Bracknell

Changes to the Jet's roster had an instant impact at the Hangar on Saturday night's fixture against Bracknell.

The result: the best win of the season for Slough and the most exciting game seen by the fans in quite a long time.

New back-up netminder, Stephen Wall, was on hand on the bench should he have been needed, but it was Warren Rost and Stuart Simmons both scoring on their debut which really made this game special.

It was also the first game in a very long time in which Slough turned around a big deficit, trailing 1-4 at the halfway stage.

Gary Wishart scored the first goal, rather against the run of play, after Zoran Kozic had got the better of Nicky Chinn in the corner.

He fed Wishart who finished well with a high shot past Bees netminder, Steve Briere.

Another shot, by Kozic, was deflected with his glove onto the upper metal-work.

Then a couple of penalties against Slough allowed Bracknell to level, and then take the lead.

Danny Myers netted Jan Melichar's rebound off the back boards as Scott McKenzie served the first penalty before Mike Ellis beat Carl Ambler with Kozic in the sin-bin.

Chinn scored a third for the visitors just sixty-two seconds later and it began to look as though the Bees might run away with the game.

In the middle session, with Euan Forsyth serving a third minor against the Jets, Bracknell made it three powerplay goals from three chances as Adam Bicknell squeezed a shot past Anmbler.

At this point, the Jets upped their workrate, actually defended successfully a penalty to Watt and when Warren Rost lashed a McKenzie pass beyond the reach of Briere, the whole complexion of the game changed.

Early in the third period, Slough had a two man advantage as first Ellis, and then Joe Baird, went to the sin-bin.

Jets third goal came seconds after Ellis had returned, Briere failing to hold Andy Hannah's pass through the crease.

Slough had Bracknell in all sorts of trouble after that, pressuring Adam Greener and Danny Myers into errors.

Joe Ciccarello went close a couple of times before Kozic netted a superb solo effort to tie the match.

With over ten minutes still to go, the outcome was in doubt but the momentum was with the Jets.

A penalty to Greener allowed Slough to call a 'time-out' and Simmons, who had impressed on his debut, scored from the blue line after some fancy stick-handling kept the puck in the zone and prevented a Bees breakaway.

In the final minutes, Briere was pulled in favour of an extra skater, Bracknell called their own time-out and frantic play saw Slough defending and with a shot wide of the empty net at the final hooter.

ic Berkshire ~ Bracknell ~ Dec 9 2005