Tuesday, 18 April 2023

Match Report: Connah's Quay Cobras (Deeside) 4 - Riverside Raiders (Widnes ) 8

The Riverside Raiders won the Summer Classic Cup play off title in 2017 (Photo by Chris Johnstone)

Sunday 16th April 2023 – Challenge Match:

Connah’s Quay Cobras (Deeside) 4 - Riverside Raiders (Widnes) 8

Period Scores 2-3, 1-2, 1-3

Shots on Goal: Cobras 51 - Raiders 41

Penalties In Minutes:  Cobras 8 - Raiders 6 


The Widnes-based Riverside Raiders got their preparations for the 2023 Ice Hockey Summer Classic Cup series under way with a 4-8 win away to Connah’s Quay Cobras in Deeside on Sunday. 

The team for Sunday’s game saw the welcome return of familiar faces such as Adam Jenkins, Ben Donkin, Mike Teinert and Eemeli Vuorihovi and the addition of former Widnes Wild women’s captain Emma Pearson, erstwhile Wild netminder Ian Thirkettle and graduates from the Wild Junior Academy Rory Sillery and Alain Barthelemy, among others.

The Connah’s Quay team also featured an interesting mix of youth, rec and experience including former Deeside Dragons league players Kenny Williams, Scott Egerton and Sam Krempasky, ex Riverside Raider and Bradford Bulldog Gez Evans and former Manchester Phoenix women’s players Cath Thornton and Emma Dutton - so it was a really good test for the Raiders side.

The Raiders took the lead with just 28 seconds on the clock with a goal from Rory Sillery and further strikes from Kai Gennoe and Adam Jenkins saw them leading 0-3 after 6 minutes.

The Cobras hit back with two goals of their own to go into the first break at 2-3 down and then score again 90 seconds into the second period to level the score.

Two goals for the Raiders – from David Geroc on 36 minutes and Eemeli Vuorihovu just 45 seconds later - put them back in control and the score stood at 3-5 after two periods.

The third period saw the Raiders edge further ahead with goals from Andrew Birch on 53 minutes and Gennoe, again, on 56 and a hat-trick strike from Gennoe just 14 seconds later put the visitors 3-8 up with just over 3 minutes left on the clock.

The Cobras fired in one last goal 11 seconds after that – a hat trick goal for Sam Krempasky – and that rounded off the scoring for the game.

The Raiders 2023 Summer Classic Cup campaign gets under way on Saturday 29th April when they take on the Hull Knights at Planet Ice Widnes, 6pm face off.

This year’s Ice Hockey Summer Classic tournament sees 16 teams from across the north of England competing in 4 groups of 4, playing each other home and away. The top teams in each group will meet in a championship play off weekend in Sheffield later in the summer. 

The full Riverside Raiders 2023 Cup fixtures are:

29th April: home v Hull Knights

7th May: home v Halton Huskies

3rd June: away @ Hull Knights

10th June: home v Blackburn Buccaneers

25th June: away @ Blackburn Buccaneers

1st July: away @ Halton Huskies

The two games against the Halton Huskies should be especially entertaining as both teams are based at the Planet Ice rink in Widnes.