Leeds Knights - Zach Brooks times his return to the fray perfectly to mark first full pro' season in style

And while that clearly didn’t go according to plan, what Brooks and his team-mates ended up doing less than 48 hours later more than made up for the disappointment.

Belief had been growing in recent weeks within the Knights camp that they could clinch the NIHL National regular season league title although, wisely, there was never any public declaration of that confidence.

MORE – Leeds Knights coach Ryan Aldridge backs players to overturn huge National Cup final deficit against Peterborough Phantoms

They knew they were getting to within touching distance but never actually expected that triumphant moment would arrive as early as last weekend.

As the pain from the 6-0 defeat in Peterborough in round one of the final was still stinging, the Knights took care of business over the next two nights with wins against Swindon Wildcats and Telford Tigers.

They went out 3-2 ahead for the third period in Telford, aware that nearest rivals Milton Keynes Lightning had already slipped to defeat at bottom club Bees IHC and knowing that if they could hold their nerve, the title was theirs.

They did just that, Matt Haywood’s 42nd-minute hat-trick strike strengthening their position against the reigning champions before they held out to seal the deal with four games to spare.

For Brooks and his team-mates it was a swift turnaround from the despair they probably felt after their performance in Cambridgeshire two nights earlier.

The title triumph marks a remarkable first full season as a pro for Brooks, signed last summer by head coach Ryan Aldridge and who has exceeded expectations.

“I guess you could say that’s a great way to start my pro career!” beamed Brooks earlier this week after his brief return home to Canada for family reasons. “Obviously doing it with the group of boys that we’ve had this year has been unbelievable.

“It means a lot to us all - we’ve been through a lot both on and off the ice to get to this point.

“I couldn’t have asked for better timing in terms of coming back. The cup final game was really important for me and I wanted to be back for that and help the boys win.

“Obviously it didn’t go our way in Peterborough but we’ve still got the second game at ours on Friday and we’re going to be ready for it.”

Brooks is fourth in scoring for the Knights, posting 81 points in 47 games, 25 of them goals. He has surpassed the expectations placed on him by Aldridge, who must be interested in bringing the 21-year-old back for a second season.

As for the player himself, he has clearly enjoyed his first time abroad, his transition from North America made that bit easier after finding himself surrounded by players or a similar age. Yes, from a different culture, but possessing the same ambitious mindset.

“I know everyone has said this was a building year, but our goal at the beginning of the year was to win everything. It still is,” added Brooks.

“We’ve got one in the pocket right now, Friday’s second leg of the cup final is the second goal of the year and we’ll do everything to achieve that – then we’ll start preparing for the playoffs after that.”