Three Manchester Phoenix players make the British Sledge Hockey national squad

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After a fantastic second season of the Planet Ice British Ice Sledge Hockey league the British Sledge Hockey Association (BSHA) is delighted to announce its team for the 2012/13 season, which include 3 Manchester Phoenix players!

The BSHA is currently building an elite programme with the intention of qualifying for the 2014 Winter Paralympic games to be held in Sochi, Russia and developing a medal winning team for the 2018 Paralympic games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

Selection has been based on inspiring and developing players. A number of new players have been introduced in order to ensure there is a pool of classified players with international experience.

Paralympian’s Gary Farmer, Karl Nicholson and Ian Warner are the only players remaining from the 2006 team that competed in the Turin Winter Paralympics and also included in the squad is the Captain of the European Women’s Sledge Hockey team, Caroline Bonner.

There are some notable newcomers to the squad including Manchester Phoenix player Steve Midghall, who has only been playing for a few months. Anthony Booth, another Phoenix player has also received the call after several years away from the sport.

GB Team Manager, Red Geddes said, “The development of the GB Sledge Hockey programme has been amazing and we aim to demonstrate that Paralympic success doesn’t just happen in the summer. When you consider that we took a development team to the 2011 Paralympic Winter World Cup and came 8th out of 10 teams with only 5 players with international experience and 8 players who had been part of our fast track scheme and had been playing Sledge Hockey for less than a year”.

The first test of the international season for GB will be the IPC New Year Cup in Russia in December followed by the 2012/13 World Championships. These competitions are followed by the IPC European Championships and the 2012/13 IPC World Championships.

John Neville, the Board Member who has the portfolio for the Elite programme said, “Our target has always been to develop a team capable of winning a medal by the 2018 Paralympic games and I believe we are still on target to achieve that aim. We will continue to focus on development throughout the current Paralympic cycle and will continue to look for opportunities to strengthen our programme, including exploring the possibility of talent transfer of athletes that have just competed at the London 2012 Paralympic games”.

There is no classification points system dictating who can be involved in play within Sledge Hockey (simply an eligibility classification for Paralympic events) unlike other team sports such as Wheelchair basketball, rugby and sitting volleyball.

2012/13 Great Britain Ice Sledge Hockey Team

• Caroline Bonner – Coventry Honey Badgers
• Anthony Booth – Manchester Phoenix
• Darren Brown – Peterborough Phantoms
• Tyler Christopher – Battle Back Bisons
• Matt Clarkson – Kingston Kestrels
• Matthew Coleman- Peterborough Phantoms
• Lee Coupe – Battle Back Bisons
• Gary Farmer – Peterborough Phantoms
• Rob Gaze – Peterborough Phantoms
• Tom Graham – Peterborough Phantoms
• Bryan Hackworth – Kingston Kestrels
• Steven Midghall – Manchester Phoenix
• Karl Nicholson – Manchester Phoenix
• Jack Waring – Peterborough Phantoms
• Ian Warner – Kingston Kestrels
• Matt Woollias – Kingston Kestrels

GB head coach Andy Linton gave his thoughts on the Manchester Phoenix players that have made the squad.

Steven Midghall

“Steve has only been playing a few months and has picked up the sport really quickly, he caught my eye at Coventry during a GB try out Session, which he was invited to. He is a very good net minder, capable of playing to a high standard, he has been putting in a consistent effort during training and has a positive attitude towards all aspects of the sport and is improving his skills quickly. Steve just needs to get more game experience and working with our coaching staff he is likely to develop to be a key player on the Paralympic team.”

Karl Nicholson

“Karl is considered a world class Sledge Hockey player and is one of our most experience players, he has tournament experience at Paralympic level in 1998 (Nagano, Japan) and 2006 (Turin, Italy) as well as at several World and European championships. In addition Karl has competed at several Paralympics as a Wheelchair Racer. Karl is capable of leading and inspiring the GB team and became assistant captain during 2011 World Cup. Karl holds a key role on the GB Sledge Paralympic team as he is a good strong skating forward with speed and agility. He has a willingness to compete at all times, can handle the puck at top speed, in tight corners and has ability to adjust body position to protect puck including along the boards. He has a good team ethos and can bring other players into the game.”

Anthony Booth

“Anthony has tournament experience at nearly every level and as a result is considered one of our best players. He’s an imposing player who opponents will be aware of whenever he is on the ice. Anthony also provides a scoring depth to our team and he is very strong defensively and capable of making the right decisions on the puck. He has confidence in his abilities and will make the team feel safe when he is on the ice.”

As well as the three players who have been selected, another Manchester Phoenix player is also looking to make the break into the national squad. Rob Allen, known to many fans as the dancing penalty box attendant on match nights, is waiting on classification to see if he is eligible for selection for the GB squad.

Coach Linton also explained why Rob is on his radar.

Rob Allen

“Rob has been playing for about 4 months and has shown significant progress in that time. Also a very keen Hockey fan, given the right support and encouragement Rob has the potential to become a very good Hockey Player. He shows great progress every time he gets on to the ice, and is a player who can embrace the physical aspect of the game”

So with 3 players already in the national side and potentially a fourth, there are bright times ahead for the Manchester Phoenix Sledge Hockey team!

Why not give it a try, it is a totally inclusive sport and at club level especially, sop whether you are able bodied or disabled… give the Manchester Phoenix Sledge Hockey team a try, email phagan@manchesterphoenix.co.uk or call the office on (0161) 301 6848, your first session is free and all the equipment is provided.

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