Alternative Match Report: Clan @ Blaze 27/02/2011

An immense defensive display sees Braehead edge out Coventry in a tight 60 minutes.

Blaze looked to bounce back from defeat at Nottingham against an on form Clan, looking for another 4 point weekend. The gruelling EHIL fixture schedule did not take effect on either team as both teams started the game at pace.

Selmzer was first to test Perras, who set the tone for the game with the first of many game saving stops. Russ Cowley then went close before Weaver and Robinson found the bin in quick succession. Much like last night's Braehead game, the 5 on 3 power play didn't bring the desired goal, despite Cook hitting the bar when it would have been easier to net. Matty Haywood also went close.

A penalty for high sticking was called on Lee shortly before the game's first goal. Cook worked the puck on the left and fed Landry, whose laser blasted past Brett Jaeger. First blood to the Clan. A flurry of action resulted in both Walker and Richardson earning some box time. Perras then had to look sharp to deny Weaver twice in the lead up to Blaze's equaliser.

Blaze worked the PP well as Fulghum struck a distance shot through a ruck of players. Owen looked to have got the final touch, but the goal was credited to Fulghum at 13:34. Cook earned himself a penalty as the period ran it's course.

If Perras was the Clan hero in the first, Jaeger took the spoils in the second. Great stops from Krestanovich, Chaumont and Landry kept the score down, while JFP kept out Crowley and Selmser.Clan soon regained the lead on 26:59 when Adam walker's shot rebounded to Saturday night's Man of the Match, Matthew Wathier. The defenceman slotted home to silence the home crowd.

Farmer tried to hit back instantly but was shut out by Perras once more before Fulghum almost doubled his tally with a shot that smacked the bar. More penalties led to more chances with Campbell, Landry and Soderstrom looking to get on the scoresheet. However the next name to be added was that of Bruce Richardson.

Good net work by Richardson and Kyle Bruce found the Coach go round the back unchallenged to slot under the despairing Jaeger. 3-1 Clan at the end of the second, despite being outshot by the hosts.

Coventry needed to come out of the blocks to get anything from the game, but could not break down a resolute Clan defence.Nell, Cowley, Carlson and Lee had the best of the chances of the period but could not find a way through. Another Clan powerplay gave Cook and Landry some shots on Jaeger, before Carlson went 1 on 1 with Perras to no avail. Cook then smacked a shot off Jaeger's helmet with around 5 minutes left.

The complexion of the game briefly changed with 90 seconds remaining. Cruickshank netted again through a ruck of players after some great blocking form Bostock and Wedderburn.

Jon Landry then incurred a delay of game penalty, leaving Clan with a powerplay kill for the remainder of the match. Blaze called a time out, pulling Jaeger for the 2 man advantage.

The Clan defence thwarted all attempts and as the pressure mounted, Richardson made a ground block, got up, swivelled and shot in one fluid movement, finding the empty net in the process. 4-2 Clan with 2 seconds remaining. The Braehead fans that travelled to Coventry stood proud at the end as Weaver and Wedderburn received their MOTM awards.

Coventry fall a further 2 points behind Braehead in the race for 5th place in a game won by a team very much on form. Final Score at the Coventry SkyDome, Clan 4- Blaze 2.

Alternative Match Report: Devils @ Clan 26/02/2011

Bobby Chaumont's OT strike gives The Clan the W in an exciting battle at Braehead Arena.

Third placed Cardiff came to Braehead, out for revenge for the 7-1 decimation dished out earlier in the month. The Clan were looking to build on last week's 4 point weekend, and from the off both teams signalled their intentions.

Within the opening minutes of the first period, Cardiff indiscipline resulted in a 5 on 3 powerplay in Clan's favour. However, the home side failed to take advantage of the numbers game and Devils killed the PP, which they would do for the majority of the game.

While enjoying most of the posession, Braehead were reluctant to force Lyle in to action in the Devills' goal. When not chasing the puck, Devil's looked dangerous on the break with Michel, Pelle and MaCrae bringing out some fine stops from Perras. The Clan pipe minder was in inspired form but could not prevent Cardiff taking the lead.

A shot from distance was saved by Perras, with Wedderburn stretching to block the follow up from Craig. However the heroics were undone as Michel slotted home from close range at 19:00.

The period ended with Cardiff out shooting Braehead 12-5.

The 1600 home crowd, augmented by some visitors form Mannheim were treated to a much more clinical 2nd period. It looked as if both Perras and Lyle would continue to keep the score at 1-0 for the period, with JFP making 4 world class stops to prevent the Devil's going further ahead. At the other end, Lyle was on hand to keep out Cook, Krestanovich and Campbell.

Kyle Bruce was binned for slashing, giving Clan their first penalty of the night but upon his return to the ice, Hill put Cardiff 2-0 up. Good work on the right from MacRae picked out Hill at the back post for an easy net at 30:59. The 2-0 deficit was perhaps unjust, but by taking their chances, Cardiff were edging out their hosts.

This was not lost on Bruce Richardson, who called a time out before the game resumed. His words seemed to work as within 2 minutes of the puck drop, Clan were level. Krestanovich regained posession just inside the Devils' third and drove fast and hard to the net, slotting home unassisted on 12:17.

The noisy Braehead crowd enjoyed the goal and had barely stopped celebrating when the equaliser came. Jon Landry worked the puck to Cook, who teed up Ryan Campbell who slammed home past the impressive Lyle at 12:55. Clan were back in the game and looked the more dangerous. Bruce and Smith then clashed behind the Cardiff goal, resulting in the Devil being carried from the ice with a nasty looking knee injury.

Lyle's goal was peppered a few more times as Weller's trip on Bruce left them a man down, but Blan couldn't find a way through. 2-2 at the end of the second left both teams with all to play for in the 3rd.

The final period found both teams going for it with Landry, Cook and Chaumont going close for Clan and Michel, Weller and the unnamed number 6 denied by Perras. MacRae took a roughing penalty which Cook almost took advantage of before Chaumont ended up in the box. Weller and Michel missed chances for the winner before spending time in the box. The timing of these sins would prove costly as the game went in to over time.

As the game restarted 4 on 3, Braehead's tails were up and took all of 41 seconds for them to find the winner. Similar to Devils' 2-0 goal, Krestanovich fed Bobby Chaumont who found the top bag past Lyle. The Clan bench rushed the ice to congratulate Chaumont on his winner, as the home crowd erupted.

Voth and Wathier were given MVP in a match where it could have gone to anyone. Cardiff travelled home a tad unlucky, while remaining 3rd as Braehead took a 3 point lead over Coventry in 5th.

Final score at Braehead Arena: Cardiff Devils 2 Braehead Clan 3 (AOT)

The Braehead Blog - Chapter 2: Fanning The Flames Of Fandom

This, my second Braehead Blog comes an hour or so after The Clan ended up with a 4 point weekend in the Elite league, taking them to 5th in the table. With 4th placed Nottingham Panthers sitting on 63 points after a 5-1 win at Coventry, you would expect it to be as high as Clan will climb in their debut season.

A mid table finish and a place in the play-offs guaranteed, to me at least seems like a very decent return for a first attempt. Had the slump of November/December not been as...slumpy, then who knows, 4th may have been a realistic position. Nonetheless, finishing 5th would be no disgrace in this league.

At a time when the West Coast/ Central Belt sports media will be discussing everything green and blue for the next week to fortnight, it would seem unlikely that the progress that the Clan have made in their formative season will gain much coverage. Even with the record breaking win over (an albeit "weakened") Edinburgh Capitals, nothing more than a paragraph will likely be dedicated to The Purple Army this weekend.

Perhaps due to being formed within the confines of the countries biggest footballing population, much like the Caps and their egg chasing city compatriots, the promotion of the Braehead clan has suffered. There is no hiding the evidence that football dominates our papers and news reports, leaving Ice Hockey, as well as other sports to be bracketed as "minority" interest.

To be fair, the EHL and Sky Sports do a great job of promoting the sport on a national basis, with the weekly highlights show and the live games they put on. But on a more Braehead related level, the promotion of the franchise has not been very well publicised.

I'm not bashing the efforts of those at the Clan who deal with such matters. I know that in a first year of operation, a lot is involved in the on and off ice running of the club, and this initial start up season will be a learning curve for all involved. For next season though, I would like to see a more focussed promotional media attack for the club.

More recently, steps have been taken to spread Clan awareness, with the appearance on Radio Scotland a few weeks back, along with the Ice Skating nights at Christmas in Ayrshire. By using the facilities at X-Scape to hold events where the squad are involved as well as the forums, allowing fans to speak to the club have also gone down very well.

However, these have only really been of interest to those already interested in The Clan. Having just moved back to Lanark from Glasgow, I am only aware of the advertising for the team in those locales. Certainly in Glasgow, I spotted the occasional emblazoned Smart car or flier at the TicketMaster concession in Buchanan Galleries, but hardly anything more than that. To be fair, I am unaware if the promotional push in the nearer vacinity of Pailsey was more focussed than in Glesga, as I have never really frequented the former home of the Pirates.

What I have noticed though, are the amount of events that happen at Braehead, that while not being well hyped, are more subtly advertised around the city. Recently, I have noticed events involving JLS, Coloursfest, WWE, Disney on Ice, all being flyered and postered about, with notices on public transport advertising certain services and timetables to accomodate these Braehead events.

This would be a small step on the way to filling even more seats than what the Clan have done thus far. It is a testament to the work that the club have put in in promoting the team that there are decent crowds attending each week. At the Sheffield game in midweek, at a time when most families or adults would be happy with a night in front of the telly after a long day at work, that a good thousand or so turned up to cheer the boys on. Even the band of Steelers fans who made the trip up, must have been enthralled enough to come up on a school night to watch their team.

I believe this to be one of the first steps to success for the Braehead Clan. The fact that there is a dedicated core of fans, willing to sacrifice a week night for the benefit of the team, shows that there is a desire for something other than football for sports fans to sink their teeth in to. Again, on a personal note, living around 30 odd miles from the Arena, I managed to convince my fiance and Mother to head along on Tuesday, after we had all worked 9 to 5, and we had a great night.

As much as I've spoken of the little advertising for the team I have seen, (as a consumer and not as someone interested in the Clan) I believe that getting the Hockey lovers of Glasgow, Paisley and the surrounding areas attention off the bat, and developing from there is the right way to do it. Without fans, a team has nothing. No merchandise sales, no bums on seats and no interest.

By having this core of fans, the opportunity is there to use word of mouth to generate higher attendances. From doing my last Blog and speaking with my friends, I have peaked some Lanarkian interest for the Cardiff game next weekend and am hopefully bringing 4 or 5 more folk along and turning them in to fans. thise 4 or 5 could eventually bring another 4 or 5 and so on and so on.

With the momentum that the club has at the moment, and the results of this weekend, I hope I'm not setting my mates up for disappointment. Although, it's not as if I'm taking them to support The Caps. Having supported a team which has gone in to administration and seen them forced to lose 21 of their top players, I can appreciate the turmoil that Edinburgh are going through. As I said in the last installment, I like it when my teams beat those from the capital, but I do feel a modicum of sympathy for Edinburgh and more so their fans.

To continue to travel up and down the UK to see your team lose and lose heavily, very heavily on a weekly basis must be emotionally and financially draining. But, to give credit to them, they keep on supporting. I hope that if things go belly up at The Clan, that despite the performances and the scores, the core of fans who have served them well this year, would continue to do so.

A 15-0 win followed by a much tighter win by the odd goal in 5 against Hull has meant its been a great weekend for the Purple Army. Again the contributions of Kyle Bruce and Jordan Krestanovich have been instrumental in overtaking the Blaze. Next weekend sees another visit from Cardiff and an away trip to Coventry, where another 4 points are not unachievable.

Cardiff have fallen off the rails in recent weeks and with the 7-1 defeat to the Clan still fresh in the memory, they will want to make a game of it. 2 points from this game should see an added impetus to the Blaze game on Sunday, which could cement that 5th place.

Next week's Chapter will focus on the players and their impact on the performances this season, and will probably have some other stuff. Look out for my unofficial match report on the Cardiff game as well.

Mon Ra Clan!!!

PS- follow me on Twitter! @krisjack85 for all your Kris Jack needs!

Alternative Match Report: Steelers @ Clan 15/02/2011

Alternative Match Report: Steelers @ Clan 15/02/2011

Tuesday night at Braehead Arena threw up an interesting tie between Clan and table toppers Sheffield. A game which threatened to boil over on a couple of occasions, was won fairly comfortably by the visiting team.

The league leaders came to Braehead Ice knowing that 2 points would stretch their time at the top that bit longer before the weekend's round of games. A victory for Braehead would see them regain 5th place from Coventry and further solidify the franchise's intent of being the fighting newcomer to the league, in contrast to the wimpy new kid of earlier in the season.

This new found hard hitting Clan side, who have toughened up since Kyle Bruce returned from injury and Jordan Krestanovich got his match fitness up, competed toe to toe with Sheffield for the majority of this match. However, the Steelers are top of the league for a reason, and a mix of instinctive finishing and resolute defending saw them win out.

It took them all of 4 minutes to take the lead. A power play goal from Clark was the first bit of action in a hotly contested opening 20. Krestanovich brought Clan level after good work on the right from Haywood and Landry, left him with time to pick his shot.

The phrase "they don't like it up them" is indicative of Sheffield's reaction to this, as the rest of the period was littered with penalties for hooking and slashing, culminating in Steeler Hewitt and Clan's Bruce having a spot of fisticuffs near centre ice.

Referee Hanson let it continue for a while, with neither man really getting the upper hand. Bruce's fan salute as bs was led to the box would suggest he declared himself the victor, lapping up the cheers as he went. Both men got 5 for fighting as Braehead looked the hungrier side. The period ended with no further scoring.

Clan's exertions of the 1st told at the start of the second. Munn put Steelers 2-1 ahead with an angle shot from the left that beat Perras to his back pipe. Hewitt was then binned for 2+2 for high sticking Dom Noel in the face. In the final 60 of the PowerPlay, Steeler's stole a shorthanded strike through Simon's breakaway.

3-1 down just before halfway, Clan would have to do well to keep a lid on the scoring. A loss of concentration and discipline would have been easy, as seen in earlier games, but Coach Richardson's men stuck to the task.

Mustakovs in the Steelers net was living a charmed and well protected life for most of the game, but he was beaten for a second time on 33 minutes. Cook's drive to the net was blocked, as was Richardson's close range effort and Kyle Bruce was on hand to poke home at the back stick. A 6 on 5 attack after a penalty call on Hewitt was Clan's best chance of a leveller, but even with the PP, they couldn't get past Mustakovs.

As the second period fizzled out, the onus was on Clan to find a way through a fairly solid Sheffield back line. The hard hits of the first period must have been taking hold on Richardson's men. They gave as good as they got though with Richardson, Cook, Bruce and Noel all taking and giving hefty knocks throughout the 60 minutes.

The game was put to bed less than 2 minutes in to the 3rd. The Clan D backed off as Hewitt approached and he made the little time he spent out of the box count by beating Perras. For the remaining 18 minutes, Sheffield shut up shop with an impressive defensive display. No amount of huffing and puffing from the home team could break down their wall. Perras was pulled with around a minute left but to no avail.

Despite outshooting Sheffield 26-19, the goals wouldn't materialise.

Sheffield stretched their lead by a further 2 points over Cardiff and Belfast, while Braehead stay 6th. The visit of the freefalling Capitals on Saturday evening should be just the tonic to recover from the defeat. (Provided they don't pick up a chill from topless waitering at the fans Valentine's dinner that is...)

Krestanovich picked up the home team Man of the Match beers, while Mustakovs was awarded for Sheffield. Final score at Braehead Arena, Clan 2- Steelers 4.

The Braehead Blog; Chapter 1 - Joining The Clan.

The Braehead Blog: Chapter 1- Joining The Clan

Now that 2010/11 Elite Ice Hockey League season is just over 2/3 done, I feel I can competently bluff a blog on it, with some seThe mblance of Ice Hockey knowledge. Having now attended at least a dozen EHL games, I have a passion for the puck and pipes, and look forward to having as many ups and downs fired at me as being a Motherwell FC fan does.

It's fitting that my newly found enjoyment of ice hockey coincides with the debut season of the newly founded Braehead Clan. Had it not been for the franchise starting up, I'd be making do with another consistently inconsistent season at Fir Park. Instead I have both the Clan and Motherwell to delight and dismay me, although the Clan have provided me with more wins than the Well this season.

The sudden emergence of Richardson's Purple Army was not the initial interest peaker in British hockey for me. For that, you can blame my fiancée and her folks.

Going out with a foreigner brings with it interesting culture clashes. Had I fallen in love with a Japanese girl, I would maybe be bang in to my Sumo, a Spanish señorita may have gotten me in to Bull Fighting or a French maid may have grabbed me by the Boules. You would expect by that logic that my Mrs is Canadian. But she's not, she's Northern Irish.

OK, so technically not foreign, (although her cousin Johnny's accent would have you believe otherwise...) but she and her family are massive Belfast Giants fans. If ever there was an EHL franchise to have as your "other" sports team. The Giants were it.

Pretty much the best team in the League over the last decade, watching the Giants for the first time was class. The Fergusons had trooped over for a weekend where Edinburgh Capitals hosted a weekend tournament for the Giants, themselves and 2 NHL back up teams, the Bulldogs and the Marlies.

Obviously the NHL teams were streets ahead in terms of speed and excitement, but that didn't stop me getting in to the EHL pace and play. Perhaps it was because of the family affinity or the fact that I can't stand to see an Edinburgh team win at anything, but I became a part time Giants fan.

It gave me something to bond with the in laws over and in turn, turned me on to something fresh at a time when football was getting more and more stoaic.

Then came the announcement that a further Scottish team would be added to the league. Braehead Clan.

As soon as was possible, I signed up to the website for updates on when the franchise would go live. Shortly after the announcement, Belfast visited Edinburgh again and it got me thinking that if a "foreign team" could get me excited about the game, then having one local would be even better.

Come October 2010, those thoughts were realised. But not before I had tried to get myself a wee in. Summer 2010 was spent job hunting and with my newly acquired media degree, ideally a media based job would have set me on my way to realising my potential.

Countless emails to Miss Longmuir at the Clan were sent, asking about media positions within the newly formed franchise. Ideas were pitched about game night involvement, webcasting away games, writing articles for the match night magazine, badgering for any job possible.

Alas, nothing came of them, meaning I had to make do with being a just a fan and not a cog. By the time the Clan's first home tie against Dundee Stars came around, I was ready for some on ice action.

Walking in to the Arena, I was impressed with the layout. To that point, I'd only been to Murrayfield Ice which is essentially a shed where someone left the cold tap running. The size and welcoming nature of Braehead Arena is ideal for this kind of event. As Elaine and I took our seats, the Clan squad were going through their warm ups. JF Perras was sliding about in front of the goal, moonwalking round his D. Cook. Chaumont, Landry, Bostock and Lil Bruce Ruchardson, a to become new heroes, glided about, running plays and shooting freely at Perras.

One shot was so wayward that it came over the glass and landed to my left. Free Puck! Elaine can vouch that I was like a kid with a new toy when I retrieved it and held it in my pocket for the duration of the game, like a lucky charm.

It was indeed lucky as the Clan trounced Dundee Stars 5-1, Bobby Chaumont netting a hat trick, with Cook and Campbell chipping in with the other 2. After the game I had a decision to make. Would Braehead be my 2nd team behind the Giants or would they become number 1?

I weighed up the argument. Could I support a team that wins a lot but I barely get to see or get behind a team that I had easy access to but would need to put a lot of faith in, without guaranteed success? The choice was easy in the end.

I returned to Braehead Arena 2 weeks later, Elaine and my mum in tow to see the Clan defeated in a shootout versus Coventry. Blaze had been 1-0 up since the first period and in what was a taught game, Brendan Cook levelled the game with 8 seconds remaining. The noise inside the Arena was huge and set up a tense finish where Clan's luck ran out.

It was at that point that I knew joining the Clan would be similar to being a Motherwell fan. No expectations, only hope, holding head high after a win, higher after defeat.

After the initial win over Dundee, Braebead went on a horrible slump, where Elaine and I as well as pals and relatives witnessed a few capitulations after being 2 or 3 goals to the good. For most, a losing streak would see a loss of interest, but it made my hunger grow for the game.

Saturday nights became game nights where I would try and rope as many folk in to going as I could. It's encouraging to see that other Clan fans are doing the same, as attendances look to be up every week. I'll come more to that in my next blog.

So, there's a potted history of how I've come to be a Braehead Clan fan. Over what remains of the season I'll be writing about many a Clan related theme, as a newcomer to UK hockey and so on.

Hope y'all enjoy the read.

Mon Ra Clan!!!!