Leeds Knights: Carter Hamill secures long-term second spell he sought at Elland Road

The small band of loyal supporters that followed the Knights down to Slough to see their team come off second-best in a 5-2 defeat to Bees IHC will hopefully remember a bit about the 17-year-old’s energetic performance.

From early September, they will get to see a lot more of him.

While the result wasn’t one to get too excited about, on a personal level it was a night to remember for Hamill.

But that wasn’t just because he scored a goal on the night, his third-minute strike levelling proceedings after the injury-hit Knights – under the leadership of Dave Whistle – had fallen behind after just 24 seconds.

It was memorable because Hamill – even before he headed back home to play out the rest of the season for his hometown Belfast Giants SNL team – knew there and then that he wanted more of the same.

And while there were to be no more performances for Leeds during the 2021-22 season, he only has to wait another six weeks or so before he gets to wear the jersey again, on this occasion as a full-time paid-up member of head coach Ryan Aldridge’s roster.

“I can’t wait to get over there,” Hamill told the Evening Post. “When I came over last year I was only over for a week or so, butI just knew that next season it was exactly where I wanted to play, so I was really happy when I heard a deal could be sorted out.

“All the guys there were really nice and welcoming and it just felt like another home to me and made sense to come back. I just knew straight away that I wanted to get it sorted.”

While he will have been made to wait just under 10 months to pull on a Leeds jersey for a second time – a pre-season challenge game at Sheffield Steeldogs given him that opportunity – Hamill enjoyed plenty of other landmark moments during 2021-22.

In December came an Elite League debut for the Giants in a 3-1 home home win over Fife Flyers, with a second appearance coming just 24 hours later in a 7-2 thrashing of Nottingham Panthers.

Two more appearances would follow at the end of the regular season, with Hamill picking up an assist in the final-day 7-6 victory over Coventry Blaze.

Earlier that same month, Hamill was part of the Great Under-18s team that won bronze at the Division 2A World Championships in Estonia, scoring two goals in the five games played.

Both achievements – playing in the UK top-flight and representing his country – were just the latest stepping stones for Hamill, who believes his time in Leeds will provide another pivotal part of his overall development.

“The Bracknell game was great,” added Hamill, who follows fellow Giants SNL team-mate Josh Hodgkinson over to West Yorkshire.

“The physical side was something I was already used to and I kept up to speed and it was obviously great to get the goal, too.

“By moving to Leeds full-time, I believe my game will develop more overall. There are a lot of great players on that team already and I feel I’ll be able to learn a lot from them.

“And Ryan is a great coach, too, so I’m sure I will pick up a lot over the course of the season. Ryan likes the idea of having fast, young players and he is keen to have me over there. He knows I can score goals as well.”