Times Advocate, 1998-04-15, Page 18Page 18 Trines -Advocate, April 15, 1998
SPORTS
Hensall hosts English women's hockey team
Hensall Arena was abuzz on Thursday as the Swindon Top Cats prepared
for the Brampton tournament, the world's biggest women's hockey tourney
By Craig Bradford
T -A Reporter
•HCNSALL — When you think
Of ice hockey, England isn't exact-
ly on the same wavelength as Can-
ada, Russia. the U.S. or even. Swit-
zerland.
But hockey is played across the
pond on that little island better
known for its football (soccer)
madness, rugby and cricket
matches.
Proof of hockey's presence in
England was evident to Hensall
hockey, .lams last Thursday when
the Swindon Top Cats women's
hockey team held a practice at the
village's arena in preparation for
the Brampton tournament on • the
weekend. The tournament is tout-
ed to he the world's biggest wom-
en's hockey hash with 360 teams
.from all over the world facing off
on 14 rinks throughout the Bramp-
ton area.
Eighteen of the Top Cats' 30 -
member' team made the trip to
Canada, most of- them. flying for
the first time. They arrived on
Monday.. spent Tuesday sight-
seeing in Toronto including stops
at the Hockey Hall of Fame, Ma- Hockey accent. Swindon (England) Top Cats players Jenny
ple Leaf Gardens and the Sky- Armstrong, left, Theresa Brewer and 'Janine Towr,end en-
domc. They'll try to hit the top of joyed,their trip to Canada for the Brampton women's hock-
the.CN Tower on Saturday. and see ey tournament including their brief stop at Hensel! Arena on
some more Hogtown spots before Thursday.
heading hack to home on Monday.
night. The team is coached by a London (Ontario) na-
•While in the London area Top Cats players stayed tive, Paul Grech, who.first began teaching hockey to
- with the families of the London 'AA' Devilettcs and the English when he was a student at the University
practiced or played exhibition games wherever they of_London's School of Economics. A former hock -
could get ice time including stops in St. Thomas, ey pro with the Swindon Wildcats, he took time out
Woodstock and Hensall. from his career as a futures trader on the London
Swindon is a city of about 2.00,000 located 17 Stock Exchange floor to coach the Top Cats at the
miles (27 kni) west of London. Top Cats manager Brampton tournament.
Bob Townsend said the Swindon's sole 2,000 seat When asked if there's a difference between the
(including standing room) ice rink is the only one in way the English and Canadians play hockey, Town -
a 25 -mile radius. Compare that with the number of send said we play the same style with the main dif-
rinks in the Times -Advocate circulation area: there ference being subtle ones in officiating. For ex-
are rinks in Exeter,- Huron Park (Stephen Town- ample: when a goalie in England catches a puck and
ship). Zurich. Lucan and Hensall. ' draws it towards their body, the referee immediately
Here's another telling fact: Townsend said while whistles the play dead.
,Swindon -hosts about 150 football matches on a typ- In Canada, refs don't` blow the whistle till the
ical Sunday, there'll he only one hockey game. . • goalie htis'held onto the puck for a few moments or
, "Compared to football, it's one per cent," Town- unless there's opposing players in their face. The
: nd said whcn he was asked to rate soccer's pop- Top Cats were made to look a little silly when one
ularity against ice hockey in England. of their players shot the puck at a'Ca-
Despite hockey being considered a "I like the team nadian goalie during an exhibition
fringe sport on the jolly oldcrate, _ • game earlier. in the week and when
Swindon's womenis ice hockey. pro- atmospherethe backstop saved it the. Top Cats
gram; established in '90, is older than , and spirit...and skated hack to their own zone. The
any; women's program in ,the Exeter , the speed'." goalie ,simply dropped the• puck and
arca. Swindon's program has only passed it to one of their' teammates
one age level where. pre -teens are skating beside and the play continued with the Top Cats essentially
young at heart middle-agers. letting their opponents clear the zone unopposed. ,
"The 45 -year-old is the mother'of one of the 12- The players were all impressed with the arenas
year-olds," Townsend said of the range in players' they played or practiced in but not with the food —
ages., • several of them came down with food poisoning af-
Townsend said he got involved in hockey after his t'er eating at a Chinese restaurant.
daughter Janine, now 23, took an interest in the Here's what some o{• -the players said on why they
sport in '88 after she saw her first pro hockey game. love Hockey:
in Swindon soon after the arena was built. Town-' Janine Townsend, a Top Cat since '90:'" •1 like the
send first told her ht thought girls simply didn't team atmosphere and spirit...and the speed."
play hockey. Obviously his attitude has changed Jenny Armstrong, 14, a seven-year vet: "It's fun. .
180 degrees since then. You get to meet a Ipt of people." Her favorite part
The league the Top Cats play in at home features of the game'? Checking.
23 teams split into three divisions. Townsend said , Theresa Brewer, 17, a Top Cat for four years:
the team's goal is to win the league title, something "It's good fun. You get to go to places, you've never
they haven't accomplished — yet. He feels the in- been before like here."
tcrnational experience will steer them towards a This isn't the Top Cats' first trip overseas! Thc
championship while providing the women with a team crossed the English Channel in '94 to play. a
fun, enriching experience. tournament in France.
Rec Centre needs new sound system
EXETER — if you've had trou-
ble hearing the announcer at Jr. D
Hawks. games, you might not need,
your hearing checked...the team ex-
ecutive is in the market for a new
sound system.
Hawks secretary Anne Sullivan
said the team executive is getting -
quotes on a replacement for the 10 -
year -old system at the Rec Centre.
Though state of thc art when it was
bought, technological advances
since that time have made thc are-
na's sound system a 'dinosaur'.
"it's a proven factor our sound
system is in dire need (of re-
placement)," Sullivan said.
Thc executive is considering
quotes in the $6,0(0-$7,000 range,
though the figure could go up to
$15,000 depending on the system
needed for all the arena's user
groups including thc Hawks, minor
hockey, the Exeter Figure Skating
Club and its precision skating
teams.
Sullivan said the executive tried
Stephen Township
Minor Hockey
Year End Banquet
April 19
at 12:30 p.m.
at South Huron District
High School
-4argeGym
r
the less expensive route by sending
the system away for repair, but re-
pairs were not successful.
Thc executive has gone to the Ex-
eter Lions Club and to other Exeter
arca community organizations and
businesses to solicit donations and
has already received some pledges
including those from private in-
dividuals. Sullivan admits it may be
tough for some organizations or
businesses to cough up more dough
for them since they have already re-
ceived great support this season
and in the past.
The Hawks will commit some
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& SAIL SQUADRON
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March 31 • April 7 6 14, April 1 & 8
For Information call
Rod Wraith Wingham 357-2588
Joe Essery Clinton 482.9531(day)
VHF RADIO COURSE
April 22 8 29 May 6 8 13
For Information call
Fulton Charlton 524-2578
CP
funds to the project and Sullivan
said the hope is that other arena
uscr groups will also throw their fi-
nancial support behind a sound sys-
tem purchase.
"We're hoping to have it for the
start of the next season in Sep-
tember," she said, adding if the
fundraising ,campaign proves suc-
cessful cxtra funds will go towards
other capital projects at the arena
such as -a new sound system in thc
banquet hall. •
If you'd like to support the fund-
raising campaign; call Sullivan at
235-0870. -
Our hockey greats. The Exeter Mi-
nor Hockey Association handed out
its annual awards for peewee and
older players at its banquet last
week at South Huron Rec Centre.
Top photo, from !eft: Melissa
Hayter -Intermediate girls most ded-
icated (MD), Miranda Hayter, inter-
mediate girls most sportsmanlike
(MS), Shannon Milley-Intermediate
girls most improved (MI), Caleb
Johns -bantam house league MD
and Ben Parsons -bantam house
league MI. Absent is Curtis Vessie-
bantam house league MS. Second
from top photo, front left: Ryan
Ralph -midget Generals MS, Jesse
Bergmann -midget AE MD, Tyler
Bourne -midget Generals MD; back
left: Kian MacDougall -midget Gen-
erals MI, Ben Kaak-juvenile Chiefs
MI, Greg Hendricks -Chiefs rookie of
year, Marty deBruyn-Chiefs MVP
and Gordon Radford -midget AE MI.
Third from top photo, front left:
Rick Duplessis-Huron Tractor pee-
wee MS, Everette Dionne -Huron
Tractor peewee MD, Brendan Bu-
chanan -Huron Tractor peewee MI,
Tony Ens -Tier 1 peewee MS, Time
Meidinger-Tier 1 peewee MD, Jason
Roy -Tier I peewee MI; back left:
Mike Seip -bantam MI, Jared
Bourne -bantam MD and Andrew
Maver-bantam. MS.
Honoring
Exeter's
best hockey
playersand
volunteers
Efforts recognized. At right: SteVe
Batten, left, and Brett Batten,
right, award Al Horton with the
Bill Batten Award at last week's
annual Exeter Minor Hockey
awards banquet for peewee and
older players. The award goes to
an individual that exhibits ex-
emplary contributions to minor
hockey as identified by their
peers. Horton has been a referee
since '77. Bottom right photo:
Thanks for everything. Joe Darling,
left, and Tom McCann, right, hand
the Pauline McCann Award to
Barb Dietrich at the Exeter Minor
Hockey Association annual ban-
quet for peewee and older players
at South Huron Rec ' Centre last
week. The award is given to a
woman each year who hascon-
tributed * a lot to minor hockey in
Exeter. Dietrich has volunteered
with Exeter Minor Hockey for 10
years.
Have a sports tip? Call the Times -Advocate
235-1331
Alk
Ali- ._s ........... -111-111
EXETER IN-LINE
HOCKEY LEAGUE
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GET ROLLIN' WITH THE FASTEST
GROWING SPORT
IN NORTH AMERICA
SOUTH HURON RECEATION,CENTRE (235-2833)
Ask for Jo -Ante • Registration deadline: Apr. 24
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Exeter and Area Minor
Hockey Association
Annual General
Meeting
Wednesday, April 15
8:00 p.m.
South Huron Recreation
Centre foyer
A