Last weekend, I drove through to Braehead for the first time, having only just passed my test. At 26, I’m a late bloomer in the driving world, but shopping needed doing and I needed to learn the road. Walking in through the revolving doors, myself and Elaine were greeted by last years posters, adorned with the faces of the players who excited, dazzled and fought for the Clan last season. Tehn I realised most of them on the walls would not be back this season.
It feels like an ice age since I last took my seat in the Arena for a Clan game. The playoff first leg against Nottingham was to be the last time I would see Brendan Cook, Dominic Noel, Bobby Chaumont, JFP and Brucie in the purple of Braehead Clan. Had I known this would be the case, I would have made sure I’d enjoyed the game more from a fan’s point of view, than that of a fledgling Hockey writer.
The reporting I was doing on last season’s games definitely helped me to understand more about the game that I have come to love, but on occasion it alos kept my eye off the things that made me a fan in the first place. I have noticed this as well in my role as online match reporter for Motherwell FC. The enjoyment of being at the games is still there, but on a different level to that of a straightforward fan.
Analysis comes in where blind optimism once inhabited. You find yourself watching the opposition just as much as your own team, while trying to maintain some dechorum while all around are hollering and hounding the players on the ice. There’s a fine line that needs to be kept to stop yourself becoming jaded though and that is evident when the puck leaves the stick and nestles between the red pipes.
You can act as professional as you like, but when your team scores a goal, you can not help but celebrate it. And that is why I can’t wait for Season 2 to begin for the Clan. The buzz from Braehead last term was amazing and I have my fingers crossed that this season will not disappoint. Yes, this season will be very different based on a change of clientele, but who is to say that Bannister’s Purple Army won’t outshine Richardson’s?
It was a huge shock on the day that the news broke that Brucie would not be returning. At his stage in his career though, the opportunity to coach in a better quality league, in his homeland, after spending so much time in the UK, is something that none of us Clan Fans would begrudge him. I’ve realised that there is definitely limited loyalty in UK Hockey, as players don’t necessarily grow up as fans of the EIHL teams or stick around for too long of a time. Seasonal change is as inevitable as , well seasonal change.
Clan’s inaugural season was as good as anyone could have hoped it could be. Finishing in the upper echelons of the table as an unfancied team, winning silverware and having a good stab at the playoffs, meanwhile garnering cult like status for certain members of the 1st ever squad, is no mean feat. To carry that momentum in to Season 2 may have meant keeping the likes of Cookie, Dom, JFP and especially Richardson.
But those men are gone. This season we will look to Drew Bannister, a man of the NHL and of vast knowledge of the EIHL. A man charged with carrying on the good work that Richardson began. A man who despite knowing the budgetary limitations of our Purple franchise, is hopeful of repeating some of the first season successes. This will be helped by the number of last yea’rs men who have stayed. Krestanovich, Campbell, Haywood, Will, Kyle Bruce, Walker, Connon, Wedderburn, Phillips, hav all signed on for season 2, joined by new boys Sam Zajac, Brock McPherson, Callum Adamson, James Jorgensen and probably biggest of all Jade Galbraith.
Known throughout the EIHL as a bit of a goon and a troublemaker, Galbraith comes to the Clan with a bit of a rep. He hit’s hard and parties hard but also scores hard and an offensive line with him and Krestanovich, backed up by Kyle Bruce could be the key tosuccess for this season. As we saw on many an occasion last year, Bruce was none too shy in getting involved where he could if fists were flying, more often than not as Hauners for his Coach. This year he has a new set of players to look out for and I’m hoping for more of the same from him.
One man Bannister has yet to pin down is a replacement for JF Perras. While Mike Will has signed on to be back up, he could very well be thrown in as starting minder for the first few games if no one is in place by then. JFP is going to be a hard act to follow as last years Road MVP earned the Clan a decent amount of Ws with his performances. While erratic on occasion, he typified last season’s success. When he announced via Facebook last week that he was hanging up his skates for good, I wished him well with a tinge of sadness.
I’ve always had a soft spot for goalies form football and moreso in hockey this year. Having been in Canada during the NHL Playoffs this year, the somewhat epic displays of the likes of Niemi, Luongo and the amazing Bruins goalie Tim Thomas proved that having the right goalie can be the difference between trophies and bugger all. Whoever Bannister brings in has a big glove to fill.
Hopefully, some of us will be able to meet JFP’s replacement at the Jersey Launch next Friday night, which was announced today by the club. The ever hospitable SNObar is hosting the event and is looking to continue the tradition of making the Clan one of the most approachable sports teams in the UK. The amount of fan/player interaction on offer is staggering compared with other sports. At one of the Skate With The Clan events last year, my mum was so bowled over by meeting most of the team that she fell over and broke her elbow!
One man we spoke a lot with that night is the one man I am really hoping to see back in the Purple come the 24th. Jon Landry was immense last season, putting up points and shutting up shop at the back in formidable fashion. If we don’t have him back then I see him as big a loss as Perras.
The new lads will definitely come under some scrutiny form the core of the fan base, purely because of how well the team performed last year. It is important not to get on their backs early though, if it is not quite clicking straight away. During the abysmal run the team had around November last year, it would have been all too easy to harangue the players for under-performing, but we didn’t. Instead we backed them to the hilt and eventually they steered themselves sout of the funk they were in and went on to having a cracking run in.
Hopes of a repeat performance this year may be hindered by the loss of last year’s key men, but there’s only 2 weeks to wait until we see what the new breed will bring . I for one, can not wait.
Mon The Clan!
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