Tough day on home ice as Bulldogs are swept aside by Hull Jets
BRADFORD BULLDOGS saw their unbeaten home record come to an abrupt end when they were soundly beaten 8-1 by NIHL North Two rivals Hull Jets.
The under-strength hosts, missing nine players, were undone by two hat-tricks - one for veteran Gowan Beddoes, the other for 16-year-old Owen Bruton, a GB Under-16 international who has gained some shifts with Hull Seahawks in NIHL National already this season.
“With nine players missing through injury and work commitments it was always going to be a tough ask to maintain our 100 per cent home record against a strong Jets team,” said head coach Andy Brown.
The final scoreline was a far cry from how the game started out. With 10 minutes on the clock, the Bulldogs were 1-0 ahead thanks to a fourth-minute opener from Kieran Clarkson.
By the time the first intermission came around, though, the Bulldogs were 2-1 down. Both goals came from Beddoes, one of which was controversially judged to have gone over the line despite the home side’s protests.
But it could have been a whole lot more, Sam Bolwell earning was impressive in turning away 32 of the 34 shots that rained down on her goal in the opening 20 - just one less than the hosts mustered all game.
Even going into the last period, the Bulldogs were still very much in the contest, matching their opponents in terms of shots on goal during the second and only 3-1 down adrift following Bruton’s first of the afternoon, a shorthanded strike at 28.48.
Beddoes’ hat-trick strike at 44.47 made any kind of comeback unlikely, a situation made even tougher when Gavin Tidy made it 5-1 just 43 seconds later.
The Bulldogs’ afternoon got worse when Connor Medley took a 10-minute major for abuse of an official straight after Tidy’s goal, Hull making the most of the hosts’ frustration by making it 6-1 through Nathan Otley at 45.38.
Bruton then doubled his tally at 51.29 and completed his hat-trick just under four minutes later to complete a comfortable victory for the visitors.
“We felt that one of Hull goal’s was awarded without it actually going in the net, then we had one of our own disallowed due to a premature whistle in the second period,” added Brown.
“If either of those calls had gone our way, it would have been game on going into the third.
“As it was, we took a stupid 10-minute penalty which, with such a short bench already, effectively handed the game to Hull and they were ruthless in front of our goal and deservedly took the points.”
Tough weekend all-round as Under-14s and Under-12s draw blank
BRADFORD BULLDOGS Under-14s came off second best to local rivals Leeds Junior Knights again, this time losing out in a thrilling derby clash at Elland Road Ice Arena.
For two periods, the Bulldogs held the edge but had no answer in the third as the hosts scored five unanswered goals to secure a 9-5 win.
The visitors, who lost out 10-3 on home ice to the Knights last month, got off to the perfect start when Danny Harrison’s initial shot was parried by goalie Harrison McCourt, with Will Durgan quickest to react to make it 1-0 with just 45 seconds on the clock.
Leeds levelled through Harry Marshall at 2.15 but found themselves behind just 10 seconds later through a strike from Harrison. Leeds again had an answer, this time through Evan Bradon at 5.55, before Harrison doubled his tally by beating McCourt at his near post to make it 3-2 to the visitors at 8.23.
The lead doubled when Frank O’Sullivan beat McCourt from distance at 11.22, but Leeds would not allow the Bulldogs to pull any further away, Bradon beating Jacob Mardell with his second of the afternoon at 13.07.
After such a breathless opening period, the game settled down somewhat in the middle section, although there were still plenty of chances at both ends.
Leeds drew level through Lawrence Dean in the 25th minute but they were trailing by one at the intermission again after Will Durgan scored a fine individual effort shortly after at 26.30.
That was how it stayed until just over four minutes into the third, Zak Taylor deflecting the puck past Mardell, who could only watch as it agonisingly crept over the line to make the scores all-square again.
But three goals in three minutes settled the game in favour of the hosts, who went ahead for the first time in the match through Tyler Keller at 38.47.
Taylor’s second followed just over a minute later, with the contest effectively ended once Josh Hartley beat Mardell with a low blast from the top of the right circle at 41.05.
Jonas Bennett capped off a dominant third period for the hosts when he beat Mardell on a one-on-one with just seven seconds remaining.
Stars gain revenge on home ice over Under-12s
THERE was no better news for the Bulldogs from Billingham where the Under-12s lost out 4-1.
Like the two other Bulldogs’ teams in action, the visitors actually got off to and ideal start when Kyle Bower put them ahead with just 62 seconds on the clock.
The Bulldogs held onto that lead until the 21st minute when Billingham’s Fred Skelton equalised, the hosts quickly going ahead through Harvey Dowson shortly after.
The lead was doubled at 26.54 by a second for Dowson, but it wasn’t until early in the third that the game was put to bed by the hosts, who went 4-1 ahead through Jack Rooney at 35.15, the Stars gaining revenge for their defeat by the same scoreline at Bradford last month.