Additional Comments:

The Lions were quick off the mark in this game as nifty stickwork by Stas Prokofiev put Lee Valley 1-0 up with just 1:09 on the clock. Joe Berry followed this up with the second goal at 2:23, assisted by Ashley Curtin and Nick Alley. The Harrier Hawks’ Curtis Platt received 2-mins for tripping at 3:50 but the Lions’ powerplay opportunity fell apart within seconds. Possession of the puck was soon handed straight over to the opposition, Andrew Boot was left completely undefended and the home team scored their first of the night at 4:22.

Lee Valley’s third goal appeared to have been stopped by William Sanderson in the Hawks’ net but the puck pushed through, securing Joe Berry his second of the game.

Eight minutes into the first period Andrew Boot faced intense pressure as two Harrier Hawks were allowed to attack at close range, having failed to be intercepted by Lee Valley’s defence. AJ handled both the situation and the inevitable shot admirably and the Lions hit back swiftly after, Romanas Fedotovas tipping in Michael Jacob’s shot at 8:19.

Slough came straight back and scored their second just ten seconds into a powerplay, Stas Prokofiev sitting out 2-mins for charging. The Lions then managed a rare short-handed goal, Michael Jacobs seemingly attempting the impossible by shooting at an extreme angle, the assist going to Nick Breigoos.

Undeterred, the Hawks then fired an easy goal that had been set up well, eluding James Hatfull and sliding through the legs of Andrew Boot. Lee Valley were caught out again by well-positioned Slough forwards and their fourth was in the net at 15:24, scored by Adrian Wheeler. Joe Berry then scored his hat-trick at 19:49 with a brilliant goal that had been set up flawlessly by Nick Alley.

The Lions didn’t start as strongly in the second period and it seemed the strain of playing with only two lines was beginning to show. They allowed Slough to skate end-to-end almost completely undefenced and frequently handed over possession of the puck. As Joe Berry sat out 2-mins for charging the Hawks pounced and their fifth goal was the result of a good, clear shot by Chris Rost.

The period began to liven up and both teams fought continuously for further goals. Joe Berry took the puck down the wing and made a great pass to Freddie Trimble, who then whacked in Lions’ 7th goal. Before the announcer had even finished calling the scoring details Trimble struck again and Lee Valley were now in a strong position, the scoreline being 8-5 in their favour.

However, almost immediately Romanas Fedotovas inadvertently gave away possession of the puck to Slough. Andrew Boot was focused on the throng of players to his left and neither he nor the Lions’ defence appeared to notice the unmarked player to his right. Eric Knizat had the perfect opportunity and hit the puck straight into the back of the net to narrow the Lions’ dominance down to two goals.

Nick Breigoos was handed 2-mins for tripping at 34:51 but Lee Valley handled being short-handed well, successfully deflecting the puck away from the danger zone several times. The period saw some nice build-ups by Stas Prokofiev and Nick Alley but their attempts were thwarted. Slough had better luck with their 7th goal as Andrew Boot initially stopped it but some jabbing pushed the puck through.

The third period was full of adrenaline-pumping action and at 45:28 Romanas Fedotovas fired in Lions’ 8th goal, assisted by Stas Prokofiev. Nick Breigoos then created some great play, seeing off two Slough defencemen and even managing to kick the puck to one of his own after charging by Adrian Wheeler left him without a stick. The resulting powerplay meant that the Lions were five on three. They certainly made the most of it as Breigoos was set up nicely by Michael Jacobs, his wrist shot finding the top corner of the Slough net.

The Harrier Hawks then managed to put their 8th goal away, the Lions’ defence allowing two of them to attack with only Romanas Fedotovas in place to try and stop them. Fedotovas’ position probably obscured Andrew Boot’s vision as the unassisted shot from Matt Byrom sailed straight into the back of his net. Slough’s 9th goal was the same story – the Lions’ defence was way off the mark and the Hawks knew exactly where they needed to be.

The final few minutes of the period were extremely tense as the Lions were determined not to lose their fragile one-goal lead. Ashley Curtin came up trumps at 55:56 with Lee Valley’s 11th goal, but with exactly two minutes left on the clock Romanas Fedotovas was penalised for elbows and Slough managed to pull yet another goal out of the bag, courtesy of Adrian Wheeler. That one goal wasn’t enough as with Fedotovas back in play the Lions held their nerve and achieved their first true win of the season, the final score being 11-10 to Lee Valley.

Referee was Meekison and Linesmen were Hames and Lack.