Images (C) Jo Loat
Final score: Basingstoke Bison 3-4 Bees IHC (League)
By Matthew Church
Saturday 29th October 2022
Refs: Matthews and Solovjovs – Linos: MacPhee and O’Neill
Following on from the disappointing defeat at home on Wednesday night, the GalxC Cooling Services sponsored Basingstoke Bison looked to bounce back with a local derby clash as they played host to the Slough-based Bees IHC.
The home side looked lively during the initial phases of the game and went close through efforts from captain George Norcliffe and Gaël Lubwele, but they could not find a way through Adam Goss in net. A few minutes later and the visitors grabbed a surprise lead through forward Brendan Walkom (assisted by Mogg) at 13:33, when a goal-mouth scramble saw the puck sitting loose to the left of Alex Mettam in net and Walkom poked home. The Bison were then forced to kill off a penalty on Lubwele before they could attempt to level the contest, but netminder Goss stood tall and kept his side in front as the first period came to a close.
Another bright start to a period by the Bison would this time be rewarded with a powerplay goal, after James Galazzi was penalised at 22:59. The Herd used the extra space to perfection and captain George Norcliffe (Milton, Morris) was positioned in the slot to slam home through the legs of Goss at 24:40 and level the game at 1-1. A feeling of delight was unfortunately short-lived for the Bison faithful, as the Bees almost immediately went down to the opposite end and restored their lead at 25:21. Alex Mettam made a spectacular save to deny Juha Lindgren but could not prevent the follow up effort being bundled home by Alan Lack (Lindgren, Gabaj) for a 1-2 lead.
Just after the halfway point of the contest, the Bison restored parity once again to the joy and relief of the home crowd with a finish full of conviction. The rebound from a quick shot sat invitingly for Gaël Lubwele (Doughty, Banner) to fire home from close range at 30:50, as the import brought his team level again at 2-2. A period full of drama would produce no further goals as the sides left the ice for the second intermission, knowing a dramatic final frame lay in store.
The Bees may have been short on numbers but they were certainly not short in spirit as the visitors continued to cause issues for the Bison and at 45:19, once again took the lead thanks to a short-handed tally. Taking advantage of a lackadaisical pass from the Bison powerplay unit, Brendan Walkom (Gabaj) finished off a 2-on-1 move with precision to hand his side a 2-3 lead that they fully deserved. Still reeling from this, the Herd found themselves in deeper trouble when a hatrick was completed by man of the moment Brendan Walkom (Rose, Lack) at 48:16 to leave the home team 2-4 behind and needing a miracle to rescue victory.
Clinging onto hope, the Bison dragged themselves to within a single goal at 57:49 when Zac Milton (Norcliffe, Lubwele) converted on the powerplay, slamming home from the right of netminder Goss after being left in acres of space. In a frantic final minute, with Alex Mettam pulled from net for the extra forward, the Bison went agonisingly close to tying the game as captain Norcliffe saw his effort hit the post but fly away safety, leaving the Bees to close out a fine 3-4 victory and sending the home fans away empty handed.
Next up at home for the Bison is a visit from the Romford-based Raiders IHC, on Saturday 5th November. See you all there!
Match Stats:
Bison stats: Lubwele 1+1, Milton 1+1, Norcliffe 1+1, Banner 0+1, Doughty 0+1, Morris 0+1
Netminder: Alex Mettam 23/27 (85.18%)
Bees stats: Lack 1+2, Walkom 3+0, Gabaj 0+2, Lindgren 0+1, Mogg 0+1, Rose 0+1
Netminder: Adam Goss 26/29 (89.65%)
PIM: Bison 6 – Bees 10.
SOG: Bison 29 – Bees 27.
Bison MOM: Milton – Bees MOM: Walkom
Tickets are available to purchase for Saturday’s game versus Raiders IHC clicking the following link: https://iceaccount.co.uk/basingstoke-bison?Reference=Bison-Website
