Season 26/27: Week 5 Preview
BILLINGHAM STARS are on the road in National Ice Hockey League Moralee Division this afternoon to take on an unbeaten Deeside Dragons.
Dragons have only played three games so far this season, and all of them at home, so it is perhaps still too early to speculate on how they may fare, but they have the maximum points return from those three games and are so far living up to their preseason tag as serious challengers for silverware. Much is expected of the prolific Jake Witkowski, but Deeside are more than just one man and strengthened in the summer to bolster a defence that was seen as their Achilles heel.
It will be interesting to see what side Billingham put out today as a bug has run rampant through the squad this week, but they will certainly be looking to improve once again on recent good performances as the team continues to develop and learn new systems under Head Coach Rickie Thornton.
Fixture:
🐉 Deeside Dragons 🆚 Billingham Stars 💫
🏆 NIHL Moralee Division
📍 Deeside Leisure Centre
📅 Sunday 4th October 2026
🕔 Face off 5.15pm
Deeside Dragons:
2025-26 Moralee Division: Second
2025-26 Moralee Cup: Winners
Squad changes from 2025-26:
Players out: Cody Ogden (F – Widnes Wild); Daniels Fadejevs (F – Nottingham Lions); Rhys Edwards (F – Widnes Wild)
Players in: Ryan Wardell (G – Billingham Buccaneers); Curtis Warburton (G – Sheffield Steelers); Kane Morin (F – Altrincham Aces); Lewis Baldwin (D – Billingham Stars)
In charge:
Head Coach – Mike Clancy
Assistant Coach – Steve Hirst, Mike Morin, Mark Thomas
🔗 Deeside Dragons on Elite Prospects: https://www.eliteprospects.com/team/5129/deeside-dragons
Weekend Results/Fixtures:
NIHL Moralee Saturday:
🗡️ Sheffield Scimitars 2️⃣-3️⃣ Blackburn Hawks 🦅 (L/C)
✈️ Hull Jets 1️⃣-6️⃣ Solihull Barons ⚜️
NIHL Moralee Sunday:
🐉 Deeside Dragons 🆚 Billingham Stars 💫
⚜️ Solihull Barons 🆚 Sheffield Scimitars 🗡️
🐾 Widnes Wild 🆚 Hull Jets ✈️ (L/C)
⚔️ Leeds Knights 2 🆚 Blackburn Hawks 🦅
🦁 Nottingham Lions 🆚 Telford Tigers 2 🐯 (L/C)