Author: Julianne

Lions’ first signing for 2011/12 season

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Lee Valley Lions are excited to announce the first signing of the 2011-12 season. Canadian Blair Dubyk is returning to the Lions for a second season as player/coach. Last season’s Captain was asked his thoughts about what lies ahead for the team:

“I am excited about the upcoming season. I thought last year’s squad made some real progress through the season, and with some returning players, a crop of good young players and a few new faces, I believe we can continue from where we left off. We’ve got a good group of guys, all willing to work hard day in and day out, and I’m looking to add to that. I’ve been in talks with a few ENL1 players that are looking for a less hectic weekend schedule.”

Blair, 31, knows how hectic an ENL1 schedule is as he was a defenceman with the 2009-10 play-off champions, Bracknell Hornets. In his first year with Lee Valley he had a team-leading 33 goals and 8 assists in 23 games as forward.

“GM Eddie Joseph and I spoke about me playing on the forward line at the begining of the season. We thought it would be easier to help run the bench if I was a forward. I enjoyed the change.”

We look forward to seeing Blair in a Lions’ uniform again this season.

If you are interested in joining the 2011/2012 Lions then do come along to the open ice sessions each and every Tuesday evening at 8.15pm, £10 per session. Trials will be held from the first week in July, running for 4 weeks on Tuesdays. Alternatively, come down and have a chat with Blair Dubyk or Eddie Joseph.

Thanks to everyone

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A message from Eddie:

Now that the end of the 2010/2011 season is upon us I thought I would submit a few lines about the past season. As I took on the role of team manager, the assistance I received from Maggie, Sally, Karen Roper and Sharon was invaluable. In addition to this our regular scorers, goal judges and match day assistants made sure that the home games went ahead and ran smoothly. Thank you one and all.

I would like to thank all the players who have made this season possible. Our league position may not have been as high as I would have liked, but I think the commitment from the players was there for all to see. I am hopeful that all those who finished the season with us will be back for next year. My best wishes for the future go to those who did not finish the season with us or who choose not to return next season.

Also a big thank you goes to Mr Ian Prince. He helped to guide this team through the hectic season. And I hope Messrs Dave Richards & Mike Tehan fully recover from their bouts of ill health. I hope to see Mike Tehan back up on the stage next season announcing the arrival of the 2011/2012 Lions.

My biggest thank you goes to Blair Dubyk who valiantly took on the role of coach this season. I know the players and I were impressed with the enthusiasm he displayed and this in turn helped many of our players develop and grow. I know both the team and Blair himself learnt a lot from this season and the experience will hold him in good stead for next term. I am confident that Blair will take this team forward next season.

Once again we have to look at this season in a positive light as we completed all our fixtures matched our highest league finish ever (since the Lions were reformed) and have a strong foundation to build upon.

Thank you for your continued support.

Eddie Joseph

And the winners are…

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At this year’s end-of-season presentation evening, Coaches’ Player of the Year was awarded to Shane Bojenko, while the winner of Players’ Player of the Year went to Calum Heath. Congratulations to you both and I hope to see you and everyone else icing for us again next season.

Ancient video clips now on YouTube

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I’ve uploaded the ancient video clips from the Lions of the 90s onto YouTube. They were previously in the History section of the site in WMV format, but now they’re on YouTube instead. The Multimedia page of the History section has been updated with the embedded videos.