Saturday saw the Sheffield Spartans face Whitley Warriors at Ice Sheffield in the first game of the season. The first period started poorly, with Whitley gaining an early goal. The Warriors continued to push for a second but Dmitri Zimozdra kept it to a 1-0 period with a number of fine saves. 3 unanswered goals then followed to make it 4-0 before a tip in by Andrew Turner made it 4-1 to give the Spartans a chance. The third period saw a number of penalties, Andrew Turner along with 2 Whitley players were thrown out of the game, followed by another Whitley 5+game penalty shortly after. This gave Sheffield a 5 on 3 advantage for nearly 5 minutes, which they failed to make the most of. A goal from Matt Haywood put the Spartans back in the game, but 2 late goals from Whitley finished it off.

Final result: Spartans 2 – Warriors 6.

It was a disappointing performance from the Spartans who looked nervous against a big, experienced Whitley side. The Spartans made basic mistakes and allowed Whitley to control the game. Sheffield will need to up their game to stand a chance of retained the trophies won last season.

 

On Sunday the Spartans traveled to Bradford. It was always going to be a scrappy game due to the small rink, Bradford’s gritty style and with only one on-ice official.

The Spartans started well with an early goal from Tom Squires. Scott Morris made it 2-0 towards the middle of the 1st, and then a goal from Bradford late on in the period made it 2-1. A 3-0 second period then followed with goals from Richie Oliver, Nick Manning and Will Barron. Bradford came out fighting in the third, making hits and drawing a few penalties. Christian Bertram took advantage with a powerplay goal and Tom Squires picked up his second goal to finish the game.

Final result: Spartans 7 – Bulldogs 1.

This was a much improved performance from the Spartans, who showed much more composure on the puck. A great first game performance from Lewis Bell saw him pick up the man of the match.