Half-Term Reports

Given that I am off up to Sheffield for New Year tomorrow and may well not be posting until the second, now seems as good a time as any for the team-by-team review of the season thus far, as promised a few days ago...



Basingstoke: The Bison have settled well after having some major problems early in the season with money...at one point it was feared they'd go right out of business. Step forward Tomas Enerston, a straight-talking Swede who took the club off the hands of the Taylors in November and has brought a new optimism to Hampshire. Playing-wise the Herd are in their usual lower-mid-table position, but have been using the talents of the ageless Steve Thornton in order to win games they'd previously have lost. The league's "other" Danny Stewart and Derek Campbell have both been hugely impressive, Stewart in particular, while on defence Mikko Purontakanen is fast establishing himself as one of the league's premier d-men.The outlook is good for the Bison, as they can only continue to improve...



Belfast: Their start could only be described as nightmarish. But the Giants, like several other clubs in the league, have bounced back from a nightmare start to begin putting wins together. It's no coincidence that results began to improve after swapping the calamitous form of Phillippe deRouville for the steadiness of Stevie Lyle in goal, and the goals of Peter Campbell have been crucial in the Giant's return to form. Recent wins at the Skydome in particular have shown that the Northern Irish side, at least at home, are back to the tough proposition they always have been...



Cardiff: Like Belfast, the Devils started badly, then seemed to wake up and went on an unbelievable fourteen game winning streak (led by the rejeuvenated Sylvain Deschatelets, who was cut and reinstated in October) which saw them briefly go top before Phil Osaer and about half the rest of the squad suffered injuries at the same time, leading to the recent dry spell points wise which has seen the Devils slip to third. However, with Osaer back in January the Welsh dragons will hopefully be roaring again as the Devils continue the chase for honours.



Coventry: "Juggernauts" is the only word you can use to describe the Blaze so far this season-the Midlanders have seen their losses come few and far between, with the three-game losing streak seen recently the first time the club has faced any real adversity. That this streak coincided with the loss of captain Sylvain Cloutier to injury is no coincidence-the gritty centre has been the player of the season by a long way thus far, leading by example at both ends of the ice. Another unexpected gem has been the returning Matty Soderstrom, who has been immense in defence and gone from "d signed to save money" back to hero status among the Blaze faithful. The New Year should bring more of the same from many fans' tip to repeat their title...



Edinburgh: Hope was high for the Capitals at the beginning of the season, but this promise hasn't really materialised as the Scots sit bottom of the table, with only a shock win against Coventry at Murrayfield to liven the gloom. However, the indomitable Scots will keep pushing, and may, given luck and the failiures of others, still have a chance of a playoff place as long as Colin Hemingway keeps scoring...



Hull: Oh, dear. The chimes of Big Ben can't come soon enough on Humberside. This season has been nightmarish, both in terms of injury, mismanagement (at least on the coaching side) and dissatisfaction. The Stingrays are more like small fry in a league of sharks at the moment, with top scorer and one of the few bright spots of Hull's season, Paul Cabana, deciding he'd had enough in early December. I've already launched into the Stingrays at great length, so shall simply use that staple phrase of school reports...Must do better. Far, far better...



Manchester: Another steady campaign from the Phoenix, picking up points and dropping them as the mood takes them. Joe Tallari has been one of the finds of the season for them, along with the skill and grit of Omar Ennaffati on D...however, the Mancs still lack that one ingredient to truly take them from mid-table mediocrity to challenging for honours...although Luke Stauffacher looks like he could provide something judging by his recent form. Scott Fankhouser will need to improve a little, however, as the Manchester attack, apart from Tallari, is not the most prolific in the world, and this doesn't look like changing at the moment.

Newcastle: The Vipers are in something of a slump at the moment, and have been since November. Rob Wilson must regret his much quoted "we deserve to be where we are" statement with every puck that hits the back of Ryan MacDonald's net, despite the young Canadian's heroic efforts in goal. Vipers need something special in order to stop their slump, and will be hoping that the New Year brings a new attitude in the North East.

Nottingham: The Panthers are suffering their usual season of not reaching expectations, with PC Drouin and Rastislav Rovnianek already casualties of the thirst for success in the East Midlands. Tom Askey has been a major improvement in net, and recently the Panthers have been playing more like the team the fans hoped to see after the big money signings/re-signings of Johan Molin, Sean McAslan and Corey Neilson. With the Panthers also in the final of the Challenge Cup, perhaps this could be one of the better seasons of recent years after the playoff success last year set the trend...

Sheffield: And finally, the Steelers, who have quietly found their way into second place thanks to the fine play of Johnathan Phillips, Ashley Tait and Joey Talbot. They have an annoying way of cruising along un-noticed, having also made their way into the Challenge Cup Final while somewhat under the radar. And that's just fine with the team. Question is, can they keep it up?

And that's the end of the half-season review...more to come either tomorrow or Tuesday..

Keep keeping your eye on the puck..