A sensational performance from netminder Mark Lee saw the Wightlink Raiders unable to trouble the Invicta Dynamos on the scoreboard on Sunday night as the Mos cruised to 5-1 victory in front of a bumper crowd in the NIHL South Division 1.
With the antics of the last encounter between the two clubs still fresh in the mind, referee Stephen Matthews lay down an early marker in a bid to establish control with three quick penalties on the hosts. Minors to Charlie Phillips, Callum Fowler and Arran Strawson within the opening 65 seconds gifted the Raiders a prolonged spell with a two man advantage but the visitors were unable to make it count – Nicky Lewis almost putting them behind when he rattled the post for the Dynamos early on. When the numbers evened up netminder Matt Colclough had to be alert to deny Andy Smith in the slot but the shot stopper would have wanted to do better at 12.18 when he was finally beaten to break the deadlock. Arran Strawson’s flick towards net on the backhand from the tightest of angles should have been bread and butter for the goalie but he was caught unaware allowing the puck to slip through his pads to put the Mos 1-0 to the good. The Raiders could then have answered before the buzzer when a Juraj Huska giveaway put Owen Griffiths clean through but Mark Lee was unfazed by his stick work and froze the play to maintain his side’s slender lead.
Following the restart the Dynamos wasted little time in adding to their advantage – the clock stopping at 21.29 when Matt Colclough denied Billy Phillips low down with his pads leaving him powerless to prevent Anthony Leone roofing home with the rebound right in front for 2-0. A 2-on-1 counter of Craig Tribe and Alex Barker then presented the Raiders with the opportunity to reply but Mark Lee turned away Tribe’s back post redirect to preserve the two goal cushion. It would prove a key moment as the Dynamos then notched a third at 35.09 to firmly take control – Juraj Huska holding the play in the right channel before passing to the slot where the on-rushing Billy Phillips made the most of the free space to thump home with a one-timer for 3-0. An off the play shoulder barge from Callum Fowler on Jeremy Cornish would put the hosts a man down soon after but the Mos added a fourth to effectively kill the tie at 38.24. From behind the goal line Michal Oravec tried to feed the play towards the crease for a waiting Arran Strawson but the puck clipped the back of Matt Colclough’s left skate and crossed the line to make it 4-0.
In the final period Anthony Leone attempted to add a fifth from between the faceoff circles but Matt Colclough grasped his goal bound wrist shot to keep the visitors within four. They then reduced that deficit to three at 44.07 – Alex Barker claiming possession in the neutral zone before firing into the top far corner from the back of the left circle with a pinpoint finish that made it 4-1. Any optimistic hopes of a comeback would be dashed as swiftly as 45.58 however – Andy Smith skipping left around Niall Bound and Chris Cooke to enter the final third before lifting over the shoulder of Colclough and beating him high at his near post for 5-1. It was to be the final strike of the frame with the Mos able to cruise to victory – their first in three outings to re-establish their league challenge for 2014/15.
So after all the build-up and anticipation following Wightlink’s last trip to Kent it was ultimately a low key and controlled affair with both sides maintaining their discipline this time around. The Raiders created chances but found Mark Lee in sensational form – the shot stopper claiming a save percentage of 97.14% from 35 attempts on his net and proving to be the difference. Meanwhile the Mos also packed more of a punch up front with three goals in the second period putting the visitors out of sight. Man of the match awards went to Ryan Webb of Wightlink whilst Billy Phillips scooped the honours for the hosts after a disciplined performance demonstrated the value he adds to the team when not forced to spectate from the penalty box.