9:17am Wednesday 3rd March 2010
Blackburn Hawks attracted their biggest crowd of the season for Sunday’s English National Ice Hockey League encounter with Kingston Jets.
More than 700 fans packed into the Blackburn Arena to see the Hawks cruise to a 6-3 win over the already-relegated Hull outfit.
Those in attendance were treated to an evening of entertainment, which included an inter-team shootout, a parade by the newly-crowned Under-12 League Champions, a signing session with the players and the long-awaited return of club mascot Harry the Hawk.
“I wasn’t able to engage in any of the entertainment myself, as I was too busy barking orders in the dressing room,” said head coach Gary Buckman.
“But from what I’ve been told, I believe an enjoyable evening was had by all. The score could have gone into double figures, but we got the win and that’s all that matters.”
Securing maximum points was important for the Hawks, who suffered a 4-2 defeat away to Coventry Blaze in their opening game of the weekend.
The town team had no fewer than five players missing, and despite leading 1-0 at the end of the first interval, thanks to a goal from Rick Hughes, they found themselves 3-1 down in the second period, before Aaron Davies reduced the arrears on a power play with 35 minutes gone.
Hawks applied all the pressure in the final third as they looked for an equaliser, but it was the Blaze who grabbed the only goal to seal the win.
Eager to bounce back, Hawks got off to a flying start against Kingston, with Sam Dunford and Dave Meikle both finding the back of the net inside 10 minutes.
The Jets made a game of it after the interval, scoring either side of Meikle’s second of the night to make it 3-2.
Dunford grabbed his second just seven seconds into the final period and although Kingston again made it a one-goal game, a late Jared Owen brace secured the points.
“The lads were up for it on Sunday, but the energy and drive just wasn’t there,” added Buckman.
“If they were expecting Kingston just to lie down because they’d been relegated the night before then they were in for a shock.
“We scored what we could, as and when we could, but a bit of end-of-season fatigue appears to be taking its toll.
“We haven’t got any games this weekend, so hopefully I’ll have a fully fit squad at my disposal for a league and cup double-header in 10 days time.”
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