23 Mar 2008League Meeting 6

The final league tournament of the season and Thunder require four points to claim second place in the league. This would be the highest finish ever by the club.

Three difficult games were ahead of the Balwearie club and first up was Hawick, a team reinforced with players from last seasons champions Glenrothes and sporting a new Czech net minder between the sticks. It looked really tough for Thunder to claim anything from this game. However the Balwearie team were up for it and were prepared to give 100% to take something from the game. Both teams seemed evenly matched as the first period ended goal less.

The deadlock was not broken until the twenty-seventh minute when Thunders on loan forward Craig Savage scored against his ex team mates from Glenrothes in the Hawick team. In the thirty-fourth minute Hawick capitalised on a mistake by Thunder, with half the Thunder defense up the rink attacking, a misplaced pass by Thunder gave Hawick a two on one at the Thunder net and a quality pass and then a shot by Hamish Neish gave them an equaliser.

Game on as both teams gave their all to win the game but it ended 1-1 and Thunder still needed three points to be certain of second place. Next up were league champions Chapel and playing them back to back after the Hawick game was just too much for Thunder who had decided to rotationally rest their forwards in the hope of saving energy to take something from the two remaining games. However it was obvious that Thunder had no energy left from the previous game as they promptly went 6-0 down with no reply until halfway through the second period as Alan McDaid scored to pull a goal back. Chapel then scored a further three and Thunder were looking like they were in for a thrashing.

The final period saw Thunder score three unanswered goals to end the game with a more respective looking 4-9 defeat. As results elsewhere meant Thunder had at least third place in the league, the next game against their fellow club team was important, Thunder were aware that Lightning had knocked them out the National Championships and had previously cost them third place in an earlier campaign and would do them no favours, so no one in Thunder would take this game lightly. Lightning were still strong enough to give any team a hard game. Thunder had an hours rest before the inter club game and were the fresher team but the score was only 1-0 in Thunders favour at the end of the first period. The second period saw Thunder add another two goals with no reply and finally another three in the final period. Thunder had done it, second place was confirmed as the results filtered through from Mayfield. Oilers had come strong at the end and finished third, one point behind Thunder.

All in all it had been a hard slog for the Fife club but the season had finished with Thunder second in the league and finishing runners up in the Christmas Cup. Add that to the second place in last seasons Northern League cup earlier in the year and 2008 has been a successful year for Balwearie, This helps to banish the distant memory of the double figure defeats they endured when they first appeared on the scene and were the new kids on the block.

Next up is the Northern League cup on April 27th and with both Balwearie teams competing, hopefully both can do well.

24 Feb 2008League Meeting 5

The penultimate league tournament for Thunder brought mixed results as they won and lost a game chasing a podium position in the league and a place in the National Championships at Stratford Upon Avon in May.

Thunder played their old clubmates at Forth Phoenix and confirmed that the first encounter was no fluke as they ran out 6-1 winners with Phoenix only scoring near the end of the game. Aberdeen Oilers were one of only two teams to beat Thunder in the league this year and Thunder were confident of overturning the previous result.

However it turned out to be one of these days for Thunder where the ball would not go into the net. A combination of bad luck and good goalkeeping by the Oilers netminder kept out the Thunder forwards as they tried time and again to score. Aberdeen on the other hand got their tactics right as they hit Thunder with patiently built up goals, products of poor marking by Thunder, something that Thunder had hoped they had overcome in previous games. Oilers even had the luxury of a penalty shot as it looked like Oilers ex Balwearie forward Sascha Faessler was tripped while going through on goal.

It was easy to see why the referees gave it but the Thunder defense denied committing any foul. Even in the last period the game could still have gone either way but in the end, Oilers deserved their victory by virtue of being able to get the ball in the oppositions net. Final score Oilers 5 Thunder 2.

As the results went in T5 it means any team from four could take the 2nd and 3rd podium places as Chapel had wrapped up the league, dropping only two points to remain unbeaten in the league.

27 Jan 2008League Meeting 4

Thunder approached T4 with a view that they should win one match and the other would be a hard game. Surprisingly it turned out the other way.

Thunders first match was against RBS Linlithgow and Thunder felt this was a game that they should win. However a resolute RBS squad playing to a higher level than before made it a hard game for Thunder who struggled to get in their stride.

Thunder scored first in the sixth minute but could not take advantage due to the RBS back line having an excellent game. So it was no surprise when RBS equalised in the twenty-first minute. This made Thunder take stock of the situation and tighten up their own game. Thunder went on to score three more at five minute intervals to win 4 - 1 but fair play to RBS who made it very hard on the day.

Thunders second game against Forth Phoenix and their ex club mates was always going to be an interesting match as Forth had a very experienced line up of former players who had left to form their own club. Thunder approached this match with caution as Forth were lying second in the league with a few impressive wins under their belt. However on the day Thunder easily controlled the game play and ran out five to nil winners to take them to second in the league with a game in hand overtaking Forth on the way up. Thunder also had a goal disallowed which most felt should have stood however in the end that did not matter. The big question now is, Can Thunder maintain their lofty position and gain their highest ever finish in the league with two tournaments to go.

Lightning were at Mayfield in T4 and had a couple of hard games in front of them.

The first against Aberdeen Oilers who had inflicted one of Thunders only two defeats in a previous tournament looked on paper to be a hard game for the Kirkcaldy club. The game was a lightning classic as it proved to be an end to end, goal for goal match with Aberdeen going into the final minute leading four to three only for Lightning to hit the bar and deflect away. Hard luck for Lightning but a 4 - 3 win for Aberdeen.

Lightning’s second match was against a Dundee side who had some surprise defeats and were languishing mid table. This combined with Lightning’s improved form made for a good match.

I seemed game on for Lightning when they went two to nil ahead, scoring in the fourth and sixth minute. Dundee then scored ion the twelfth minute which seemed to give them a lift and from then on the goals all went into the Lightning net every third minute until the thirty-first minute when with Dundee leading six to two, Lightning pulled one back to half the deficit. In the remainder of the final period, Dundee banged in another three goals to end up comfortable winners 9 - 3.

Hard lines for a valiant effort by Lightning.

Mixed results for the Kirkcaldy teams in T4 but the plus points outweigh the minus and both teams are heading in the right direction.

09 Dec 2007Hawick win the Floorball Christmas Cup

Hawick Floorball Club – boosted by a line of local Glenrothes players – won the first ever Floorball Christmas Cup in Glenrothes on Sunday 9th December 2007.

All eight Scottish teams: Aberdeen Oilers, Dundee Northern Lights, Chapel, Balwearie Thunder, Balwearie Lightning, RBS Linlithgow, Forth Phoenix and Hawick all played in a series of matches. In an excellent days floorball Hawick proved too strong for Balwearie Thunder who had earlier beaten one of the pre-event favourites Chapel.

In the final Hawick won 6-2 showing the diverse range of skills in their team. With one line from Hawick and another from last seasons Northern League winners Glenrothes, Hawick were too strong on the day and deserved their victory.

Balwearie Lightning played club colleagues Thunder in the quarter-final and put up a very brave display. After a cracking game of excellent floorball Thunder did enough to win through by 6 goals to 1. The game though showed the quality of players within the club and how the teams can seriously compete against each other. Lightning lost 4-1 to Forth Phoenix in the losing quarter finalist’s game. Again they showed some great team play against a very experienced Forth team, however, they could not get the goals needed to get something from the game that there play at times deserved.

Balwearie Thunder had caused an upset in the semi-final by coming from 2-0 down to lead 4-2 and eventually win 4-3 against Chapel. This was a first ever win for a Balwearie team over Chapel! Thunder showed that the game they had lost in the last few minutes to Chapel earlier in the season was not a one-off performance. With excellent keeping, stout defending and forwards working and taking opportunities the team deserved the result. In this game Thunder appeared to have the backing of all other teams as most people like the underdogs doing well in games.

The final though was a game too much for Thunder. Losing early goals was a difficult hurdle to overcome. Also the two different lines from Hawick – Glenrothes one with great passing and understanding and Hawick one with high tempo and direct play – proved hard to play against. However, strides have been made and perhaps soon the team will get a trophy behind them.

25 Nov 2007League Meeting 3

Thunder produced 3 excellent displays in T3 in Dundee. Coach Ian made a positional change moving sharpshooter Mark Parter into defence for his first ever competitive games in this position. The change seemed to work and Mark had a few goals with his trademark sharp shooting from distance. The team was boosted by Danny and Wojtek making a switch from Lightning. Both played excellent roles in the Thunder team. Danny commented on "how physical it is playing in Thunder" during the teams game against Dundee.

Game one saw Thunder meet their club colleagues Lightning who put up a great show and made Thunder fight all the way. In a tough game played competitively and in the right spirit Thunder edged it 7-2. Colin Bell managed to have his first ever goals disallowed – two of them – in this game.

In game two Thunder were up against RBS. RBS had just played Lightning and lost 10-1 to our club colleagues. Lightning were absolutely superb with some real polished floorball on display. More of that though later. Coach Ian demanded a professional job and got frustrated at some show-boating at times. However, the team did what was necessary and in doing so actually got the club/team’s highest ever win by a scoreline of 18-1. There were many players on the score sheet in this one and RBS were really down at the end of such a clinical display.

In game three Thunder were up against Dundee. This game was extremely competitive and enjoyable for all spectators to watch. It had good goals, great goalkeeping, great defensive blocks, penalties, a penalty shot missed by Shaun, some stick offences and some very physical challenges. Paul Walker – who had a great day of assisting others in scoring – got the game winner but spoilt in perhaps with a slightly over the top celebration.

Three wins and three solid performances was an excellent day’s floorball for Thunder. The team now sits in 3rd spot behind Chapel and Forth. It is looking like a very interesting league this season.

Lightning achieve first ever league win

Balwearie Lightning secured their first ever league win on Sunday in Dundee by beating RBS 10-1. The team were superbly coached by Bob and assisted by captain Craig in achieving a well deserved win. Make no mistake the victory was hugely deserved. All players made outstanding contributions and for those of us watching the floorball on display was first class. The number of accurate clinical passes and shots was a joy to behold. Bob in goals deserved a shutout for his superb display. Defenders Craig Hunter, Craig Bayne and Mark Duthie were rocks at the back and more importantly spread out superb passes from the defence to the forwards. As for the forwards Richie Baillie, Steve Logie and Niall were superb. Niall especially showed he had a point to prove and despite his size he caused havoc with the huge RBS defenders. The other forward line of Renske, Rene and Jim were also hugely effective in all they did. RBS found all of them too hot to handle on the day.

This result will go some way in setting-up Lightning for the games ahead. They have shown what they can do and I’m certain that they can cause some shocks to bigger clubs in the games that are remaining.

All that it remains now is for both club teams to keep their feet on the ground, recognise what they have and can achieve and work extremely hard to try and improve further. There are no easy games in this league and with the right application to training there is a chance for teams to progress, but a lot of work lies ahead.

28 Oct 2007Thunder’s day of contrasts

Thunder made their way to Mayfield Sports Centre in Dundee for T2 and two tough matches against Aberdeen Oilers and Dundee Northern Lights. The squad that did extremely well in Glenrothes in T1 were boosted by floorball veteran – Alan McDaid and Paul Walker who made the step-up from Lightning.

In game 1 Thunder were up against the Oilers who had previously beaten Dundee 5-3. Oilers had a few new players playing in this round of games and all seemed to have a floorball background. In a tough but sporting game, Oilers scored twice early on to take the lead. Thunder stormed back into the game and edged closer as the game progressed. However, a couple of bad goals against at the wrong time made the game difficult for Thunder. They did though pull goalkeeper Kenny in the last two minutes to try and get a goal back but even with the extra outfield player Thunder could not get back into the game. It would be fair to say that the team shot themselves in the foot on some occasions and lacked the desire and composure required to make the difference. The end result was a 3-5 defeat.

In the other game that Thunder played, typically Thunder gave the opposition – Dundee – the first goal. In an exciting game though Thunder survived a few scares, Kenny saved a penalty shot and the team did enough to get ahead and win the game 8-4. Perhaps the most crucial goal was the one Alan McDaid got to tie the game. His “all-action” performance as a centre helped spur the team on.

23 Sep 2007Thunder roars into new season

A changed Balwearie Thunder team took on two of the teams tipped to be Northern League Champions in season 2007/8 on Sunday 23rd September. In game one a new look Hawick team were the challenge. New look as in they had 5 players from last seasons champions Glenrothes in their ranks. Coached by Ian Carrie (coach of the Bees Plate winning team), Thunder got off to a very slow start and quickly found themselves 2-0 down early in the game. However, young Graeme sped past a flurry of Hawick players and set-up “old warhorse” Colin (making a rare appearance from Lightning) who had a simple tap-in. Shaun levelled the scores thanks to a pass from Pete before Hawick went back in front thanks to a fortunate goal. Thunder though fought back and tied the period scoring through Graeme. Period 1 score was 3-3 and Thunder felt they had matched the Hawick team.

Early in the second half Pete fed Craig Savage who scored from long range to put Thunder in front. There was great end-to-end floorball but it finished 1-0 in Thunders favour.

Period 3 was another excellent advert for the sport with both teams coming close. Excellent goalkeeping on both sides kept the goals out. Near the end Glenrothes pulled their keeper in favour of an extra outfield player. Despite having a few chances to score into the empty net Thunder missed but managed to keep Hawick out. A great game which was won 4-3 by Thunder. The team were praised by many Chapel players at the end of the game as they realised the significance of the result. Dare I say it they also gained a healthy respect for Thunder.

In game two Thunder were up against Chapel. In a great game of floorball Thunder scored in the first period through Graeme who was set-up by Shaun. Despite chances at both ends the period ended 1-0 in Thunders favour.

In the second period Chapel up their game and started to try and get more shots on goal. The solid trio on each line – defenders and centre – kept all the attacks at bay. The excellent Kenny in goals dealt with any shots that did manage to get through. The period ended with no further scoring. Chapel were getting ruffled and had used up their “time-out” in this period.

Period 3 started with all to play for. Chapel again pressed and had most possession but found the speed wingers in Shaun and Graeme hot to handle. Shaun set-up Graeme for Thunders second goal and a shock looked on the cards. Thunder used their time-out, played solid floorball and battled for what was looking like a famous victory. However, with 2 minutes and 20 seconds remaining Chapel player Scott Ferguson fired a shot, which hit Kenny and the spot and came back into play. The referee who appeared unsighted gave the goal much to the annoyance of all Thunder players. The ball clearly had not gone in but the referees in their first ever games took the easy option perhaps and gave the goal. This was to prove decisive as Chapel scored 3 more goals in the remaining time to win 4-2. A total unjust result, which Thunder did not deserve. Spectators and even Chapel players felt we were robbed and the result was not fair. Chapel though realised that they had faced a strong team and Thunders performance has put down a marker for future games.

All players performed excellent on the day. Special mention though to young Niall who played against some of the best centres in the league and took all the knocks. His parents who watched part of a game must have been proud.

19 Aug 2007Season 2007/08

The 2007/08 season is almost upon us and it looks set to be another exciting season with yet more new teams joining the Northern League. Let's hope Balwearie can build on last seasons efforts.