Junior round-up

WHITLEY Braves began their English Under-19 North B League season with a resounding 18-1 victory over Sheffield Scorpions at Hillheads.

Braves went ahead through Dale Howey with the first attack of the game after just seven seconds. Two minutes later Richard Dunn doubled the lead.

Claire Oldfield, Paul Graham (2) and Dunn found the net as Whitley were 6-1 ahead at 14.40. Sheffield recording their lone reply eight seconds earlier.

Braves were well on top and added four goals from 27 shots on goal in the middle period. Howey (3) and Oldfield were the scorers.

It was all one way traffic in the final period as goals continued to flow. Howey scored a further brace to complete a double hat-trick, Graham and Oldfield finished up with hat-tricks apiece plus there were goals for Rob Wilson (2), D J Good and Neil Bainbridge.

Braves: Dale Howey 6+2, Paul Graham 3+6, Claire Oldfield 3+1, Rob Wilson 2+2, Richard Dunn 2+0, Neil Bainbridge 1+2, D J Good 1+1, David Creed, Joe Stamp 0+2, Steven Hoult, Brian Sainsbury, Richard Horkan 0+1.

Dale Howey, Paul Graham, Rob Wilson, Neil Bainbridge, D J Good and David Creed all had busy weekends playing three matches.

Besides being on Braves duty, they stepped up to ice for Whitley Warriors in English National Hockey League North against Blackburn Hawks and Birmingham Rockets respectively. For David Creed it was debut for Warriors.

Billingham Wildcats suffered a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Kingston Diamonds in the Women's Premier League at Hull ice arena.

Wildcats were not at full strength and a goal behind at 02.22 and conceded a second 27 seconds later. Diamonds went 3-0 ahead in the seventh minute.

Wildcats opened their account through Rachel McCabe in the final minute of the first period.

Kingston had done enough to keep ahead and made sure of victory with a fourth goal with the last shot of the second period.

Wildcats: Rachel McCabe 1+0.

Billingham Falcons visited Sheffield Stormers in the English Pee-Wee (Under 14) North A League.

Sheffield went ahead at 94.20 and had doubled their advantage less than two minutes later. Sheffield had the start that was needed and kept a grip on the game.

They will be once again favourites to lift the title but Falcons can be proud of their performance in the 0-2 defeat. The teams meet again tomorrow at the Forum ice arena, face off 12 noon.

Billingham Pumas were beaten 8-0 on home ice at the Forum ice arena against Birmingham Rockets in the English Bantam (Under 12) North B League tomorrow lunchtime. Due to the compressor breaking down last week the matches at the Forum were in doubt. After an inspection on Friday it was decided that the games could go ahead.

Pumas went behind on the minute mark and had conceded another two by the end of the period.

Billingham found it difficult to contain Birmingham, especially Anton York who scored six of his side's goals in the 8-0 victory.

The ice surface was still far from idea and the weekend's two other games were postponed. This was because in the view of the referees inspecting the ice it was deemed not up to good enough condition to play host to an English National League North match (Billingham Eagles) on Saturday evening.

Whitley Bay Arrows and Nottingham Tiber-Cubs both promoted to English Bantam (Under-12) North A League at the end of last season, met in the lace city on Saturday.

Arrows went ahead at 04.52 through Callum Watson. The lead did not last long and by the end of the first period Nottingham led 6-1. They scored a further eight in the final period for a 14-1 win.

Arrows: Callum Watson 1+0