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| Brace for Bentham at Billingham |
Blackburn Hawks moved seven points clear at the top of NIHL North Moralee D1 after a 4-1 victory at Solway Sharks.
The Dumfries outfit bounced back to win by the same scoreline at Billingham Stars – Richard Bentham (2) led their scoring. Richie Oliver’s goal 12 seconds from time secured a 4-4 draw for Sutton Sting at Sheffield Spartans.
Laidler D2 leaders Solihull Barons won 17-1 at home to Bradford Bulldogs – Niklas Ottosson scored five.
Widnes Wild picked up a pair of road victories, winning 4-2 at Blackburn Eagles and 8-5 at Deeside Dragons. Nottingham Lions won 14-4 at home to Hull Jets, while Coventry Blaze triumphed 2-1 against Sheffield Senators.
Chelmsford Chieftains still lead NIHL1S after a 7-2 win at home to London Raiders. Streatham Redskins had a miserable weekend, losing 8-7 at Bracknell Hornets and 6-1 at home to Wightlink Raiders. The islanders also drew 4-4 with MK Thunder.
Juraj Huska scored four in Invicta Dynamos’ 11-2 success against Cardiff NIHL1. Oxford lost 4-2 at London, but failed to follow up as they crashed 10-2 at Solent Devils. MK Thunder won 3-0 at home to Bracknell.
In NIHL2S, Peterborough Islanders won 8-1 at home to Lee Valley Lions – Nathan Pollard & Brad Moore both hit hat-tricks. Cardiff NIHL2 won 3-2 at Bristol Pitbulls, while Chelmsford Warriors eased to a 6-2 success at Haringey Racers.
Invicta Mustangs fell 6-4 at Lee Valley and Swindon Wildcats NIHL drew 5-5 with Basingstoke Buffalo. Alan Green & Liam Underwood both grabbed hat-tricks in Slough Jets’ 9-4 D2 Cup win at Wightlink Tigers.
EPL teams continued their dominance over their NIHL counterparts with a quartet of victories in the British Challenge Cup. Telford Tigers won 5-2 at Blackburn Hawks, MK Lightning defeated Chelmsford Chieftains 5-2 and Bracknell Bees downed Wightlink Raiders 7-2. Michael Wales & Tomas Karpov both scored three in Basingstoke Bison’s 10-1 win at home to Invicta Dynamos.
Telford Tigers still lead the EPL after a 7-2 home win against Sheffield Steeldogs. Guildford Flames enjoyed a four-point weekend, winning 3-1 at home to Bracknell Bees and 3-2 at Sheffield.
Manchester Phoenix fell 4-2 at Swindon Wildcats, but bounced back with a 7-0 home win against Bracknell. Peterborough Phantoms won 4-2 at Basingstoke, but Jan Kostal’s strike condemned them to a 4-3 defeat at home to Swindon.
Braehead Clan lead the Elite League after a pair of wins. Chris Frank hit the decider in 2-1 success against Fife Flyers and they followed up with a 6-4 victory at home to Hull Stingrays. Rod Dowd grabbed the decider as Sheffield Steelers defeated Nottingham Panthers 3-2 and they added a 4-1 win at Fife.
Cardiff Devils secured a pair of home wins against Belfast Giants, securing 4-1 & 5-3 successes. Coventry Blaze lost 5-3 at Hull and 4-3 at home to Nottingham. Edinburgh Capitals won 3-2 at Dundee Stars and picked up another two points with victory by the same scoreline in the reverse fixture.
(Image permission: David Morrison)
