Season 25/26: Week 7 Report
BILLINGHAM STARS and Blackburn Hawks went toe-to-toe for the first time this season at the Forum on Sunday and the much-anticipated match-up did not disappoint as a game littered with talking points was finally won with a minute to go, the visitors stealing the points 5-6.
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The home side drafted in Chris Lutz and debutant Matthew Pickup to bolster a bench slightly low on numbers. A high-energy start saw both sides try to force the pace, both netminders finding themselves busy as chances came regularly at both ends. Eventually it was Billingham who found the back of the net first with two quick goals before the period’s midpoint, the opener a tip from the slot from Michael Elder then a fortunate bounce off the back boards found James Moss who cleverly fed Callum Wilkinson for the hosts’ second. Hawks were never far away however, and they got themselves back into the game in the 15th minute when Liam Charnock went over Jacob Hammond’s shoulder to narrow the gap.
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Blackburn started the middle session on the penalty kill with Adam Barnes sitting out a hooking minor. They were just seconds from returning to full strength when Moss was the right man in the right place on the back stick to slot home an Elder rebound. Back came the visitors, Tom Barry beating Hammond from the left circle in the 27th minute. A mad three minutes started in the 32nd minute, Barnes scoring on the breakaway with Stars looking for an obvious call at the other end. A minute later and the teams traded goals with James Hellens edging Billingham back in front before Barnes rifled low to level it all up again. Blackburn had their tails up however, and Jacob Lutwyche went around Hammond in the 35th minute to send Hawks into the dressing room ahead.
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Stars began the third stanza at full throttle and were rewarded in the 44th minute when Iain Brown got the better of Harrison Walker between the Blackburn pipes. A high-quality game looked to be going to overtime until Barry fired home with a minute to go, prompting the inevitable withdrawal of Hammond and the home side throwing everything at Walker’s net. Controversy marked the closing seconds when Barry blatantly pushed the goal off its pegs with Chris Sykes lurking beside the open net, however what should have been the resulting penalty shot was not awarded and Blackburn were able to survive the remaining time, 5-6 the final score.
Man-of-the-Match for Billingham was Rolands Gritāns.
Credit: SLSportsPhotos
Stars Stats:
James Moss 1+2; Michael Elder 1+1; Iain Brown 1+1; James Hellens 1+0; Callum Wilkinson 1+0; Chris Sykes 0+3
SOG: Jacob Hammond 54 (19 / 19 / 16)
Hawks Stats:
Tom Barry 2+1; Adam Barnes 2+1; Jacob Lutwyche 1+0; Liam Charnock 1+0; Andy McKinney 0+3; Lee Pollitt 0+2; Jaes Riddoch 0+1; Bobby Streetly 0+1
SOG: Harrison Walker 44 (14 / 17 / 13)
Credit: SLSportsPhotos
Weekend Results:
NIHL Moralee Saturday:
✈️ Hull Jets 4️⃣ - 5️⃣ Widnes Wild 🐾
🐯 Telford Tigers 2 1️⃣1️⃣ - 7️⃣ Leeds Knights 2 ⚔️
NIHL Moralee Sunday:
🐉 Deeside Dragons 5️⃣ - 9️⃣ Solihull Barons ⚜️
💫 Billingham Stars 5️⃣ - 6️⃣ Blackburn Hawks 🦅
🦁 Nottingham Lions 5️⃣ - 2️⃣ Sheffield Scimitars 🗡️