Round the Rinks, September 25th

Very simple tonight cause I know it's late...the Gardiner Cup will be dealt with in a seperate post, probably on Sunday. Here's your weekend in two minutes:

SATURDAY

Newcastle v Coventry: This one is interesting-mainly because, up until now, the new-look Vipers have proved themselves the equal of most of the traditional powers in the league, while Coventry, one of those powers, have, whatever their fans may tell you, looked somewhat less than convincing-a team of great individual skill who just aren't quite moulding to the level that, perhaps, previous teams have. The Vipers, meanwhile, have bonded like chewing-gum to the sole of your best shoes-quickly and strongly. This game will be a game which, depending on the result, will send several different messages out to the league-and for that reason, it's worth keeping an eye on.

Cardiff v Hull: And so the rivalry resumes with the dust barely settled from the last time these two met at the bay, and more bad blood than you'll ever see in the whole Twilight saga. And unlike the uncannily-popular fantasy series, there'll be no pussy-footing around and long soulful stares at each other from these two characters-they'll just leap straight for each others' throats and hang on tight.

Sheffield v Nottingham: Oh, look, it's the second instalment of "the biggest rivalry in Europe". But stifle your yawns if you're not a fan of either team, because this is an intriguing meeting which may show more than ever if the balance between these two has shifted in the other direction this season, with Nottingham setting the early pace and Sheffield having what, for them, has been a seriously lacklustre season opening. With bragging rights well and truly on the line, let's see which team wants it more this time out...

SUNDAY

Edinburgh v Belfast: Time was, you could predict this result as a Giants win with no real problems. However, this season...not a chance. This one could genuinely go either way-the Caps, even missing Doug Christiansen, look like they could be a match for a Giants side that gave a five-goal headstart to the Blaze last weekend in their own rink, before disposing of Hull with minimal fuss in midweek-which Giants will turn up this time?

Coventry v Cardiff: The second-biggest rivalry in the EIHL starts again, as the Devils make their second trip to the Skydome looking to avenge the defeat in pre-season. This time, points are on the line, after all, and the Devils are back to near-full strength, only missing the suspended Brad Voth, although they may possibly be missing a few through injury. It'll be a hard-fought game, however, and if the Devils can nick a win, then they'll be up on cloud-nine, while the Blaze will plunge down again as their fans get restless...

Hull v Nottingham: The Stingrays won this one last time out. The Panthers will fancy their chances at revenge, however, thanks to suspensions and injuries-it could be a long night for Tommy Sandahl in the Stingrays net...

Newcastle v Sheffield: Another home-game for the Vipers, who'll be facing either a euphoric and fired-up Steelers side fresh off a victory against their rivals, or a team thirsty for revenge and wanting to get back on track. Either way, they'll be a tough and willing opponent against a team who will (hopefully) have been pushed hard against Coventry the night before. These are the kind of games, even in September, where you start to see the emerging character of a team-if the Vipers take a four-point weekend this weekend, then the MRA can rightly begin to gain the tag "Geordie Fortress". We shall see...

There you go-a lightning weekend preview...

AND FINALLY....

For those of you who follow the EPL, but can't make your team's game, there's now a live-score service at www.eplupdates.co.uk, which launched last week to hardly any fanfare but great success (over 200 people becoming fans on facebook in the first week). It's well worth a look...so have a nosey by clicking here.