Familiarity and home comforts convince Liam Charnock of Leeds Chiefs’ potential for 2020-21 NIHL National season

The 25-year-old winger has agreed a deal to return to the Elland Road outfit after an impressive first campaign under player-coach Sam Zajac.

Charnock initially steered away from committing to any kind of hockey at the start of last season having just taken on a new job following the completion of his university studies.

But he quickly realised he missed the game he had grown up with too much and the newly-formed Chiefs were his chosen destination, thanks to a little persuasion from Zajac, one of a number of coaches keen to sign Charnock during the summer.

Last season saw him post 20 points, including eight goals, for the Chiefs, while a penalty point haul of 52 minutes was evidence of the gritty, energetic, physical game he had become known for.

Charnock admits the off-ice circumstances surrounding the Chiefs last season made for some tough times, particularly the additional travel brought about by not having a home rink ready until the end of January.

But he believes having home ice from the off in 2020-21, together with the familiarity brought about by the return of a solid core from last season’s roster, will prove a major advantage.

“I admit it was sometimes a battle trying to get through all those away games, every Saturday and every Sunday, but we had a good group of lads in the room and we helped get each other through it,” said Oldham-born Charnock.

“Then, towards the end when we started playing proper home games things got a lot better, little things like having your own changing rooms and not having to take all your equipment home after every game or practise just made life a lot easier.

“It is a whole different mindset when you walk into a home rink and you’ve got your own fans building up the atmosphere through warm-up - you become a different team.

“And when you’re slogging it out in all these away rinks week after week it grinds you down a little bit, whereas at home, you’re so keen to impress everyone and make sure you give the fans a good show.

“So I was eager to hear from Sammy and, fortunately, he got in touch with me, and I’m really happy to be back.”

Born in Oldham, Charnock was a product of the Hull junior system, the left-hander then spending three years playing junior hockey in North America before returning to the UK where he had four seasons with Sheffield Steeldogs.

For the majority of last season, Charnock found himself on a line with Ethan Hehir and Joe Coulter, the trio often charged with the task of containing other teams’ top combinations.

There were also occasions when a lack of bodies saw lines constantly mixed up just in order for the short-benched Chiefs to make it through a full 60 minutes.

But, all being well, depth won’t be such an issue for the Chiefs next season, giving Charnock further grounds for optimism.

“Last year it was a new team for a lot of the guys,” added Charnock. “I’d played with a couple of the guys in juniors but probably not since I was about 14 or 15 years old.

“But coming back, a lot of us will have that season of playing together behind us, we’ll be able to train special teams more often and we’ll have the home rink to practise in.

“That line of Ethan, Joe and me was about being gritty and working hard. While we each might not put up 50-point seasons we had a role that worked well for the team.

“There were times when we weren’t on the same line because we were one-shift on and one-shift off, for example when we went down to Basingstoke with just eight forwards.

“And it is tough to build chemistry when you are taking each game as it comes with whatever players you have available.

“This year, we’ll have more depth through the team so that we can stick to more solid lines and build that chemistry.”

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