After the morning Junior games, Holywood Trust sponsored Sharks SNL returned to action at the Dumfries Ice Bowl on Sunday night following an eleven week absence, and took to the ice in front of a bumper crowd to take on the Kilmarnock Storm.
The Sharks wasted no time in asserting their dominance in the game by playing the majority of the opening period in the Storm zone. Some confident possession saw the Sharks create chance after chance but Joe Bealing was in inspired form. The Sharks made the break through on 2:48, Michael Corbett and Calum Henderson moved the puck well to find Conor Smith arriving in the slot and he found the top corner of the Storm net. Further positive possession and set up play kept Bealing busy until Sharks netminder Kyle Johnston moved the puck to Michael Brunton whose perfectly weighted pass was picked up by Scott Henderson and he drifted away from his marker and rifled the puck under the legs of Bealing to double the Sharks lead. The period was seen out via a mixture of dogged Storm defending and some overplaying by the Sharks to see the score remain at two nil as the first period ended.
Winning Weekend for Sharks
Any rust from the Sharks month long layoff was seemingly removed when a more clinical unit took to the ice for period two. Storm continued to defend with admirable effort and thus it took till 24:05 when blocked Connor Speirs and Michael Corbett shots fell to Calum Henderson and he snapped a nice finish into the roof of the net from close range. At 29:10 the youthful combination of Scott Henderson and Duncan Speirs set up veteran Michael Brunton to open his account for what would become a very productive evening for him. Five minutes later the same trio combined again and Brunton grabbed his second of the night with a shrewd finish at 34:22. The goal seemed to spark the Sharks into their offensive stride and also kill off the Storm’s hopes as the five nil score line was to be the start of a devastating offensive onslaught by the Sharks. Three further unanswered goals in the following three minute spell was just reward for the Sharks dominance. Stuart Kerr fed Struan Duff who found Gordon Horne on hand to score the Sharks sixth of the night.
A jump into the play by Ross McMeeken saw his attempted wrap around attempt fall to Corbett to tap home goal number seven. Two minutes from the end of the period Brunton completed his hat-trick by robbing the Storm defender on the blind side, and he glided in to give the Sharks an eight nil second intermission lead.
The final period followed the pattern of Shark dominance and Brunton grabbed his fourth on 47:13 when he converted a Connor Speirs pass. Youngsters Duncan Speirs and Scott Henderson were at it again on 52:19 with what was the goal of the night when they tee’d up Brunton to send a laser of a one time slap shot into the top corner from the top of the face off circle as the Sharks hit double figures. Goal eleven saw two firsts – Rebecca Nicol picked up her first ever senior assist when she sent Scott Henderson wide, and he in turn found Brunton who completed a double hat-trick for the first time in his senior career. The Sharks SNL completed their scoring for the night at 57:18, Connor Speirs putting Horne in to find the back of the net.
As the clock ticked down, the Storm’s diligence paid off on the final hooter when Scott Snaddon allowed Marcus Murdoch to get Storm on the board dead on 60:00 to end the game twelve goals to one to the Sharks.
Sharks man of the match went quite deservedly to the pictured Michael Brunton with his 6+1 efforts, and was presented his award by competition winner Rebecca Boardman.
Player Coach Jamie Kerr was commented, “It was a good game to get going again after a month off and as the game wore on we gradually found our stride. We were also able to get everyone on the ice and enjoy the night with such a fantastic crowd.”
Sharks SNL will have the obligatory new year weekend break, before preparing to welcome the reigning league champions the Kirkcaldy Kestrels to the Ice Bowl in their next match on Sunday 10th Jan with the usual 5.30pm face off.
