News Report

Chieftains vs Slough Jets

A rollercoaster of a game, littered with penalties and stoppages!

• admin
• 20 February 2024

This Britton Cup game was to be the second charity night of the year for the Chieftains. The game was played as a memorial for Julie, her favourite colour was purple, and the charity shirts worn by the players looked incredible! All money raised will go to Cancer Research UK, and the Cheiftains family came together to raise well over £5k (final amount to be confirmed!).

The puck dropped for the first period, and the Riverside immediately got behind the Chieftains. Players that had previously been suspended were back, and it was great to see all the lines back in action. The Chieftains went on the attack, and they were looking in control. Passes were connecting, and they certainly looked more dangerous than Slough Jets. There were a few minor penalties, and as you'd expect from Slough games, the action was fast and physical. When Slough did go on the attack, the Chieftains defence looked strong and solid. At 12:39, the Chieftains pushed forward, an attack was made on goal, but the puck found its way back to Jay King just beyond the blue line. He took a shot, and it powered its way into the back of Sloughs's net. He was unassisted, and it was a belter of a goal, it was 1-0, and the Riverisde celebrated the only way they know how, loudly! The play continued to be end-to-end, but the Chieftains always had the upper hand and looked solid in defence. At 16:32, assisted by Dan Hitchings and Grant Bartlett, Cameron Bartlett scored to make it 2-0. The Riverside rocked once more and the Chieftains managed to keep a clean sheet for the first period. It was 2-0, Lawday faced 13 shots, Slough faced 8.

For the second period, the tempo stepped up another notch. Slough were attacking hard to reduce the current defecit. At one point, however, Slough had taken a few penalties, and the Chieftains were 5 on 3. Slough defended hard, and the Chieftains seemed to lose their edge. They just didn't look like scoring, and Slough was soon back to full strength. The penalties continued on both sides, with Kieran Raynor taking a two-minute penalty for interference. Slough inevitably came on the attack, and at 25:55, Ty Cathcart was able to claw a goal back for Slough. It was now 2-1. Slough were gaining control, and the Chieftains defence was having to work hard. Jordan Lawday was doing a great job keeping out as much as he could, but at 31:03, Sebastian Mohr was able to equalise for Slough. It was now 2-2. The second period was littered with penalties, which was upsetting the flow of the game. Sloughs attacking play continued, and with only 15 seconds remaining of the second period, there was a huge skirmish in front of the Chieftains net. The puck was loose, and one of the Chieftains attempted to kick the puck out of the way as it edged towards the goal line, but somehow Slough managed to get the puck in the back of the net. There were so many players in the way, it was really difficult to see what went on. Chieftains fans were immediately questioning if this goal would stand, but the goal light stayed on, and the goal was awarded to Jacob Soper. The period ended at 2–3. Lawday faced 20 shots, Slough faced 8.

As the players came out for the third and final period, the Riverside did their best to get behind the team and show their support. The team was only one goal down, they just needed to take control back from Slough. With only a few minutes played in the period, Slough had taken more penalties. Once again, the Chieftains found themselves 5 on 3. Surely they could take advantage and get themselves back into the game? Slough defended hard, the Chieftains moved the puck around but couldn't seem to build an attack. Shots from distance were made, but Slough's netminder was having a great game and kept the puck at bay. Slough was soon back to full strength, and penalties were becoming more prominent. The final period had no consistency, the officials were stopping and starting the game which was upsetting the flow and the home fans too. At 48:03, it kicked off on the ice. Hallden Barnes-Garner and Harry Hatfield dropped gloves and went at it. Hallden was throwing big punches, and both players fell to the ice. The play seemed to stop for ages. Cliff wasn't happy as he tried to get the referees attention, and the sinbin slowly filled up. There was hardly any room in the sinbin for all the Chieftains players. At 51:59, Jack Goodchild was able to extend Slough's lead further. It was now 2-4. The Chieftains tried to get themselves back in the game, but they just didn't look like scoring. The penalties continued to come, and at 58:22, Grant Bartlett and Dan Hitchings found themselves in the sinbin. The Riverside felt eerily quiet for the last few minutes. With all of the penalties and constant stoppages, it wasn't to be the Chieftains night. It finished 2-4. Lawday faced 7 shots, Slough faced 13.

Jay King was awarded Man of the match, thoroughly deserved for a belter of a goal!

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

#LetsGoChieftains