Leeds Knights 2's NIHL North One play-off hopes suffer triple blow
LEEDS KNIGHTS 2 suffered a further blow to their NIHL North One play-off hopes after emerging pointless from their two-game weekend while their closest rivals for the eighth and final post-season spot pulled further away.
It was always going to be tough for the Knights to further their post-season cause from a weekend which had them facing tough road trips to leaders Blackburn Hawks and third-placed Solihull Barons.
It proved to be the case, going down 7-3 at Blackburn before an 11-3 defeat at Solihull on Sunday, the Barons moving back up to second in the regular season standings having snapped a three-game losing streak.
Frank O’Sullivan, Danny Harrison and Daragh Spawforth got on the scoresheet in Lancashire for the Knights, while Fritz Heinzle, Harrison and Jayson Burgess found the net in Solihull.
To add insult to injury for Davey Lawrence’s team, Nottingham Lions stretched the gap between the two teams to six points following an impressive 7-4 win at home to defending champions Billingham Stars.
With 14 games remaining, the Knights still have time to overhaul their East Midlands’ rivals - while the two also face each other twice more - but they will have to find a way of snapping a losing streak that has now extended to 11 games after the weekend.