The Newcastle Northstars will be heading into the start of the Australian Ice Hockey League season on a high after winning their preseason games over the weekend.
Newcastle defeated the Central Coast Rhinos on Saturday night 6-4 and again yesterday afternoon by an even bigger margin, 10-3.
Central Coast had the Northstars worried in the first period of last night’s game scoring first, but Newcastle Captain Liam Manwarring tied the game heading into the first break and from there periods two and three saw Newcastle take and maintain the lead for the remainder of the game.
Captain Liam said last night’s game was one of those tough first games.
“It is always tough going into a new season with new goals but tonight we definitely showed what kind of team we have got this year, and we are still missing half our roster. The young boys stepped up a lot and credit to our goal tending, I am so proud of how all three of our goalies stepped up this weekend.
“Getting goals always feels good, and getting that first goal for the team is the best because you know it lifts the team. It doesn’t take just one guy out there and I am more focused on the team and credit to all the boys for my hat trick.
“Looking forward to the season we are going to focus on our habits. Playing on different teams in a different league throughout the summer we can develop bad habits and now we focus on getting all the good habits back. It’s about the smart plays, setting little goals individually and moving forward and building together as a team,” said Liam.
Head Coach Kevin Noble said he thought both teams worked really hard across the weekend.
“As a team we showed a lot of good things in tonight’s game. It was a great chance to see some of our younger guys and where they are at in their development.
“It was just a really excellent opportunity to get to look at everybody. You know, now we have the preseason games behind us and we look ahead to Melbourne in two weeks, and it’s gonna be a big, big task going down there.”
The Northstars first home game of the season will be May 7th at Newcastle Ice Skating Stadium and their first game of the 2023 season will be April 15 in Melbourne against the Mustangs.