Mayhem To Face Phantoms This Saturday

Mayhem's leading goalscorer Karl Nicholson (Photo by Blindside Trading Cards)

The Mayhem sledge team may be out of the title race for the 2025 British Para Ice Hockey League season – the crown was won by Sheffield Steelkings at the weekend – but they may still have a say in who finishes second in this year’s standings.

The Mayhem have two games yet to play against Peterborough Phantoms,  who lost out to Sheffield at the weekend, ending their own title ambitions,  but can still finish in the runners up spot if they win their remaining games.

The other team in the mix for second place are last year’s champions Cardiff Huskies who have had a disappointing campaign by their usual standards and currently sit in third.

This coming weekend will be a crucial one as Cardiff play the Sheffield Steelstings (development team) in their last game of the season on Sunday, while the Mayhem are at home to the Phantoms at Planet Ice Widnes on Saturday (6.30pm face off).

The Mayhem are then at home to the Steelkings on Saturday 2nd August before travelling away to Peterborough on 9th August in their last game of the regular season.

GB international player Karl Nicholson is the Mayhem’s leading goal-scorer so far this season with 9 goals from 5 games, while Anthony Booth is second with 5 and the team will need all their players to be on top form as they take on the league’s top two teams in their closing games of the season.   

Sledge Hockey 2025: Round-Up #10

The Sheffield Steelkings secured the 2025 British Para Ice Hockey league title with a 2-4 win away to closest rivals Peterborough Phantoms on Saturday.

Peterborough had been the only team left in the league with a chance of overtaking the Steelkings but they will now have to make do with battling for the runners up position, along with last year’s league Champions Cardiff Huskies.

Although the league title may be sewn up, there is still plenty of sledge hockey yet to be played with 4 games to go in the regular season and the play off weekend at Lee Valley in September.

This weekend sees the Manchester Mayhem take on Peterborough on Saturday 19^th July at Planet ice Widnes in the first meeting between the two teams this season (6.30pm face off)

Sunday sees Cardiff host bottom club Sheffield Steelstings in the Welsh capital in what will be the last league game for both teams. (6.15pm start).

Wild Women Promoted to Division 1

Auld Acquaintance – Wild Women puck drop against Solway Sharks in 2019 (Photo by Paul Breeze)

The Widnes Wild women’s team have been promoted following their league title win last season and will play in Division 1 of the WNIHL for the forthcoming season.

The Wild Women struggled last time they were in this division but it is important to strive to play at the highest level you can and the competition has been regionalised into North and South sections since then. This means that they no longer have to face difficult away journeys to places such as Swindon and Chelmsford.

They will however, have to undertake 4 away trips north of the border to Scotland where they will renew auld acquaintance with Solway Sharks Ladies – who play in Dumfries – and Caledonia Steel Queens, who are based in Edinburgh. 

The other teams making up Division 1 North for next season are Sheffield Shadows, Kingston Diamonds and Nottingham Vipers, making for a 20 game schedule with 2 home and 2 away matches against each team.

The league programme will run from September to May, with end of season play offs being held for the top teams at the end of May.

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In order to support their campaign in the second tier of women’s ice hockey next season, the Wild Women are keen to hear from potential sponsors who can help them out financially - or in some other way. 

The Wild women have sponsorship packages available to suit all budgets - from individuals up to large companies – and anybody interested in offering support for the new season is asked to contact the team via their social media or by email to: widneswildwomen@gmail.com

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Following their promotion to Division 1, the Wild Women are keen to attract new players for the 2025/26 season and are offering trial opportunities at their weekly training sessions during August.

The sessions run on Tuesday evenings from 9.30 to 10.30pm at Planet Ice Widnes from 5th August and players must be aged 14 or over and have their own insurance or be covered by EIHA trial insurance.

Anybody interested in taking part is asked to fill out the Summer Training form, which can be found on the Widnes Wild Women’s Facebook page .

Players with higher league or international experience are especially welcome.

Deeside Testimonial For Long Serving Duo

Marc Lovell and James Parsons (Photo by Billingham Stars IHC)

The Deeside Dragons club are holding a special testimonial match on Saturday 26^th July at Deeside Leisure Centre to honour the long service of Marc Lovell and James Parsons, who both retired from playing at the end of the season.

Marc Lovell was a Deeside junior player, graduating to senior hockey with the Flintshire Freeze in the 1999/00 season, and has some 600 competitive appearances at ENL / NIHL level or higher to his credit.

As well as 20-plus seasons with the Freeze and Dragons at Deeside, he also played one season with Manchester Phoenix in the Elite League and 3 seasons with Telford in the EPL.

James Parsons was also a Deeside junior, made his senior debut in 2004/05, and went on to play over 500 competitive matches at ENL / NIHL level with the Flintshire Freeze and Deeside Dragons, notching up over 700 points over a 20 year period.

Aside from a season at Blackburn in 2021/22 when the Deeside rink was closed after Covid and a few loan appearances in the EPL with Telford Tigers and Manchester Phoenix, he has played his entire career at Deeside.

The Testimonial game will be contested between two teams that have been put together especially - “Team Larry” (after Lovell’s club nickname) and “Team Snip” (for James Parsons). Each team will have a mixture of current and former Dragons on their bench, along with former team-mates, other friends from the world of ice hockey, and family members.

Special one–off playing shirts have been designed for the occasion and a number of them will be raffled off at the game to help boost the testimonial fund.

Tickets for the Larry & Snip Testimonial game cost £10 for adults, £4 for children and £8 for concessions and can be bought in advance HERE . 

The two teams for the match will be as follows:

Team Snip (James Parsons)

Netminders; Phil Pearson, Grahame Bird

Defence: Steve Fellows, Ollie Lomax, Matt Wainwright, Billy Perks, Cade King, Karl Bacon

Forwards: Aaron Davies, Jared Dickinson, Filip Supa, Gary Dixon, Scott Barnett, Andrew Chappell, Geoff Wigglesworth, Steve Elliot, James Parsons, MJ Clancy, Ella Parsons

Head Coach: Keith Parsons

Assistant Coaches: Mike Clancy and Des Founds

Team Manager: Bruce Morton

 

Team Larry (Marc Lovell)

Netminders:  Matt Compton, Phil Crosby

Defence: Mike Jones, Dave Costelloe, Ryan Jones, Kenny Williams, Gary Shaw, Marc Lovell, Mark Thomas, Logan Lovell 

Forwards:  Andy McKinney, Dan Mackriel, Alan Steele, Pete Founds, Alex Parry, Jason Hewitt, Jase Parry, Charlie Spridgeon, Ross Kennedy, Paul Davies, Lucas Lovell

Head Coach; Barry Lovell

Assistant Coaches: Phil Kennedy & Steve Parry

The Larry & Snip Testimonial will take place on Saturday 26th July at Deeside Leisure Centre.  Doors open at 4.30pm and face off is at 5.15.  

Sledge Hockey 2025: Round-Up #9

The Sheffield Steelkings gave their league title hopes a huge boost with a 5-0 win over Manchester Mayhem at iceSheffield on Saturday.

The Mayhem team travelled short of a number of regular players and only had the minimum 5+1 available. This meant that everybody had to remain on the ice for the whole game with no line changes so it was always going to be a bit of an uphill struggle against the league leaders.

Three goals for the Steelkings in the first period pretty much killed the game as a contest and one more in both the second and third period saw them romp to a 5-0 victory.  

The goals were shared among 5 different scorers - Ben O'Brien, Jake Oakley, Daniel Clarke, John Plummer, and Matt Clarkson – and netminders Jonathan Gill and Andrew Jackson backstopped the Kings to their 4th shutout of the season.

On Sunday, Peterborough Phantoms beat the Steelstings development team 0-9 at iceSheffield to move into second place in the league table. 

The BPIHL’s top scorer for the season so far Gary Farmer scored 7 goals,  with D-Jay Hall and Callum Shakespeare contributing the others.  Daniel Lee recorded a 3-shot shut out for his third clean sheet of the season.

The weekend results mean that the Steelkings are now three points ahead at the top of the league table with 11 points and 2 games left to play.

Peterborough Phantoms move into second place with 8 points from 5 games, level with Cardiff Huskies, who have played 2 games more.

Last season’s champions Cardiff are now out of the title race as they only have one game left in the regular season so Peterborough are the only team able to catch Sheffield and possibly snatch the crown from them.

The Phantoms take on the Steelkings this Saturday 12^th July in what will effectively be a title decider for this season’s league championship.  If Sheffield beat Peterborough in that game, they will be uncatchable in top spot.

Andrew Chappell Joins Dragons NIHL2 For New Season

Andrew Chappell
(Photo by Karen Booth)

The Deeside Dragons NIHL2 team have announced another returnee from last season’s Deeside Ducks team as they continue to build their roster for the forthcoming 2025/26 Laidler Division season.

Andrew Chappell is a highly experienced player and long term Deeside favourite, having played some 250 games at ENL / NIHL level over a 20 year period with the Flintshire Freeze and Deeside Dragons.

He made 7 appearances for the Ducks team last season, scoring two goals – one of which was the all-important match-winning goal in the 1-0 home victory over Coventry Blaze – and one assist.

Talking about his return to the Laidler Division team for another season, Chappell said:

“I’m really excited to get going on a new season. I’m sure there is some life left in the old legs. I can’t wait to make some improvements on the results we had last year and move up towards the other end of the league table.”

Coach James Parsons commented:

“Having Chaps back within the D2 setup is a massive boost for the team. His knowledge and experience will be invaluable in helping the younger players develop. Not only that, but he can still play the game at a high level.

“He is one of those players who contributes at both ends of the ice and always puts the team first — exactly what we want in this group. He also pops up with the occasional top-shelf goal.” 

Leeds Launch Para Ice Hockey Team

Plans have been announced to set up a new para ice hockey team in Leeds.

The “Leeds Locomotive” club are holding an open taster session on Sunday 27^th July at the Planet Ice rink in Leeds.

Anybody interested in taking part or wanting more information is asked to email the club at: LeedsLocomotive@gmail.com

Match Report: Sheffield Steelkings 5 – Mayhem 0 (BPIHL)

Mayhem Captain Mark Colquitt (Photo by Blindside Trading Cards)

Saturday 5th July 2025 – BPIHL: Sheffield Steelkings 5 – Mayhem 0

The Mayhem sledge team lost out 5-0 away to league leaders Sheffield Steelkings in the British Para Ice Hockey League at iceSheffield on Saturday.

The Mayhem team travelled short of a number of regular players and only had the minimum 5+1 available. This meant that everybody had to remain on the ice for the whole game with no line changes – compared to the player-rich hosts, who had a better populated bench with 9 outfield players and two netminders - and could give their players regular breathers.

The Steelkings were looking for a win to reinforce their own title ambitions so this game was always going to be a bit of an uphill struggle for the Mayhem. Three goals for the Steelkings in the first period pretty much killed the game as a contest and one more in both the second and third period saw them romp to a 5-0 victory. 

For the record, the brave Mayhem team of 6 were: Dan Hartshorn (NM), Mark Colquitt, Tom Kimm, Karl Nicholson, Anton Tomlinson and Felicity Gregory. Despite the disparity in numbers, they put in a plucky performance and managed 8 shots on goal over the course of the game, compared to the Steelkings’ 24.   

The win means that Sheffield are now three points ahead at the top of the league table with 2 games left to play.  

Last season’s champions Cardiff Huskies are now unable to catch them as they only have one game left in the regular season so Peterborough Phantoms – who match the Huskies on 8 points following a 0-9 win against the Sheffield B team - the Steelstings - on Sunday - and also have a game in hand, are the only team able to catch Sheffield and possibly snatch the title from them.

The Phantoms take on the Steelkings this Saturday 12th July in what will effectively be a title decider for this season’s league championship.  If Sheffield beat Peterborough in that game, they will be uncatchable in top spot. 

Despite Saturday’s loss, the Mayhem are guaranteed a place in the end of season play offs as bottom club Sheffield Steelstings – the Steel City’s development side - are unable to overtake them with the league games that they have left.

The top 4 teams in the league table qualify for the play offs, which will be held over the weekend of 13th and 14th September at Lee Valley in East London – which is a new venue for para ice hockey.

The Mayhem are next in action on Saturday 19th July, when they take on the Phantoms at Planet Ice Widnes. The game faces off at 6.30pm, which is later than usual, due to another match being played beforehand.

Wild Review 2024/25

Ice hockey fans can re-live the drama and excitement of the past season in a new book called “Wild Review – Season 2024/25” that has been compiled by niche publishers Ice Hockey Review.

The book covers the up-and-down season of the Widnes Wild NIHL men’s team and the successful Division 2 North title winning season of the Widnes Wild women’s team and includes all the news stories and match reports from both league campaigns.  It has full sets of player statistics for each team and is illustrated with photos throughout. 

For Mail order link CLICK HERE

Sledge Hockey 2025: Round-Up #8

The Sheffield Steelkings moved to the top of the British Para Ice Hockey League table after their 0-7 win over Sheffield rink-mates the Steelstings on Saturday.

The Steelkings are now 1 point ahead of erstwhile leaders and defending champions Cardiff Huskies at the top of the table with two games in hand and the league’s only unbeaten record.

The Kings goals came from Daniel Clarke (2), Paul Brown (2), Jonathan Plummer (2) and Bill Hardy (1).

The Steelstings were out-shot by 30 to 1 over the course of the 45 minutes and Kings’ netminder Jonathan Gill picked up a 1-shot shut-out – his third clean sheet of the season.

This weekend’s fixtures see the Steelkings at home to Manchester Mayhem on Saturday - 6.10pm face off - and the Steelstings at home to Peterborough Phantoms on Sunday, 4.40pm start.