record in women’s league hockey as he coached the Wild Women to the Division 1 North title back in the 2019/20 season, where Emma was team captain and top scorer.

Emma Dutton is another highly experienced women’s league player and joins the staff of the new women’s team as Assistant Player Coach. She is the all-time record appearance holder for the Flintshire Furies with 111 games over 8 seasons and also has three league titles under her belt – two with Flintshire and one the Manchester Phoenix.

She is a founder and head coach of the Deeside–based Connah Quay Cobras rec team and also played league hockey last season for the Widnes Wild Women.

The management team is completed by Katy Lennon as Team Manager, continuing the role that she has carried out so successfully with the Under 16 Girls team for the past two seasons.

Dragons Under 16 Girls at Play Offs

The Dragons Girls at the Play Offs in Sheffield (Photo by Katy Lennon)

Saturday 23^rd May 2026 – U16 Girls Play Off Semi Final: Ice Bees 1 – Deeside Dragons 0

The Deeside Dragons Under 16 Girls team put in a battling performance in their play-off semi final, narrowly losing out 1-0 to the Ice Bees in Sheffield on Saturday.

Having finished in second place in the North Division, the Dragons girls were paired up against the Slough-based Ice Bees, who finished first in the South Division and, as teams from the north and south don’t meet very often, it was impossible to predict what might happen.

As the score suggests, it was a very closely fought game with little to choose between the teams. The Bees took the lead in the first period and, while Deeside had their chances, they were unable to make any sort of breakthrough.

Violet Lennon put in a superb display in the Deeside goal and was named Player of the Game for the Dragons girls.

In the other semi-final  North champions Whitley Bay beat South runners up Chelmsford Rattlesnakes 4-2 and went on to beat the Ice Bees 3-0 in the National final on Sunday.

Dragonettes Head To Women's Play Offs

Dragonettes Head Coach
Emma Pearson

The Deeside Dragons Under 16 Girls team are heading back to Sheffield this weekend to take part in the Women’s Play Off Weekend for the first time, after finishing in second place in the league in just their second season of competition.

The Play Off Weekend is a huge jamboree that sees the top teams in the Women’s Elite League,  Division 1 North and South, Division 2 North and South – Elizabeth and Valerie sections - and the U16 Girls League North and South meet in semi finals and finals to decide overall national champions for each division.

It is a masterpiece of organisation as there are 15 games to fit in back to back over the three days from Saturday to Monday.

Having finished in second place in the U16 North Division, the Dragonettes will play the Slough-based Ice Bees - who finished top of the South Division – in their semi-final facing off at 10.45 on Saturday.

North champions Whitley Bay will play South runners up Chelmsford Rattlesnakes in the early start game at 9am and the two winners will meet in the final at 12.30 on Sunday.

Talking about the Dragonettes achievements this year, Head Coach Emma Pearson said:

“We are incredibly proud of the girls and the season they’ve had. We knew it was always going to be tough to beat Whitley, but to only lose two games all season — both against them — is a massive achievement and really shows how far this group has come. It’s a relatively young team, and the development and commitment they’ve shown throughout the year has been outstanding.

“Looking ahead to the playoffs, we know it’ll be a tough game against the Ice Bees after they finished top of the southern division, but the team will do everything we can to go out there, compete, and see where it takes us.”

The full schedule for the WNIHL Play Offs is as follows:

Saturday 23^rd May

• 9am - U16 SF1: Whitley v Chelmsford
• 10.45am - U16 SF2: Ice Bees v Deeside
• 12.30pm - Elite SF1: Queen Bees v Whitley
• 2.45pm – Elite SF2: Guildford v Solihull
• 5pm - D1 SF1:Kingston v Fire Bees
• 7.15pm - D1 SF2:  Swindon v Caledonia

Sunday 24^th May

• 8.30am - D2V SF1: Kingston v Slough
• 10.30am - D2V SF2: Haringey v Whitley
• 12.30pm - U16 Final
• 2.15pm - Elite Final
• 4.30pm - D1 Final
• 6.45pm - D2E SF1: Caledonia v Coventry
• 8.45pm - D2E SF2: Invicta v Manchester

Monday 25^th May

• 10am - D2V Final
• 12.15pm - D2E Final

To find out about tickets for the WNIHL Finals Weekend - and also the livestreaming option - in check out the EIH(A) ticketing portal HERE

Dragons Under 14s Win Treble at Play Offs

Poppy Ward and Harrison Ward
with the National Championship
trophy (Photo by Katy Lennon)

The Deeside Dragons Under 14 team scooped an impressive trio of trophies for the season after winning two more titles at the National Play Offs at Sheffield at the weekend. 

Having already won the North West league title, they played North East champions Billingham on Saturday to decide an overall North Champion.

They had to fight back after going 2-0 down early on to eventually win 4-2 with goals coming from Poppy Ward (2), Harrison Ward and Ruben Batho.

This result saw the Dragons pitted against South champions Slough on Sunday for the National title.

That game was just as closely contested with Deeside opening up an early lead with two goals from Poppy Ward before Slough pegged them back to 2-2.

Harrison Ward edged the young Dragons back in front and they had to endure a tense last few minutes as Slough took off their netminder in favour of an extra attacker to try and force a late equaliser. 

The Deeside defence managed to keep them at bay, however, with Violet Lennon performing heroics in the Dragons net to secure the 3-2 victory and the National Division 2 Championship.

Match Report: Manchester Mayhem 2 - Cardiff Huskies 0 (BPIHL 2026 Match #1)

Anthony Booth was that Mayhem MVP against Cardiff (Photo by Roksana Oniszczuk)

Saturday 16^th May 2026 – BPIHL Match #1: Mayhem 2- Cardiff Huskies 0

The Mayhem sledge team enjoyed a winning start to the new 2026 British Para Ice Hockey League season with a 2-0 home victory over Cardiff Huskies at Planet Ice Widnes on Saturday.

Both teams had some regular players missing from their line-ups and both also had a number of new players on the ice who were playing their first ever game – so it was anybody’s guess as to how this match might pan out.

The Mayhem handed debuts to Annie Arnill, Maddy Howard, Josh Stodel and Craig Riley and also unveiled their smart new purple playing shirts.

The game was played at a tremendous pace throughout with very few stoppages and plenty of end to end hockey.  Both teams were quite evenly matched but the Mayhem had the edge in their attacking plays and took the lead with a goal from team captain Mark Colquitt on 12 minutes.

Two minutes later, the score was 2-0 to the Mayhem, courtesy of a goal from Anthony Booth and they looked to be flying.

Cardiff successfully regrouped, however, and the score remained 2-0 at the first period break.

Mayhem debutant Maddy Howard
wearing the new playing shirt
(Photo by Dino)

The game continued at the same furious pace but, despite numerous chances for both teams, the remaining two periods played out goal-less.

The Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards went to Arran Flay – who was playing his first game – for Cardiff and Anthony Booth for the Mayhem.  Dan Hartshorn also receives credit for his 13-shot shut-out in the Mayhem goal.

After the game, Mayhem Head Coach Peter Hagan said:

“It was a great team effort, with 2-3 players missing and several debuts, there was not much more we could have asked for in our first game.”

“Both goalies were in great form & both teams could have had a few more goals had it not been for some great saves at both ends.”

“It was great to see Cardiff with several new players too, which, hopefully, shows that the sport is growing across the country.”

The 2-0 win means that the Mayhem top the league table at this very early stage of the season as all the other teams are yet to play.

They are next in action away to Cardiff on Saturday 30^th May down in the Welsh capital.  Sheffield Steelstings and Peterborough Phantoms meet in their first game of the season on the same day.

The Mayhem and Huskies teams after the opening match of the 2026 BPIHL season (Photo by Roksana Oniszczuk)

Sledge Hockey 2026: Round-Up #1

The 2026 British Para Ice Hockey League season got under way at the weekend with Manchester Mayhem beating Cardiff Huskies 2-0 in a highly entertaining and closely fought match.

The only goals in the game came in the first period, courtesy of Mark Colquitt and Anthony Booth, and Mayhem netminder Dan Hartshorn picked up a 13-shot shut-out.

There are no BPIHL games this coming weekend but the Saturday after – 30^th May - sees Cardiff and Manchester play the return game down in the Welsh capital (6.30pm face off) and Sheffield Steelstings and Peterborough Phantoms meet in their first game of the season at ice Sheffield (6.20pm start).

You can see more detailed reports - with photos - of the Mayhem v Huskies game on the highly informative Ice Hockey Review grassroots news website HERE

 And the Manchester Mayhem official website HERE 

Dragons Juniors Win League Title

Deeside Dragons Under 14s celebrate winning the league championship (Photo by Junior Dragons IHC)

The Deeside Dragons Under 14 second team received the league trophy after winning the North West Division 2 title.

The award was presented after their last game of the season which was at home to Telford, where a huge crowd cheered them on to an 8-2 victory at Deeside Leisure Centre on Sunday.

They finished the season with an impressive 17 wins from their 20 league games, 6 points clear of second place Solihull Junior Barons, and have qualified for the national finals this weekend in Sheffield.

The Under 14s first team didn’t fare so well as they lost 1-7 to champions Nottingham on Sunday and finish in 5^th place in the Division 1 league table with 7 wins from their 18 matches.

The Deeside Dragons Junior club has teams competing at all age levels from Under 10s to Under 19s.

The Under 10s don’t play in a league as such but take part in regular mini tournaments where the players can develop basic skills in a fun environment.

The Under 12s have finished 6^th in the U12 Division 2 North with 7 wins from 18 games after losing their last game of the season 7-3 away in Hull on Saturday.

The Under 16s will finish in 8^th place in the U16 Division 1 North but have the chance to finish the season on a winning note when they take on bottom team Bradford at Deeside Leisure Centre this Saturday, 4.30pm face off.

The Under 19s look likely to finish 4th in U19 Division 2 North and have their last game of the season this at home to Coventry on Saturday.

Admission to Deeside junior games is free of charge and supporters are encouraged to go along and cheer on the Dragons stars of the future.

Dragons Players At Bradford Charity Game

Matty Barlow, Damarni James and Rhys Edwards at the Bradford charity game (Photo by David Edwards)

Dragons senior players Matty Barlow, Rhys Edwards and Damarni James took part in a charity match at Bradford in aid of Blood Cancer UK.

The game was part of Bradford Ice Rink’s 60th anniversary celebrations and featured a number of current and former Bulldogs players. 

All three players learned their early hockey at Bradford – who have a highly respected junior development programme – and also played for the Bulldogs in the Laidler Division.

The game was played in front of a capacity crowd and a number of Deeside fans travelled to support the event and cheer on their Dragons heroes.

Damarni’s “White” team beat Matty and Rhys’ “Blue” team 11-8 but more important was the fact that over £2.000 was raised for the charity - and a good time was had by all.

You can see lots of great photos from the match - and also a link to a video of the whole game – on the Bulldogs Facebook page HERE

Blood Cancer UK website HERE

Mayhem Start New Para Season This Saturday

Manchester Mayhem Para Ice Hockey Team (Photo by Roksana Oniszczuk)

The Mayhem sledge hockey team are back in action this Saturday 16th May when they take on Cardiff Huskies in their opening match of the 2026 British Para Ice Hockey League season at Planet Ice Widnes, 6.10pm face off.

There are 5 teams in the league again this season with Cardiff Huskies, Peterborough Phantoms and two teams from Sheffield – the Steelkings and the Steelstings – making up the Mayhem’s opposition. Each team plays the others once at home and once away and the top four finishers also qualify for the end of season play offs.

Looking ahead to the new season, Head Coach Peter Hagan said:

“We are excited to get back to league action in 2026, after a strong finish in 2025 and we are hoping to build on that this year. We have grown both on and off the ice as we have several new faces who have joined the team, so we’ll hopefully see a few debuts this season as well, which is great for the team and the sport as a whole.”

“We have managed to attract a few new sponsors, which really helps the club’s stability, and we are always happy to chat to anyone interested in getting involved on or off ice.”

“Hopefully, with the Winter Paralympics having recently been on, we can attract more fans league wide to “discover" para ice hockey on their doorstep, and get more people involved and grow the sport.

“Every team has improved and it will be a tough season this year, possibly the toughest so far - which can only benefit the sport and the GB teams. So, as difficult as it will be for the teams, it's a bright future for the sport as a whole.”

The full list of Mayhem fixtures for the 2026 BPIHL season is:

• 16th May:  Home v Cardiff Huskies
• 30th May: Away @ Cardiff Huskies
• 7th June: Home v Sheffield Steelkings
• 20th June:  Home v Peterborough Phantoms
• 27th June: Away @ Sheffield Steelkings
• 4th July: Away @ Sheffield Steelstings
• 25th July: Home v Sheffield Steelstings
• 30th August: Away @ Peterborough Phantoms

Home games at Widnes faceoff at the later time of 5.10pm this season. Admission is free for all spectators.

The opening game against Cardiff this Saturday starts at 6.10pm as there is a figure skating competition on at the Planet Ice rink beforehand.

Find out more about the Mayhem Para Ice Hockey Team on their official website HERE

Match Report: Sheffield Shadows 1 - Deeside Dragons U16 Girls 3 (WNIHL Under 16 Girls North)

The Dragonettes team away at Sheffield (Photo by Kate Foster-Noble)

Saturday 9^th May 2026 – WNIHL Under 16 Girls Nth: Sheffield Shadows 1 - Deeside Dragons U16G 3

The Deeside Dragons Under 16 girls team rounded off their regular season schedule with a closely-contested 1-3 victory away at Sheffield Shadows on Saturday.

The Dragonettes took a narrow 1-goal lead into the first break after a 7^th minute goal from top scorer Poppy Ward and the same player doubled the advantage 5 minutes into the second period.

Emmie Lauder put Deeside 0-3 ahead on 26 minutes and that remained the score at the second interval.  Sheffield pulled a goal back with 5 minutes left to play and that set up a nail-biting finale as they removed their netminder in favour of an extra attacker in the closing minutes in an attempt to stage a late rally.

They put the Deeside goal under immense pressure but the Dragonettes defence held firm and almost scored again themselves with a couple of long clearances towards the empty Shadows net, with Hallie Morgan coming the closest when she hit the post with a shot from behind her own goal line.

The Dragonettes finish the season second in the league table, 4 points behind champions Whitley who finished with a 100% record.

They will next play the champions of the Under 16 Girls South Division in the national semi final at the Women’s Play Offs at Sheffield in two weeks time.

Hartshorn Named Mayhem Player Of The Year

Dan Hartshorn with the
Mayhem Player of the Year Award
(Photo by Mayhem PIHC)

Daniel Hartshorn has been named as the Mayhem Player Of The Year for 2025 after a poll among his fellow players and team staff.

Hartshorn heroically took over as the team’s netminder for the 2025 season, despite never having played in goal before, after regular netminder Darren Pomfret was ruled out through injury.

Talking about switching roles he said:

“As a defender, I was focused on pushing myself physically and doing everything I could to reduce chances. Moving into goal, I realised very quickly how much of it is mental. You have to read the game, manage your emotions, pick up on patterns and player tendencies, it’s constant.”

“ Early on it felt overwhelming, but now, when I get it right, it almost becomes second nature. I’ve also been surprised by just how physical the role is, despite all the padding, some of those hits really hurt!”

Reacting to the Player award, Hartshorn added:

“I’m incredibly proud, but honestly my first reaction was pure embarrassment and shock. We were in the changing rooms after training when it was announced, and I just remember thinking, “There are so many people here who’ve achieved so much more than me.”

“As it’s sunk in, though, I’ve started to appreciate what it represents. I’ve worked really hard this year, not just on my own game, but trying to support others where I can, and to be nominated and recognised by the team means a lot.”

The full list of Mayhem Players Of The Year since the award was introduced in 2017 is as follows:

• 2017:  Anthony Booth
• 2018: Karl Nicholson
• 2019: Darren Pomfret
• 2022: Mark Colquitt
• 2023: Felicity Gregory
• 2024: Felicity Gregory
• 2025: Dan Hartshorn

You can read more about the Manchester Mayhem sledge hockey team on their official website HERE

Widnes Wild Women 2025/26 Season Review

The Widnes Wild Women had a highly eventful season playing at the higher Division 1 level for the first time since 2021/22, having been promoted after winning the Division 2 North title last year.

A number of new faces joined the Wild Women during the summer either as regular signings or on 2 way arrangements with other clubs – and many made their debuts at Division 1 North (previously known as Women’s Premier League) level.

The season was pretty hard going – as it had been expected to be - with a 20-match schedule playing 5 other teams twice home and twice away.  It wasn’t really a level playing field either as some of the opposing teams had current or former GB players on their rosters and also a number of players who regularly played up at Elite League level.

It took a while for the new-look Wild squad to gel and this was reflected in their early season results.

The campaign started off with a 2-16 defeat at home to Sheffield Shadows and a similar pattern of lucky battling performances followed where the Wild Women did well but were often beaten by a significant margin.

They lost all four games against eventual league champions Kingston Diamonds without scoring a single goal but eventually managed two wins – 3-1 over Nottingham Vipers and 8-7 against Solway Sharks - to finish the season on 4 points.

Two wins from 20 games may not sound like much but the win over Nottingham in January was the first time that the Wild Women had picked up a victory at WPL level since December 2017 and their final tally of two wins was their best in the higher division since the 2016/17 season.

Leen de Decker was the top goalscorer for the season with 8 goals and 2 assists from 17 games.  Lise Gillen joined her on 10 points, having scored 5 goals and 5 assists and former GB player Lydia Lutwyche gave an impressive cameo performance with 5+2 in only 4 games after joining the Wild Women just before the signing deadline.

Tayla Huxley-Richards impressed in her first season of senior women’s hockey with 5 goals from her 14 starts, while another breakout player, Ilyssa Flemington, also managed 2 goals and 3 assists for 5 points.

Maggie Whitmore, Jenny Hickey, Dee Vause, Ellen Tyrer, Emma Dutton, Karyn Cooper and Victoria Connelly all contributed goals during the season and Nicola Wallace, Catherine Fell, Eleanor Johnson, Abigail Aldred, Laura Bibby and Elizabeth Bird all got on the scoresheet with assists.

As with previous seasons playing at this higher WPL level, Stephanie Drinkwater was, again, the most over-worked netminder in the Division.  In the 19 games that she played in, she faced an eye-watering 1334 shots, She did however, save a very impressive 1145 of them, finishing up with a Save Percentage of 85.83.

Isabel Bateson – who usually plays university hockey – got herself a WNIHL Division 1 debut by filling in for the first game away to Caledonia Steel Queens and Maggie Whitmore bravely put in a 20 minute spell between the pipes in the away game at Nottingham after Drinkwater sustained an injury – even though she had never played in goal before.

There was a 4-way tie at the top of the “Bad Girl” stakes for penalty minutes with Nicola Wallace, Catherine Fell, Victoria Connelly and Maggie Whitmore all picking up 12 minutes over the course of the season - and 11 other players also paying a visit to the sin bin at some point.

Looking back over the season, Wild Women General Manager Karyn Cooper said:  

"We knew it was going to be a tough season but I couldn't be prouder of all the team for how they've applied themselves, and everyone has improved from the start of the season to the end." 

"There have been some tough results but the way the players have responded and kept morale levels high on the bench has been really commendable. I'd also like to give thanks to anyone who's helped with volunteering to support us this year, we couldn't do it without the help they give."

While the regular WNIHL season may now be over, there is still work to be done as the Wild Women prepare to take part in the Bristol Tournament over the weekend of 21st/22nd June

This annual end of season jamboree is a fairly unique competition as it involves teams from the different EIHA divisions – Elite League, Divisions 1 and 2 North & South - all playing against each other in one big qualifying group.

Particular spice will be added to this year’s tournament as the new Blackburn Hawks women’s team are also taking part. They have a number of former Wild Women players in their ranks and the group stage encounter will be the first time that the two north-west sides have met in a competitive game.