News Report

Chieftains vs Slough Jets

A dominant display from the Chieftains seals the win!

• admin
• 09 January 2024

With both teams on joint points in the league at the start of the weekend, there was a chance for both teams to extend their lead as they played each other on both days. The spoils of the Saturday night game went to Slough. It's fair to say that the Chieftains struggled to get back in the swing of things after the Christmas break, but with the advantage of the home crowd behind them, would Sunday night be different?

It was another sold-out game at the Riverside. The rink was packed, and the anticipation of a great game was high. The fans were not left disappointed!

The Chieftains were playing with intensity and pace during the first period, they were muscling Slough off the puck when not in possession, this was the complete opposite of the night before. For the first 10 minutes, there were hardly any stoppages. The play was end-to-end, but the Chieftains definitely had the upper hand. Their passing was spot on, and defensively, they were acting as a solid unit. At times, when called upon, Jordan Lawday was like a wall. At such an early stage of the game, this was a display of dominance from the Chieftains. The Slough Jets are known for being a fast team, but they couldn't use this to their advantage. Every time they got the puck, they were closed down quickly. Halfway through the first period, Alan Lack made a charge on goal. There was a scuffle in front of the Slough netminder, but the goal light went on, and Alan Lack claimed the goal. The Riverside was rocking, but it soon fell quiet. The referee had disallowed the goal, citing interference. This decision appeared to spur the team on further. They really started to pressurise the Slough goal. At 17:15, Leigh Jamieson made a charge on goal, he weaved skillfully through the Slough line and managed to plant the puck firmly at the back of the net. This time, there was no doubt that this was a goal. The Chieftains had taken the lead, and the period finished 1-0. Lawday faced 9 shots, while Slough Jets faced 13.

The puck dropped for the second period, and the dominance from the Chieftains continued. It was becoming physical, and there were some very well-timed hits on the Slough Jets. The crowd was loving the game, and the Riverside was well and truly behind their team. It was only a matter of time before the Chieftains would score again. Damon Porter was really showing his pace during the second period. It was phenomenal to watch. The faster he got, the more control he seemed to have over the puck. At 24:37, the Chieftains second goal came, this time courtesy of Hallden Barnes-Garner, assisted by Damon Porter and Oli Baldock. It was now 2-0. The Riverside was so loud, but within 20 seconds of Hallden's goal, Damon Porter made a superb charge. From an extremely tight angle, he somehow managed to get the puck in the back of the net. The crowd couldn't believe it, the scoreline was now 3-0. The Slough Jets called an immediate timeout. The home crowd was chanting "Chieftains! Chieftains! Chieftains!" at the top of their voices, this was turning out to be a great game! The second period continued to be end-to-end. There were times when Jordan was performing acrobatics to keep the puck out of the net, with the defence trying their best to protect him from charges coming from Slough, but the Chieftains were also having their own chances at the Slough end too. At 32:13, Lewis English and Grant Bartlett dropped gloves. English was holding back, waiting for Grant to make the first move. Grant took the first swing, and English was trying to get Grant's shirt over his head. Grant was having none of it and took English down with ease. Both got 5+2 for fighting. It really was turning out not to be Slough's night. The second period finished 3-0. Lawday faced 9 shots, Slough faced 13, exactly the same as the first period.

The third and final period started with the same intensity and pace as per the other periods. The Chieftains were dominant and in control. This game really was a joy to watch. Every player on the team was putting their bodies on the line. At 45:11, assisted by Grant Bartlett, Sasha Maltsev scored a cracking goal to make it 4-0. The way the game was being played and the way Slough had been closed down, it really looked like a shutout was on for the team. Shortly after Sasha's goal, Slough came on the attack. It was looking like it was going to be 1 on 1 with Lawday, but Daniel Fay was able to get himself back, throw himself towards the puck, and poke check the puck out of the way. The open play continued and at 47:51, assisted by Cameron, Grant was able to score the first goal of his night. The Riverside rocked once more, the Chieftains were winninig 5-0! Slough managed to get themselves back in the game, and the physicality increased. At 48:41, Alan Lack got 2 minutes for charging, and at 49:57 the Chieftains bench got a 2 minute penalty, as well as Leigh Jamieson taking a 2 minute penalty for cross-checking. There were three chieftains plaayers in the sinbin! The home fans knew things were going to get difficult. The wave of attacks started to come, and at 50:29, Jack Goodchild was able to get Slough's first goal of the night. I'm fortunate enough to sit beside TJ's nan (Jan) at game nights, and in her words, "They can have that one for turning up." The onslaught on the Chieftains goal continued, but the defence held strong. With Jordan Lawday acting like a wall once more, the team ensured there weren't anymore power play goals, a great team effort. At 57:29, Roman Cathcart from Slough got 2 minutes for tripping. This time it was the Chieftains turn to be on the powerplay, and the home team didn't have to wait long for Sasha Maltsev to score the second of his night. It was now 6-1. At 58:18, Keiran Raynor got a 2 minute penalty for a check to the head, and the balance of power switched back to Slough. At 59:05, Sebastian Mohr scored the final goal of the night for Slough. It was now 6-2, and this is how the scoreline remained until the game finished. Lawday faced 15 shots, and Slough faced 8.

This truly was an amazing game, highlighting once again the individual talent amongst the team and also how well they all play together—pure dominance!

Sasha was awarded Man of the Match, thoroughly deserved for his two fantastic goals of the night. Well done Sasha!

We can't wait to see you back at the Riverside very soon!

If you'd like to see the stats for the game, just click here.

#LetsGoChieftains #PureDominance