The Wokingham Paper is delighted to team up with new Bracknell Bees head coach Doug Sheppard for an exclusive weekly column.
Featured in the paper every Thursday, Sheppard will give his latest views on Bracknell’s season on and off the pitch.
Here is the first instalment.
WE’RE just five games into the new season but it’s already clear that the league is going to be very competitive.
The team has shown good character in winning four of our opening five games. We’re in a good spot at the moment but we know we need to tighten up in the D zone and shore up our penalty kill. We’ve got some big games coming up this month, home and away, and we want to continue our good start.
PREVIEW: Bees look to bounce back from first defeat of the season
We’ve been just as busy off-ice and are delighted by how local schools have responded to our brand new School Zone.
Over 500 fans crowded in last month to watch us win an exciting game against Romford. This was the first experience of ice-hockey for many of those attending. They had the extra pleasure of watching our Juniors play during the interval; they could see you’re never too young or too small to get involved in this exciting sport.
We’ve got two School Zone fixtures this month. We hope to hear you cheering on your team.
We want the School Zone to encourage young people to experience what ice hockey has to offer. We also want them to know about those people who have contributed to the development of the club.
We paid tribute on Saturday by inducting the late John Nike OBE into our new Hive of Fame.
The Bracknell Bees were founded in 1987 under John’s ownership. We were delighted to present his widow, Sue, with the memento which we will display in his rink. As a businessman, John chose to support so many causes in this area. We are grateful for all he did to establish ice-hockey.
We will continue to acknowledge and pay tribute to those people who have played a part in the success the club has enjoyed over the last thirty-one years.
See you Sunday. Let’s make sure the rink is buzzing.
