Ellie Porter is just 17 years old but is already making waves for her WNIHL team Guildford Lightning.
The young blueliner has a wealth of experience for someone her age and has used this to her advantage.
Fen Regis Trophies spoke to her on her career and her future aspirations.
Background
She made her Team GB U18s debut in the World Championships in 2019-20 and now sets her sights on the Olympics.
Speaking to Fen Regis Trophies she said:
“Just breaking into the team would be a dream of mine.
“If I could be in the first team to go to the Winter Olympics, I would be over the moon, but even if I wasn’t in the team to first qualify for the Winter Olympics, I would be more than happy.”
She has trained under newly appointed Team GB U18s Head Coach Angela Taylor for Haringey Hounds U16s.
Big Break
This was where she found her big break saying to Fen Regis Trophies:
“A lot of the girls were looking for Elite teams. When they finished playing for Haringey in the Under-16s, the team they were moving over to was Guildford.
“I was in contact with them through some people from Haringey and I stayed there after going for a few sessions.”
This season has been her first full season at the top after her first season was cut short by lockdown.
She has iced 14 times for the Lightning notching up two points so far.
Role Models and Free Tickets
She started her time off with Peterborough Phantoms after being handed free tickets to a game at seven years old.
This was where she learnt to skate and eventually worked her way through the youth ranks.
She points to a Peterborough Phantoms player as a role model of hers, saying:
“One of my biggest influences, when I was younger, was a Peterborough player called Kim Lane. She was one of the first Great Britain women players to play from Peterborough.
“A coach that has definitely helped me to get where I am is Shaun Prendergast, who gained lots of experience when he was in Canada.
“When he was coaching us, he would develop all his players as a team.”
What’s Next?
Her focus currently is on helping Guildford to a successful conclusion of their season but has high hopes after that.
“In 10 years, I’d definitely like to see myself playing for the Great Britain senior squad, but a massive dream of mine would be to play for a team out in America or Canada.
“If I could ever get into the Women’s NHL that would be amazing. From the UK, we’ve only ever had one player, so the chances are slim.”
With age on her side anything could happen in the career of Ellie Porter.
