Leeds Knights secure comfortable passage to keep double hopes alive in NIHL National's endgame

A relentless 11-2 victory for Leeds Knights the previous evening at Elland Road Ice Arena, meant the second instalment of the two-legged encounter was rendered largely meaningless.

The Knights now face Telford Tigers in Saturday’s second semi-final at Coventry’s SkyDome Arena (face-off after Tom Watkins’ side edged ot Milton Keynes Lightning 8-7 on aggregate.

It leaves open the tantalising possibility of an all-Yorkshire final with Sheffield Steeldogs – 9-3 aggregate victors over Swindon Wildcats – set to face Raiders IHC in the other semi-final after their overtime win in the second leg at Peterborough Phantoms sealed an overall 9-8 triumph.

As for the Knights, their 4-2 win over Basingstoke Bison on Sunday ensured a rather more comfortable 15-4 aggregate win.

But the evening was all about the hosts who, it emerged last week, would not be competing in the second tier during the 2023-24 season.

The intention is to return in August-September 2024 once much-needed repair work is completed on the town’s ice rink.

What will become of the Bison’s players and staff remains to be seen, but they will be a big loss to the league and the game in general. The sooner they can return the better.

Not surprisingly, there was not going to be any lack of fight from the hosts, playing in front of their fans for the last time for what is hoped to be no more than 18 months.

There was plenty of ‘fight’ the night before, but more so of the wrong kind as they failed to contain a rampant Knights team who were clearly determined to send their own fans away happy on what was their final match-night of the campaign in Leeds.

In Hampshire, the hosts struck first through a shorthanded strike from George Norcliffe at 5.17 but it was cancelled out just 22 seconds later by Jake Witkowski.

Leeds then turned the screw further when Matt Haywood benefitted from some good approach play by Witkowski and Mac Howlett at 14.21, increasing the overall lead to 10 goals.

Hopes of a winning end to this phase of Bison’s story were further hampered when the Knights enhanced their lead just over three minutes into the second period through Howlett.

The hosts made it a one-goal game on the night again with less than two minutes of the period remaining through Edgars Landsbergs, but the final word came from that Witkowski-Haywood-Howlett line, the three combining to set up the American import to backhand past Jordan Lawday.

On Saturday, it was Brown who got the scoring underway with just 103 seconds gone, the 21-year-old doubling his tally from a tight angle in the right circle on the power play at 26.19 after a pinpoint cross-ice pass from Witkowski.

As the Bison recovered from that, Howlett weaved his way through from the left wing to go five-hole on Alex Mettam with another power play effort.

It was in the second period, however, that the Bulldogs began to truly dominate, starting when Howlett got on the board again at 24.40 when cutting in from below the goalline in the right corner and firing over Mettam’s right shoulder.

Brown then took his tally to four just after the halfway mark – the second another goal on the man advantage – before Ethan Hehir scored from close range, again on the power play, to make it 7-0 at 31.17.

Zach Brooks and then Matt Haywood both joined the party before Landsbergs gave the travelling supporters something to cheer - as well as ruin Gospel’s night somewhat – when he got the Bison on the board with just over two minutes of the period remaining.

Witkowski was rewarded for his energetic display with an absolute rocket from the left circle past replacement netminder Jordan Lawday, Haywood making it 11-1 with a fierce one through traffic from deep before Marcel Balaz grabbed a late consolation for the visitors.