Round The Rinks 16th November

This is a weekend that could see changes at the top of the EIHL, with any one of the top three in with a chance of coming out of the weekend as sole leaders of the UK's top league...so fans of Coventry, Cardiff and Newcastle in particular will be watching their rivals closely as the action gets underway. Here is the team by team preview for Friday 16th November...

Basingstoke: Here's something you won't have heard for a while-the Bison may well be fancying their chances of a four-point weekend. With Hull the visitors to the Silverdome on Saturday and a trip to a faltering Coventry on Sunday, the Southerners, boosted by the signing of David Vychodil to add goals from defence, are on a high after last weekend's four points and will be very tricky opponents for both sides. The stampede may be gathering pace for the Herd...

Belfast: The Giants have come over all warm and cuddly for their games this week, away on Sunday to Newcastle. They raffled off special Children in Need jerseys from yesterday's game against Cardiff in order to raise money for the cause, but the Vipers can expect no charity after the Devils prevailed on Thursday by four goals to two. Injuries are still a problem for the Giants, but with the Vipers also desperate to prove that their position at the top is not a fluke, the islanders will not exactly find it easy making more ground on their mainland rivals...

Cardiff: No-one can stop the Devils at the moment-another win in Belfast yesterday puts the Devils three points off the top with two eminently winnable meetings against Manchester (home) and Edinburgh (away) on the slate for this weekend and an outside chance of going top on Sunday night. With both opposition sides looking to break out of a slump, the Devils will be hoping that the form-book is proved right as they chase the Vipers and Blaze relentlessly...

Coventry: DON'T PANIC! Newcastle are the opponents on Saturday in the North East as Blaze look to gain revenge on the Vipers for their defeat last week which knocked them off the top of the EIHL-but the mood is tense among the Blaze faithful, with Barrie Moore definitely missing both games and several other walking-wounded. There's no let-up on Sunday as Basingstoke bring their revival spirit to the Skydome looking to pull off another big win, while at the same time increase the teeth-grinding among the Blaze crowd. The players will be well aware they have to perform, because the Sky Blue City crowd has got used to winning on the ice after being spoiled the past few years, and many of them don't have much patience when the results take a turn for the worse...

Edinburgh: The Capitals pulled off a huge shock last weekend by beating the league-leading Blaze, and they have the chance to do it again as they face two of the league's powerhouses in Sheffield and Cardiff. The Devils will not relish the trip to Murrayfield, but the Caps in their turn will not be overjoyed at facing the Steelers in their own barn, with both opponents looking to keep in the leading pack and Edinburgh continuing to drag themselves off the bottom. Scottish lionheartedness will be a major requirement for Doug Christiansen's men if they want to take anything from this weekend...

Hull: Jake Riddle survived the axe, but games against Basingstoke and welcoming Sheffield to Humberside promise another lean weekend for the Stingrays unless they can find goals from somewhere. Fast. Interestingly there has been no "we are prepared" PR blitz this week-maybe the Stingrays are now expending their energy in deeds instead of words. This weekend will tell...

Manchester: Cardiff and Nottingham are not ideal opponents to face when your team needs to get out of a slump. Joe Tallari has been carrying the load on his back for the Phoenix, scoring three and assisting the other two of Manchester's five goals last weekend, but now he needs help. With memories of the tight defence which led to such an encouraging start fading faster than the daylight in Manchester, winning either of this games would be an ideal pick-me-up as the cold begins to bite...

Newcastle: Sitting pretty at the top, a win tomorrow against Coventry would see the Vipers stay alone at the top for another week. Sunday sees Belfast visiting the MRA for the second of a home double-header. The Blaze will be hoping that their bitter rivals do them a big favour, particularly if the Vipers can continue their run of home victories at their closest challengers' expense...

Nottingham: It's not been a good week for the Panthers, what with Dwayne Hay, their "amazing disappearing import". They have a chance to build up some momentum going into Tuesday's Challenge Cup semi-final as they face Manchester in Altrincham on Sunday in their only game of the weekend, but with the Phoenix also looking for a morale boost, this game will be nothing short of a fast-paced war on ice...can the East Midlanders show they have the stomach for a fight after all?

Sheffield: The Steelers have lost ground slightly on the leading pack, and will be fired up as they attempt to take advantage of the weaknesses of their opponents this weekend, Edinburgh and Hull, in order to force their way back into the pacemaking group of Coventry, Cardiff and Newcastle. Now would be the ideal time for their offense's spearhead, Jeff Legue, to find the form he had before being injured-the Steelers must get a four-pointer this weekend in order to keep up the pressure..

So, the fixtures this weekend:

Saturday

Basingstoke v Hull

Newcastle v Coventry

Sheffield v Edinburgh

Cardiff v Manchester

Sunday

Newcastle v Belfast

Manchester v Nottingham

Hull v Sheffield

Coventry v Basingstoke

Edinburgh v Cardiff

Let's play hockey! :)