News Report

Chieftains vs Oxford

Goals galore in the third period seal another great win!

• admin
• 26 March 2024

Oxford has had a really tricky season with constant team changes. Over the last few weeks, they appear to have steadied the ship, but they brought a short benched team with them for the last match of the Britton Cup at the Riverside.

The puck dropped for the first period, and both teams were fighting for control. The action was end-to-end from the start. Oxford were definitely looking stronger than previous games against the Chieftains, and at times the Chieftains defence looked a little shaky. As the early part of the period played out, the game started to settle, and the Chieftains went on the attack. At 4:44, assisted by Damon Porter and Hallden Barnes-Garner, Ollie Baldock scored a great goal to take the Chieftains into the lead, it was 1-0. The Riverside was rocking, but this didn't last long. A shot at the Chieftains goal appeared to come from nowhere. Young Oxford player Ethan Taylor managed to slot the puck in the top corner and beat Jordan Lawday. There was a sudden silence amongst the crowd in the Riverside, but also acknowledgement of a great goal. It was now 1-1. The end-to-end play continued, and at 6:57, the Chieftains managed to get the upper hand. Assisted by Cameron Bartlett and Tommy Huggett, Grant Bartlett got his first goal of the night to make it 2-1. The Chieftains started to gain control, and the shots came raining down on Petr Cech, but Cech has improved a lot this season, and he was able to keep the shots out. The first period ended 2-1. Lawday faced 5 shots, and Cech faced 16.

The attacking play from the Chieftains continued into the second period. The home fans didn't have to wait long for the Chieftains to score. At 21:51, assisted by Grant Bartlett, Damon Porter scored what has become one of his customary shots, you guessed it...it's the impossible tight-angled shot that finds its way into the back of the net. The Riverside cheered. It was now 3-1. If the home fans thought the flood gates would open, the Oxford team had other ideas. Oxford started to claw themselves back into the game, and at 24:03, Matt Lawday was able to make it 3-2. With just over 90 seconds being played, at 25:41, Theo Bundock scored another for Oxford. It was now level pegging at 3-3. The game had suddenly turned. Oxford had successfully fought back. As per the first period, the Chieftains notched it up another level, and at 31:40, Nethersell from Oxford got two minutes for tripping. The Chieftains were on the power play. The puck was being moved around well, and Oxford were defending hard, but at 33:14, assisted by Cameron Bartlett and Jay King, Grant Bartlett was able to score once more to take the Chieftains into the lead, it was now 4-3. The attacking play continued from the Chieftains and at 34:46, assisted by Tommy Huggett, Grant Bartlett was able to score, making it a hat trick for him and stretching the Chieftains lead further. It was now 5-3. The shots continued to rain down on Cech. The Oxford netminder was able to keep the shots at bay, and the second period ended 5-3. Lawday faced 6 shots, Cech faced 17.

Considering how short benched Oxford were, they had managed to give the Chieftains a good game so far, but the third period was set to be completely different. The Chieftains really kicked into gear for the final period. They were looking deadly, and Oxford was starting to look tired. At 45:16, assisted by Daniel Hitchings, Grant Bartlett managed to score again, making it the fourth goal of his night, and the scoreline was now 6-3. The team kept on pushing and at 49:49, assisted by Tommy Huggett and Grant Bartlett, Jay King was able to get himself on the scoresheet too, it was now 7-3. Oxford called for an immediate timeout. The home fans were chanting for the Chieftains, it was deafening! Whatever Shannon Taylor had said to his side had the reverse effect, because after this timeout, the floodgates flew open. The Chieftains went into full-on attack mode. Oxford were struggling to clear the puck as the shots just came in from every angle. At 55:11, assisted by TJ Fillery and Sasha Maltsev, Kieran Raynor scored to make it 8-3. The home fans hadn't been celebrating for long, and the Chieftains went on the attack again. At 56:09, assisted by Ollie Baldock and Hallden Barnes-Garner, Damon Porter scored the second of his night to make it 9-3. The home fans were now chanting "We want ten! We want ten!" and at 56:30, Grant Bartlett "granted" the fans their wish, he scored a fanatastic goal, flinging his arms up in the air, receiving much adulation from the home crowd to make it 10-3. He was assisted by Daniel Fay and Cameron Bartlett. The Chieftains had managed to score three goals in less than 90 seconds. Their finishing was deadly and clinical. Oxford was left stunned. You could tell the Chieftains had more in the tank, and they kept pushing for the next goal. At 58:31, assisted by Ollie Baldock and Hallden Barnes Garner, Damon Porter scored the final goal of the night, completing his hat trick, and the game ended 11-3.

The third period had been amazing to watch. The goals just kept coming, and their finishing was sublime—an impressive display from the team and a great position for the team to be in just before the playoffs! Grant Bartlett had managed to score 5 goals, and he was rightly awarded Man of the Match. Well done, Grant!

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

#LetsGoChieftains #CantWaitForThePlayoffs