Author: Laurence Thorn

The Lee Valley Lions are delighted to confirm the return of defenceman Simon Jones for the 2018-19 season.

31-year-old Jones first joined the Lions in 2015 after taking nine years out of the game, and quickly established himself as a leader on the blueline. The former Chelmsford and Slough junior now enters his fourth season at Lee Valley and will once again be a key member of the defence corps.

Simon was voted as joint-Coach’s Player of the Season following the 2016-17 campaign, in which he scored two goals and 11 assists in 25 games.

Last season Simon was one of the club’s alternate captains, and also wore the “C” on his jersey in three games when regular captain Nick Alley was unavailable.

During his three seasons with the Lions, Simon has only missed one game; pulling on a Lions jersey a total of 76 times with a tally of 16 points (two goals and 14 assists). He did not miss a single game during the last two campaigns.

Click here to view Simon’s career statistics courtesy of eliteprospects.com.

Defensive leader Simon Jones returns to the Lions for his fourth season with the club (Photo © Kim Jones)

Another member of last season’s Lions squad has returned for the new campaign, as forward Oliver Glover re-signs with the club.

Nottingham-born Glover, who can also play as a defenceman, played junior hockey in his home city up to U19 level before studying at Nottingham Trent University.

Whilst there, he played a total of 86 games for the Nottingham Mavericks and Mavericks ‘B’ sides in the BUIHA, scoring 17 goals and 37 assists for a total of 54 points.

He also represented Nottingham Trent University in two Varsity games against the University of Nottingham – both times playing against fellow Lions returnee Ben Gillingham.

2015-16 saw Ollie move to London and briefly play for the Haringey Racers, making three appearances for the club. He moved to the Lions mid-season, playing 12 games in his inaugural campaign in a Lee Valley jersey and notching up two goals and one assist.

He returned for a full season in 2016-17, scoring three goals and tallying six assists for a total of nine points in 23 games. And last season, his third with the club, he played 21 games, scoring three goals and assisting on a further two.

Ollie is now back with the Lions for a fourth successive season and will hope to once again chip in with goals and assists to help the team move forward.

Click here to view Ollie’s statistics courtesy of eliteprospects.com.

The versatile Oliver Glover is back for a fourth season with the Lions (Photo © Phil Hutchinson)

The Lee Valley Lions have put the next piece of the 2018/19 roster puzzle in place with the re-signing of forward Ben Gillingham.

The 27-year-old was a Bracknell and Guildford junior before moving to the Midlands to study at the University of Nottingham.

Whilst there he played four seasons for the Nottingham Mavericks, Mavericks ‘B’ and Mavericks ‘D’ sides in BUIHA (British Universities Ice Hockey Association) competition, scoring 15 goals and 15 assists for 30 points in a total of 49 games. He also represented the University of Nottingham in their Varsity games against Nottingham Trent University in 2011 and 2012.

Ben then joined the Lions in 2015, playing 13 games in the 2015-16 campaign and scoring one goal and one assist. He followed that up with two goals and one assist in 15 games in the 2016-17 season, although he was hampered by a wrist injury.

Last season was Ben’s breakout year in a Lions jersey, as he scored three goals and assisted on a further nine to give him 12 points in 20 games. He was also voted the club’s Most Improved Player at the end of the season.

He now returns for his fourth campaign in the green and white jersey, and will be looking to build on his points output from last season.

Click here to see Ben’s career statistics courtesy of eliteprospects.com.

Ben Gillingham returns to the Lions for his fourth season with the club (Photo © Kim Jones)

The Lee Valley Lions are delighted to welcome defenceman Jack Ball back to the club after almost four years away, as he becomes our latest signing ahead of the 2018-19 campaign.

After the likes of Michael Jacobs, Joe Berry and Aaron Mallet all agreed to return to the Den after varying lengths of time away from the club, Ball is the next familiar face to come back to the club.

The 26-year-old from Dagenham began his career at Lee Valley back in 2011, playing three full seasons with the club as well as starting the 2014-15 season as a Lion. During that time, he scored one goal and assisted on a further seven, for a total of eight points in 66 games.

In November 2014, Jack made a cross-London switch to Haringey, where he spent the next three and a half seasons – first with the Racers and then with the Huskies. During his time at Alexandra Palace, Jack made 87 appearances in a Haringey jersey, scoring one goal and tallying 11 assists for a total of 12 points.

He now makes the swap back to East London for the upcoming campaign, and will hope to utilise his experience and become a key part of the Lions’ backline.

Click here to view Jack’s career statistics courtesy of eliteprospects.com.

Jack Ball in action during his first spell with the Lions (Photo © Julianne Bonner)

The Lee Valley Lions are looking for volunteers to help on match days with the following:

• Announcer;
• Programme designer.

In return for helping the Lions you’ll get free entry to every home game.

If you’re interested please contact Eddie Joseph on 07958 743680, send us an email via the Contact Us page, or contact us on any of our social media channels.