Side can’t wait to get on the ice for double header
The wait is nearly over for Paisley Pirates fans, who are counting down to a weekend that sees them in action twice after almost six months off.
An away match against North Ayr Wild today kicks off proceedings, before Pirates’ opening home fixture at Braehead Arena tomorrow, 6pm, against Kilmarnock Storm.
“It’ll be good to get back onto the ice in competitive action after such a long spell of inactivity,” said head coach Ian Turley.
“There’s been a freshness in training over the last few weeks, as the makeup of the team has changed quite a bit.
“It’s been great to work with these guys, but we now have to put our ideas into practice on the ice.
“The whole setup has a new freshness to it all, with Adam Walker joining me to double the coaching capacity within the club, and it’s certainly given me a boost to have someone as knowledgeable and proficient as him working alongside me.
“The new squad is absolutely desperate to learn and it’s a big boost to the pair of us to have such an attentive pool of players.”
With two tricky clashes to start the season, Turley admits his side will have to be at their very best if they are to get off to a winning start.
And he revealed that he has his fingers crossed that a big crowd will come through the doors on Sunday to welcome the side back home following a long summer.
But, on a more sombre note, Turley explained that there is a more important reason he is hoping to mark the start with a win.
He said: “We’ve two difficult games to start with against teams who’ve already been in competitive action, but it’s a situation we’ve been used to in recent years, so, again, we’ll just get on with it.
“We’re at Auchenharvie Leisure Centre today, and the Wild will be keen to turn us over, seeing as, apart from it being a local derby, we now have a number of former Wild players in our ranks, who’ll all be very keen to ensure they retain bragging rights over their former teammates.
“Tomorrow, we’re hoping for a big crowd at Braehead to welcome the team back onto home ice for the first time in six months, as we take on Kilmarnock Storm in another local derby.
“Storm have had a good start to the season and have already racked up a couple of wins, so they’ll be fancying their chances of coming into our place and keeping their good opening run going.
“Our first home match is also dedicated to the memory of two faithful supporters, Jess Donnelly and Jim Dinning, who both sadly passed away over the close season, so we have an extra special reason for doing well on the opening night.”
Turley added: “For our part, our fans have waited a long time to see us and we’re hoping for two top notch performances to get our season underway.
“We want to show the newcomers, in particular, that they’ve come to a big club, where expectations are high every single time we have a fixture to fulfil. So, at 6pm tomorrow, we want the home fans to give every player in a Pirates’ jersey a very special welcome onto the ice.”