Match Report: Deeside Dragons Under 16 Girls 2 – Caledonia Iron Maidens 0 (WNIHL Under 16 Girls North)

Deeside Dragons U16 Girls at home to Caledonia (Photo by Rachael Feather)

Sunday 12^th April 2026 – WNIHL Under 16 Girls North: Deeside Dragons Under 16 Girls 2 – Caledonia Iron Maidens 0

The Deeside Dragons Under 16 Girls team moved level on points with league leaders Whitley Bay after a 2-0 home shut out of the Caledonia Iron Maidens at Deeside Leisure Centre on Sunday.

The Deeside girls had trounced the Iron Maidens 1-13 when the two teams met up in Scotland back in December but this was a much closer, tenser game.

The first period played out goal-less but Deeside eventually opened the scoring on 18 minutes when Emmie Lauder fired in a shorthanded goal.

The lead was doubled seven minutes later when Poppy Ward scored a powerplay goal and the score remained at 2-0 at the second period break.

Caledonia had chances of their own and actually out-shot Deeside by almost 2 to 1 over the course of the game but were unable to make the most of their opportunities on goal.

The third period also passed without a goal being scored, meaning that Deeside netminder Violet Lennon was able to record a 27-shot shut out. 

Rambo was the Deeside girls'
MVP against Caledonia
(Photo by Rachael Feather)

The Dragons girls team are in their second season of competition and have made remarkable progress in such a short time.  In their first season, they finished 4^th out of 7 teams with 3 wins from the 11 league games that they played. This season they are in second place in the league table, having won 12 out of their 13 games so far, and have already qualified for the end of season play offs.

They are currently level on points with league leaders Whitley Bay – the only team to have beaten the Dragons this season – although they have played a game more.  The two top teams have to meet again this season up in the north east, so the Dragons girls are still in with a mathematical chance of winning the league title.

They are at home again this Sunday 19^th April when they take on the Sheffield Shadows in their last home fixture of the season at Deeside Leisure Centre, 4.30pm face off.

They then play away in Whitley next Saturday 25^th April for a crunch encounter and then travel to Sheffield on Saturday 9^th May to round off the regular season.

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The Deeside Dragons club have announced an initial trial for the new women’s team that they plan to operate next season.

The one-hour trial session will take place at Deeside Leisure Centre on Monday 20th April from 7.15 to 8.15pm and will cost £10.00 per person. Interested parties must complete and submit the “Expression Of Interest” form HERE before attending.

Match Report: Blackburn Hawks 4 - Deeside D1 Dragons 3 (Moralee Play Off Final)

Jake Witkowski opened the scoring for the Dragons in the Play Off final at Sheffield (Photo by RDG Digital)

Saturday 11^th April 2026 – Play Off Final (at Sheffield): Blackburn Hawks 4 - Deeside D1 Dragons 3

The Deeside D1 Dragons’ otherwise highly successful season finished on a slightly disappointing note after they narrowly lost out 4-3 to Blackburn Hawks in the Moralee Division play off final at Sheffield  on Saturday.

As the score suggests, this was a very tight game, played between two very closely matched teams at a breakneck pace throughout. The result was in doubt until the very last second and it was a superb advert for NIHL ice hockey.

Deeside took the lead with a Jake Witkowski goal in the 5th minute but Blackburn eventually equalised with a hotly debated goal on 16 minutes to leave the score at 1-1 at the first period break.

The second period saw an incredible 4 goals scored within 80 seconds of each other, with Blackburn taking the lead on 27 minutes, Ross Kennedy firing the Dragons level 41 seconds later and Rhys Edwards putting Deeside back into the lead 30 seconds after that. This frantic phase was rounded off with another Blackburn goal straight from the restart to level the score at 3-3 at the midway point of the game.

The score was still 3-3 with the clock ticking down to the last minute of the period but a goal from former Dragons import Jakub Hajek with just 32 seconds left handed the Hawks a narrow 4-3 lead with 20 minutes left to play.

The third period played out goal-less, despite numerous chances for both teams, and Blackburn were able to hang on to secure the play off title to go with their league championship crown.

The Dragons did come home with one trophy, however, as top scorer Jake Witkowksi was named Moralee Division Player of the Season in the official NIHL league awards.

Despite Saturday’s defeat, the Dragons still have plenty to be pleased about this season.  It was their first appearance in a play off final for 10 years - and their most successful league campaign since 2016 was rewarded with the runners up position in the Moralee Division.

They also won the Moralee Cup for the first time and the Welsh Cup for the second year in a row, making plenty of new friends along the way.

Match Report: Sutton Sting 9 - Deeside D2 Dragons 0 (Laidler Play Off Final)

D2 Dragons' James Parsons in action in the Play Off final at Sheffield (Photo by RDG Digital)

Saturday 11^th April 2026 – Play Off Final (at Sheffield): Sutton Sting 9 - Deeside D2 Dragons 0

The Deeside D2 Dragons put in a plucky performance in the Laidler Division play off final at Sheffield on Saturday but slumped to a 9-0 defeat at the hands of league champions Sutton Sting.

The Sting opened the scoring on 5 minutes and led 3-0 by the first period break. The score was 5-0 at the second break and four more goals were added in the third period.

Despite the one-sided look to the score, the Dragons players’ heads did not drop and they gave a good account of themselves but, unfortunately, weren’t able to make the most of their chances in front of goal.

Even getting to the final was quite an achievement for the D2 Dragons, who are only in their second season of competition and have a squad composed of mainly young and less experienced players. They only finished 6^th in the final league table yet went on to exceed most people’s expectations by beating higher placed teams in the quarter final and semi final to win through to the Sheffield showdown.

They will have gained a lot from their experiences this season and will, undoubtedly, come back stronger and wiser next time around.

Match Report: Widnes Wild Women 2 – Sheffield Shadows 10 (WNIHL Division 1 North)

Laura Bibby was the Wild Women's MVP against Sheffield (Photo by Paul Breeze)

Sunday 12th April 2026 – WNIHL Division 1 North: Widnes Wild Women 2 – Sheffield Shadows 10

The Widnes Wild Women got off to a good start in their latest WNIHL Division 1 North game at home to Sheffield Shadows before eventually losing out 2-10 at Planet Ice Widnes on Sunday.

The game was quite even in its early stages, with the Wild Women giving as good as they got. However, disaster struck in the 8th minute when there was a mix up in defence and the puck somehow trickled over the goal line to hand Sheffield the lead. 

While this was technically an “own goal”, you don’t have own goals in ice hockey and the goal was credited to the last Shadows player to have touched the puck before it went in the net.

The Wild Women quickly recovered from this early setback and Tayla Huxley-Richards fired in a superb equalising goal on 11 minutes, and the score remained 1-1 at the first period break.

Widnes actually went ahead on 23 minutes with a superb goal from Jennifer Hickey but the lead only lasted 87 seconds before Sheffield equalised. They then edged back in front on 26 minutes and added another goal just 58 seconds after that to lead 2-4 at the halfway stage of the game.

Things got worse for the Wild Women in what was left of the second period as Sheffield scored 5 unanswered goals to lead 2-9 at the second break.

The Widnes ship was steadied in the third period, however, and, while they were unable to make anything from their own chances in front of goal, they did - at least - manage to restrict the visitors to just one goal for a final score of 2-10.

Overworked netminder Stephanie Drinkwater put in her habitual heroic performance in the Widnes goals, turning away an impressive 77 of the 87 shots that she faced.

The MVP (Most Valuable Player) awards for Wild Women home games are once again this season being sponsored by niche publishers Ice Hockey Review and, as well as the usual trophies, the winners also receive special edition pens handcrafted and donated by Anthony Stock. 

The awards were presented by the goal judge Lynda Bird and went to Charley Farr for Sheffield and Laura Bibby for Widnes.

The Wild Women are away to Kingston Diamonds in Hull this Sunday 19th April and then have a trip north of the border to face the Caledonia Steel Queens in Edinburgh the Saturday after.

They are next at home on Sunday 3rd May when they take on Nottingham Vipers in their last game of the season at Planet Ice Widnes, 4.25pm face off.

Dragons Under 16 Girls At Home On Sunday

The Deeside Dragons Under 16 Girls team celebrate their recent 0-9 win away at Nottingham (Photo by Rachel Feather)

For any Deeside fans who are not travelling to Sheffield for the NIHL play offs this weekend, but who still fancy watching some live ice hockey, why not go and cheer on the Dragons Under 16s girls team who are playing the Caledonia Iron Maidens – from Edinburgh – this Sunday 12th April at Deeside Leisure Centre – 4.30pm face off.

The Dragons girls team are in their second season of competition and have made remarkable progress in such a short time.  In their first season, they finished 4th out of 7 teams with 3 wins from the 11 league games that they played.  This season they are in second place in the league table, having won 11 out of their 12 games, and have already qualified for the end of season play offs.

They are currently 2 points behind league leaders Whitley Bay – the only team to have beaten the Dragons this season – and a win on Sunday would see them draw level, albeit having played one game more.  The two top teams have yet to meet again this season up in the north east, so the Dragons girls are still in with a mathematical chance of winning the league title.

Their remaining matches this season are:

• 12th April: home v Caledonia Iron Maidens
• 19th April:  home v Sheffield Shadows
• 25th April: away @ Whitley Bay Beacons
• 9th May: away @ Sheffield Shadows

The Deeside Dragons club have announced an initial trial for the new women’s team that they plan to operate next season.

The one-hour trial session will take place at Deeside Leisure Centre on Monday 20^th April and will cost £10.00 per person.

Interested parties must complete and submit the “Expression Of Interest” form HERE before attending.

Play Off Semi Final Report: Deeside D1 Dragons v Hull Jets (NIHL Moralee Division)

Colin Cromie scored 5 goals over the weekend against Hull (Photo by Angel Devlin)

Saturday 4^th April 2026 – Play Off S/Final (1): Hull Jets 2 - Deeside D1 Dragons 6

Sunday 5^th April 2026 – Play Off S/Final (2): Deeside D1 Dragons 6 – Hull Jets 5

Deeside win 12-7 on aggregate

The Deeside D1 Dragons won through to their first play off final for 10 years after beating Hull Jets 12 –7 on aggregate over two legs in the semi final at the weekend.

They won 2-6 away in Humberside on Saturday and then narrowly edged a much closer game 6-5 at Deeside Leisure Centre on Sunday.

In the away game on Saturday, after a tense opening phase, Colin Cromie gave Deeside the lead on 14 minutes and Ross Kennedy doubled the advantage just 36 seconds later.

Cromie edged the Dragons further ahead 58 seconds into the second period and a goal from Theo Malone and hat-trick strike from Cromie saw them leading 0-5 before the first Hull goal came on 35 minutes.

Hull scored again 79 seconds into the third period but that was it in terms of a Jets revival and a second goal of the night for Malone rounded off the scoring for the game 2 minutes later.

The first period had been penalty-free but things got more tetchy as the game went on and tensions came to a head with a mass altercation on 50 minutes that saw 3 players from each team sent to the penalty box.  Luckily, this had no bearing on the final result and the Dragons came home with a 2-6 advantage to take into the second leg.

Sunday’s home game also started well for the Dragons  with goals from Matty Barlow on 8 minutes – his first since his return from injury - and Jake Witkowski on 14 minutes giving them a 2-0 lead.  Hull pulled a goal back 60 seconds later and the score stood at 2-1 at the first period break.

The visitors were the quickest out of the blocks in the second period and equalised on 24 minutes before taking the lead just 38 seconds after that.  Colin Cromie levelled the score for Deeside with 57 seconds left in the period and the match remained balanced on a knife edge at 3-3 at the second interval.

Ross Kennedy fired the Dragons back in front 16 seconds from the puck drop and Cromie doubled the advantage on 44 minutes.

There seemed little likelihood of Hull overturning the aggregate deficit by this point but they didn’t give up and two more goals saw them draw level once again, setting up a dramatic last 10 minutes.

Jake Witkowski scored the game winning goal on 56 minutes and the Dragons were able to round off their home games for the season with a 6-5 victory on the night and a 12-7 overall aggregate victory.

The Dragons will now meet league champions Blackburn Hawks – who beat Billingham Stars 11–6 in the other semi final – in the single game play off final this Saturday 11^th April at iceSheffield.

The match is part of the annual Sheffield Showdown play off weekend which sees all four regional division finals  being played on the Saturday and then north v south finals at division 1 and division 2 level on Sunday to decide overall national champions.

The full weekend programme is as follows:

Saturday 11^th April

10.15:  Laidler (N2) Play Off Final

13.15:  Wilkinson (S2) Play Off Final

16.15:  Moralee (N1) Play Off Final

19.15:  Britton (S1) Play Off Final

Sunday 12^th April

13.00:  National Champions Div 2 Final

16.30:  National Champions Div 1 Final

Advance tickets for the play off weekend can be purchased via the England Ice Hockey website here:

https://eih.ticketco.events/uk/en/e/steel_city_showdown_2026

 

For any Deeside fans not going to Sheffield at the weekend, the Dragons Under 16 girls team are at home on Sunday to Caledonia Iron Maidens in their penultimate home game of the season at Deeside Leisure Centre, 4.30pm face off.

Play Off Semi Final Report: Deeside D2 Dragons v Sheffield Titans (NIHL Laidler Division)

The D2 Dragons celebrate their play off semi-final win away at Sheffield (Photo by Keith & Jenny Davies)

Saturday 4^th April 2026 – Play Off S/Final (1): Deeside D2 Dragons 6 – Sheffield Titans 2

Sunday 5^th April 2026 – Play Off S/Final (2): Sheffield Titans 4 - Deeside D2 Dragons 1

Deeside win 7-6 on aggregate

The Deeside D2 Dragons play off fairytale continued as they beat highly rated Sheffield Titans 7-6 on aggregate in the Laidler Division semi final, winning 6-2 at home on Saturday and then losing 4-1 away on Sunday

In the home game on Saturday, the D2 Dragons put in what was arguably their best performance of the season. Cody Ogden fired them into the lead on 10 minutes and they never really looked back from there.

A second Ogden goal on 14 minutes extended the lead and a fine breakaway strike from Rhys Howells gave the Dragons a well-deserved 3-0 lead at the first period break. 

Sheffield scored 73 seconds after the restart but a James Parsons goal just 17 seconds later restored the 3-goal cushion. Goals from Stewart Cutting and James Shaw followed for the Dragons and they led 6-1 at the second interval.

The Titans scored again just 23 seconds into the third period but that was the last goal of the game and the Dragons were able to take a 4-goal aggregate lead into the away leg on Sunday.

The away game against the league runners-up at their home venue was always likely to be a lot tougher and Sheffield raced to a 3-0 lead by the end of the first period.

The Dragons steadied the ship, however, and top scorer James Shaw fired in the only goal of the second period on 32 minutes to leave them leading 7-5 on aggregate with 20 minutes left to play.

Sheffield threw the proverbial kitchen sink at the Dragons during the final period but were only able to score one more goal and Deeside managed to hold on to book their place in the play off final.

Finn Ogden was the Dragons' MVP in both matches against Sheffield (Photo by Paul Breeze)

Young netminder Finn Ogden put in an heroic performance in the Deeside goal for the second night in a row – turning away 48 of the 52 shots that he faced - and was rewarded with his second MVP award of the weekend.

The D2 Dragons will now face treble-chasing Sutton Sting, who beat Billingham Buccaneers 13-5 in the other semi final, in the play off final at Sheffield next Saturday.

Women's Team Trial At Deeside

The Deeside Dragons club have announced an initial trial for the new women’s team that they plan to operate next season.

The one-hour trial session will take place at Deeside Leisure Centre on Monday 20^th April and will cost £10.00 per person. Interested parties must complete and submit the “Expression Of Interest” form HERE before attending.

The Deeside club have been running an Under 16 girls team in the Under 16 North division of the WNIHL (Women’s National Ice Hockey League) for the past 2 seasons and the team are currently second in the league table with 4 games left to play.

Their remaining matches this season are:

• 12^th April: home v Caledonia Iron Maidens
• 19^th April:  home v Sheffield Shadows
• 25^th April: away @ Whitley Bay Beacons
• 9^th May: away @ Sheffield Shadows

Deeside Dragons Players Named in All Star Teams

Matty Barlow, Jake Witkowski, Jared Dickinson, Colin Cromie and Ross Kennedy (Photo by Emila Roberts Photography)

A number of Deeside Dragons players have been named in the “All Star Team” poll for the Moralee Division for the 2025/26 season.  The vote was organised by the NIHL North Updates organisation, who ran a fans’ poll and a players’ poll via their social media pages.

Dragons’ top scorer Jake Witkowski was named as the top forward in both the players’ poll and the fans’ poll following his record breaking points total for the season and was joined in both lists by Colin Cromie and Ross Kennedy.

Witkowski topped the Moralee Division points scoring standings with 138 points (66 goals and 72 assists), breaking the record for points in a season that had stood since 2018/19. His tally of 72 assists was also the highest in the Moralee Division for the season but he was pipped for the most goals by Telford’s impressive Czech player Vladimir  Luka who scored 72 and finished second in the overall points charts with 72+47=119.

Ross Kennedy finished fourth in the Moralee list with 40+55=95 and Colin Cromie came fifth with 35+52=88.

Ethan Mayoh was named as top defenceman in the All Star fans’ poll and also appeared in the players’ votes, while Matty Barlow and Bailey Thomas both made it into the fans’ final list.

Tyler de la Bertouche (Photo by Keith & Jenny Davies)

Tyler de la Bertouche was named as top netminder in the Moralee Division in the fans’ selection and came second to Blackburn’s Harrison Walker in the players’ voting.

The full 2025/26 All Star Team listings are as follows:

Moralee Division – Fans’ All Star Team (in order of votes)

• Netminders: Tyler de la Bertouche (DEE), Harrison Walker (BLA)
• Defencemen: Ethan Mayoh (DEE), Sam Zajac (BLA), Bailey Thomas (DEE), Corey Goodison (SOL), Bobby Streetly (BLA), Thomas Barry (BLA)
• Forwards: Jake Witkowski (DEE), Vladimir Luka (TEL), Colin Cromie (DEE), Alex Rushby (NOT), Niklas Ottosson (SOL), Adam Barnes (BLA), Ross Kennedy (DEE), Andrew McKinney (BLA), Jacob Lutwyche (BLA), Chris Sykes (BIL), Matty Barlow (DEE), James Moss (BIL)

Moralee Division – Players’ All Star Team (in order of votes)

• Netminders: Harrison Walker (BLA), Tyler de la Bertouche (DEE)
• Defencemen: Sam Zajac (BLA), Corey Goodison (SOL), Henry Adams (SOL), Ethan Mayoh (DEE), Dan Harrison (TEL), Thomas Barry (BLA)
• Forwards: Jake Witkowski (DEE), Vladimir Luka (TEL), Niklas Ottosson (SOL), Alex Rushby (NOT), Andrew McKinney (BLA), Colin Cromie (DEE), Adam Barnes (BLA), Ross Kennedy (DEE), Jason Silverthorn (TEL), Jacob Lutwyche (BLA), James Moss (BIL), Dan Mulcahy (SOL)

NIHL North Updates operate a Facebook page where they post - as is suggested in the title - match updates for games being played in the NIHL North Moralee and Laidler Divisions each weekend.

In fact, during the current – and somewhat elongated - “transition” period while we wait for the EIH(A) to get their new Gameday online scoring and stats system up and running properly, NIHL North Updates is pretty much the only place where you can find an up-to-date and centralised summary of what is happening on match days across the two divisions.

You can follow all the latest news in the NIHL Moralee and Laidler Divisions on the NIHL North Updates Facebook page HERE  

D2 Dragons Players Named In All Star Teams

Deeside D2 Dragons top points scorer James Shaw (Photo by Lewis Cleveland)

Deeside D2 Dragons’ top points scorer for the season James Shaw has been voted onto the Laidler Division All Stars Team for the 2025/26 campaign.

The vote was organised by the NIHL North Updates organisation, who ran a fans’ poll and a players’ poll via their social media pages and Shaw was elected to both the fans’ and the players’ final selection of forwards.

Shaw scored 26 goals and 11 assists in 21 games and topped the D2 Dragons standings ahead of James Parsons in second, who got 15+10, and Chris Jones in third who got 7+18.

D2 Dragons popular “enforcer” Karl Bacon was voted onto the fans’ All Star Team as a defenceman.

The full 2025/26 All Star Team listings are as follows:

Laidler Division – Fans’ All Star Team (in order of votes)

Netminders: Ryan Wardell (BIL), Chris Outhwaite (BIL)

Defencemen: Artem Pavlov (BIL), Luke Reid (SHE), Karl Bacon (DEE), Charles Coney (COV), Alfie Kelly (ALT), Ethan McLaughlin (BIL)

Forwards: Sam Dowd (BIL), Morgan Glasby (SUT), Josh Milnes (ALT), Thomas Humphries (SHE), Matty Pickup (BIL), James Shaw (DEE), Lawson Glasby (SUT), Joe Colton (SUT), Jake Frost (ALT), Lewis Swaffield (SHE), Dan Caple (BIL), Steven Wallace (BIL)        

Laidler Division – Players’ All Star Team  (in order of votes)

Netminders: Nathaniel Bell (SUT), Ryan Wardell (BIL)

Defencemen: Artem Pavlov (BIL), Josh Rawsthorne (SHE), Charles Coney (COV), Jacob Truswell (SUT), Luke Reid (SHE), Jamie Scott (SUT)

Forwards: Morgan Glasby (SUT), Thomas Humphries (SHE), Sam Dowd (BIL), Josh Stockton (BRA), James Shaw (DEE), Josh Milnes (ALT), Joe Colton (SUT), Sam Parkin (SHE), Lawson Glasby (SUT), Lewis Swaffield (SHE), Harry Roebuck (SHE), Mackenzie Barker (KIN)

NIHL North Updates operate a Facebook page where they post - as is suggested in the title - match updates for games being played in the NIHL North Moralee and Laidler Divisions each weekend.

In fact, during the current – and somewhat elongated - “transition” period while we wait for the EIH(A) to get their new Gameday online scoring and stats system up and running properly, NIHL North Updates is pretty much the only place where you can find an up-to-date and centralised summary of what is happening on match days across the two divisions.

You can follow all the latest news in the NIHL Moralee and Laidler Divisions on the NIHL North Updates Facebook page HERE