Double Overtime, 22nd September

"What a difference a day makes...24 little hours..."

Dinah Washington: "What A Difference (A Day Makes)"


The above song sums up the Elite League this last weekend to perfection, I think...at least in the case of Basingstoke...but this stream-of-consciousness look back at the weekend may be slightly overloaded with superlatives after an absolutely storming game at the Skydome on Sunday night followed a barn-burner in Nottingham. Oh...and the games not involving the Panthers weren't bad either...

So-things we learned this weekend...

Double-headers are fun!: The two double-headers (Newcastle/Belfast and Cardiff/Basingstoke) saw honours even for both teams, and a little bit (read, a lot) of nastiness on the physical side, culminating in Andre Payette being a recipient of a dig to the head from Steve Thornton's stick (no, those names are really the right way round. I know. I'm scared too...) Could be interesting to see what the league do with this one-after all, Thornton is the player coach of one of the biggest teams in the league, a player respected for his skill by all and sundry in British hockey (he's bordering on a legend league-wide, and certainly is in Cardiff) and it could be argued that the Giants just may have a little influence on the league board just to their sheer size club-wise. Plus, Thornton isn't known for this sort of thing.

But, a stick to the head is a stick to the head (you can see it on Vipers TV via the Newcastle website) and if Brad Voth deserves twelve games for a "slash" and sucker punch, then this should be similar.

24 is a lot of hours in hockey: Meanwhile, down south, Basingstoke go from a performance described by their own fans as "the worst they've ever seen a Bison team play" to grinding out a win minus their captain and top d-man. In Cardiff. The spirit of the Bison 10 appears alive and well. As for Cardiff...now there is a bi-polar team, it appears. When they click, it appears they'll be frighteningly good, as witnessed by their demolition comeback against Coventry last weekend and Saturday's result. But there must surely be questions over just how much Voth missing will hurt them...

"And I've got nothing to fear...in this city": Shamelessly nicking the words of Iglu and Hartley is probably unforgivable, even though the song is one of my favourite "chart" songs out at the moment, but it sums up the message from the Coventry/Nottingham barn-burner (Blaze go 4-0 up in the first and then hang on for dear life, with only a HUGE call of interference on Matt Myers which wiped out a Corey Neilson bullet giving the Panthers a 5-4 lead late in the game preventing a total collapse.) Adam Calder firing home three goals by himself probably was the saving grace...if he plays anywhere else, Blaze lose that game. But Nottingham (who let's not forget, also pulled out another barn-burner against Sheffield the night before) are damn good when they click, and are my tip for the title.

What this game showed more than anything, though, along with Cardiff's comeback last week, is that Fortress Skydome is crumbling slowly. It may not be collapsing, but the Blaze no longer have that aura of invincibility which has followed them through the period of recent success. Nottingham, on the other hand, veer between just good with shaky moments (Davis Parley and the defence) and plain frightening (the attack, when they click). This game proved beyond doubt that there really is nothing between the top teams in the EIHL any more, and they're just shaky enough that the wins can (and will) come for any team in the league. We could be at the very early stages of seeing a power-shift in British hockey thanks to the stricter wage-cap rules. And quite frankly, if Sunday's game is the future, then ignore those who worry that their "powerhouse" teams will be less succesful because of it...the future can't come soon enough. The last time I felt as alive and buzzing yet exhausted as I did at the end of that game, there was probably a need to roll over and have a cigarette, so to speak...it really was that good.

Phoenix. Rising: How good is David Beauregard? Good enough, along with his team-mates, that Manchester will win a trophy this season. The win in the Hallam Arena, while a shock for some (maybe especially Sheffield) is further indication this early on of a team who are building themselves up under the radar for a serious go at a trophy. And yet still no-one is taking any of the traditionally mid-table teams seriously, blinded by the star power of the Big Four. As for Edinburgh and Hull-they'll take points off each other and other teams all season long. I can't see how anyone can seriously say that there are only a few teams in with a chance of honours this year-and each weekend only strengthens the case to the contrary so far...any team really can beat any other. Yes, even Hull.

Adam Calder is a bit of a put-down merchant:...paired up with Bruce Richardson in the box after a bit of shoving back and forth, the Blaze sniper displayed flawless comic timing (warning, naughty word). As Richardson sits, Calds moves across to the gap in the plexi and yells...

"Hey, Bruce, nice year in Wichita (Thunder, a CHL team both players played at at different times. With Richardson last year they finished bottom of their division) (pause until Richardson looks round to acknowledge the compliment...and then...) ya fucking bum!"

From that moment, they're off, with Richardson's sole reply being "This is it for you-this league is your career" and Calder replying "You're here with me, shithead!". Richardson then offers a fight, before Calds finishes him with "why would I fight, we're four-nil up. Look at the score!"

Not quite as epic as Danny Stewart destroying Andreij Sporina with a scream of "welcome to the UK, bitch!" after flattening him, but good enough...

Coventry fans are people too: Yes, I know I had a go at them as a fan-base last week, and tend to look more at the negative side of fandom when considering fan's reactions, but my faith in the Skydome crowd and indeed fans in general was restored somewhat when, while buying my ticket just before F/O on Sunday, a nice lady next to me interrupted politely before I paid to offer me a spare one of hers, and try as I might, she would not take face-value for it...she asked me how much I'd pay so, tentatively, I said "£10?" to which she said "too much-have it for £7.50"...and sought me out to give me change later in the game because she didn't have any for the note I gave her at the time... And the nice thing is I'm fairly sure that this could be a scene repeated at all the other rinks in the country. So thank you, madam-your generosity was much, much appreciated, and I hope you and your family enjoyed the game as much as I did...

Hockey fans-you wouldn't believe it reading the forums but they truly are a wonderful bunch of people as a whole...

And on that upbeat note, here ends the review of the weekend-tomorrow night we'll preview the Sky fixture (Hull v Edinburgh) and review all the happenings on and off the ice in the last 24 hours or so of the EIHL world...

We may, just for the hell of it, throw a bit of Breakaway randomness in there as well...

And last word before we go-after the use of terribly bad puns in the last piece, this column has been re-read and approved by the Cliché Police. It won't happen again...:)

Keep keeping your eye on the puck...