Euro Tard Gripes

[Duff33]

I've been away for a while, but I return with fresh anger and annoyance at the state of the UK game.

I was fortunate, perhaps spoilt, this Summer as I played Summer League and trained with the English Premier League and national league players, skated with my normal rec side, helped coach the RAF goalies and skated with the local Czech team 9who are pretty damn good)

Now I am down to just once a week with my rec team, who now feel decidedly retarded compared to what I have had over the summer. Whatever progress I made over the summer feels undone and my motivation has died to the point where I simple didn't want to be there this week.

The Czechs cannot get any more ice time as Friday nights are reserved IN CASE the conference wants the session - that's right, they want under 12's and under 14's from all over the South East of our little island to travel to PeteBogHorror on a Friday night to skate at 10.30pm for 90 minutes.

I just wanted to get that off my chest!

[Moving Target]

My my princess, any more left :p?

You're scaring the Normals

REC sucks... join the ENL asap!

(or move to Canaaaada)





...will ring you btw

[goalie#61]

...will ring you btw

Poor Duff, Dont know whats worse, crap hockey of MT rininging you. MT had my number but i changed my phone for that reason!!!!:p:D

I can kind of sympathise as i stopped playing SNL for a couple of reasons this year and went back to Rec, luckily for me, i've trained with my old team quite a bit already this year and we have a few ex SNL'rs in our Rec team but there is a notible difference in quality and speed!!!

[Moving Target]

Thats the issue.

If you can at-least train with a team that 'stretches' you; you can improve with or without the REC-league games

I'm very fortunate to have blagged myself onto some ENL rosters as a training goalie.

All that said, I thought you were regularly training with the ENL chaps?

[Moving Target]

Poor Duff, Dont know whats worse, crap hockey of MT rininging you. MT had my number but i changed my phone for that reason!!!!:p:D

You just couldn't handle the dirty sex chat could you:rolleyes:

[Duff33]

The Islanders (local ENL team) have 3 goalies, so even when 1 is injured they have two.
I'm still essentially their fill in guy as I know the whole team and they all know me etc, but with 3 goalies opportunities are few and far between!

As I said, if the Czechs had ice time then it would be a rough equivilant - I would say they'd beat most ENL Division 2 teams and give a few Division 1 teams a good game.

There are two other rec sides left now the USAF went belly up - one is more a 'beginners side', the other has two or three training goalies anyway! Perhpas if it was a significant step up I'd go, but at £10 for 60 minutes (chopped down to 30 if there is 3 or 4 of you) it's not economically good!!!!

There are a couple of ex-ENL guys, and the odd Czech, but most have been dragged down by the standard of rec hockey.
Put the Czech guys out with the local czech team and they are flying, put them with the locals and they have to hold back because people can't keep up, and it basically ruins it for everyone! (Well, me and them = everyone)

Next nearest rink is 90 minutes away (give or take)

As you both say, the difference is noticeable and I feel like all the hard work over the Summer to get up to speed and play at an 'ENL' level has been undone in a few short weeks :(

[goalie#61]

There are two other rec sides left now the USAF went belly up - one is more a 'beginners side', the other has two or three training goalies anyway! Perhpas if it was a significant step up I'd go, but at £10 for 60 minutes (chopped down to 30 if there is 3 or 4 of you) it's not economically good!!!!


The main reason i took the "step" down from the SNL this year. More goalies = less time and at £50 a month i couldn't justify it.

Best advice i can give is to just enjoy it for what it is. If its bollocks recce, at any down time practice down movements etc.

What irritates me the most is at the "higher" level, i rarely let in goals i should have had, at recce the dipping and bouncing and slow shots etc constantly find there way through!!!:mad:

[Timmaayy]

I just have to ask...


Is PeteBogHorror an actual name? :confused:

:p

[Duff33]

What irritates me the most is at the "higher" level, i rarely let in goals i should have had, at recce the dipping and bouncing and slow shots etc constantly find there way through!!!:mad:

:rolleyes: Yep, can totally relate to that one. And rebounds that would normally ping in to the corner on the harder shots just flop out in front of the net.

Learn to shoot you inbread yokkels!!! :mad: :D

I think the hardest bit for me is missing out on ENL again, partly down to the manner, partly down to again feeling like I performed well at the trials but can't get the opportunity to expand on that.

It's not even as if I am still training at a comparable level, so come next May time, I'll have to play catch up again if I skate with the 'pro' guys :mad:

No Timmay - I actually play in a city called Peterborough.

Once you've visted you'll see why I renamed it PeteBogHorror

[Duff33]

Well after being penniless for a couple of weeks and skipping practise, I skated again last week and loved it.

Got the fire back in my belly again and loving it once more - even down to the point where I came to blows with a team mate at this weeks practise! :rolleyes:

[Duff33]

And now one of the ENL goalies has jacked it in, perhaps there is hope....

[Martysgirl74]

Got my fingers crossed for you. Hopefully it will work out for you. I know the feeling as I've got icetime issues of my own lately. Its what happens in areas where hockey is a developing sport and there are too many goalies and not enough teams. Canada looks more and more appealing every day.

[Duff33]

The local Czech guys have finally got some ice on a Friday night as well, so that's a big boost for me.

Been going over some of Keeks old articles as well. Just generally got my energy and love back for the game.

But yeah, your right MG - locally there are about 7 or 8 goalies spread across 3/4 teams. Problem is some of them seem to have this attitude of 'I can turn up when I feel like it and get ice coz I've paid.

There is an annual tournament over here, two years ago I went on my own as the lone goalie for my team and played pretty damn well (apparently I cam 2nd in the goalie of the tourney voting, but I dunno how true that is). Last year two others decided to sporadically train then want to come to the tournament. It burns me that I train every week and work hard to help the team off the ice as well as trying to give it a chance every game, then they pitch up once in a blue moon and expect to split games. They aren't even open to reason - I suggested one plays against Sheffield, and I'd play against one of the other local teams (knowing that the other local team would be a MUCH tougher game) - nope not interested.

She started up against Sheffield, it was 8-1 when I went in, finished 8-5!

Next game I started up, and got shelled, but left with it at 7-1 (which I didn't mind so much after being shelled! lol). It ended 28-1!!!! FFS!!??!?!?!?!


Thankfully the Czechs arrogance also goes in my favour - they want to play to a certain standard and have gently cut loose of the 'dead wood' and left a pretty good group of 15ish skaters and just me and 1 other goalie :)
I feel like I am there because I am good enough to be there, not because of some bull**** age rules or some other ****, but because I have the talent to be there.

When I play ENL there will be a few metaphorical fingers for me to stick up to folks ha ha

[Martysgirl74]

I know exactly how you feel. There are four leagues here in town and I can barely get a game a week. I'm being forced to split equal time with my back up even though I'm considerably better than her and have played with the team for the last 9 years while she has played when its been convenient for her. I can't get a game at all in a league where I subbed for years because I'm a woman.

I do have a game a week in 45+ but they could toss me at any moment because I'm not old enough. And there are two noob goalies playing in the local upper league, though I couldn't tell you why. I've subbed for that league 3 times this season and won them all. Even had one of the players, who is also a goalie, tell me I was the best goalie in that league and I can't get a full time position.

The frustrating thing for me is that the harder I work and the more I improve, the more my icetime gets taken from me. :mad:

[Duff33]

Yeh, I can appreciate that one MG.

I went through a period in the Summer where I felt I was playing better than pretty much every other goalie in town bar the two for the Premier League side, and even then I felt confident I could even push the back up :rolleyes:

But I still had to split with my team, the other team I was registered with weren't interested because they had 'their goalie' and the National League wanted to go with the same 2 as last season plus a 16 year old prospect (the 16 year old is damn good though! ha ha)

The difficulty here is that there are only the 'senior leagues', no rec ones and not even rec levels (don't even start me and MT on this one!)

So I feel like I am stuck with a team who has more chance of pissing themselves drunk on the bench than scoring a goal....