It’s not often I’m at a loss for words. My ability to pontificate profusely is well known. Hell, I love to give my opinion on all kind sof subjects, quite often in a very forthright manner. But all this bullshit going on now is leaving me struggling.

Silverblades launching a “returning” Manchester Storm is possibly the lowest they have sunk to, in my opinion. Hull Stingrays are not even cold in the grave, yet there they are, all smiles, with the Storm coming back! I feel truly sorry for the very loyal fans over in Hull.

Well, no, this isn’t the Storm “returning”. Not at all. This is a crass, insensitive attempt to pull fans away from the Phoenix at the expense of Hull. Bring back an old, fondly remembered name (they will have been very aware of the recent wave of Storm based nostalgia), and proclaim to be the continuation of a “legacy”. And what a legacy: missing season ticket monies, unpaid players, unpaid arena bills, acrimony, recrimination, a shyster owner…. Fits them perfectly.

 

And all these old Storm fans crawling out from under their rocks over on Facebook… overjoyed that “their” team is back (no, it really isn’t. It’s something totally different). They wouldn’t come out to Altrincham to see the Phoenix, even when we were an EIHL side, but they will now? Just because of the fucking name? That is truly pathetic. I’m sorry if this offends some folks, but they are emphatically NOT hockey fans. The real fans of the sport for the last 13 years have helped try to build the Phoenix, to make it work where the Storm failed. The game has been here all along, but you just could not see past a fucking NAME!

And as for the folks hiding behind usernames on various forums… I’m so fucking done with all the bullshit. Try to express anything even vaguely pro- Phoenix (or even try to take a balanced view), and you just get abused and ridiculed for it. I wonder how they would feel if it was their club in our position? I expect they would have liked the fabled “hockey family” to rally round and show some support, or at least try to see both sides of the story. Well, thats another myth about British ice Hockey busted. 1 very cleverly constructed press release (lead with the emotional grab, keep facts to a minimum) and people have taken very clear positions, with an unshakeable belief in the fact that Silverblades (and by extension themselves) are 100% right, and the Phoenix/Neil Morris/Wayne Scholes is/are the Devil incarnate.  They see the whole situation in simple Black & White, ignoring the fact that just like everything else in the world, there is a myriad of shades of grey in between. And therein lies the truth. Some of these people have shown their true natures, as petty, spiteful creatures who seem to be taking great delight in what is happening to us. Well fuck you all. When it is your turn (and British ice Hockey being what it is, this likely will be the case), there will be no support from me any more. You want my team to die to keep you feeling righteous? Fuck you.

This won’t beat us. It certainly won’t beat me. But my cynicism about the “hockey family” has gone way off the charts.