LUKAS SMITAL’S record-breaking pass last weekend was an unforgettable one, the Bracknell Bees player-coach has said.
In laying on Callum Fowler for a goal during the thumping 10-3 victory over Hull Pirates on Sunday night, the Czech became the leading point scorer in EPIHL history.
The 41-year-old forward now sits on 747 points in the division, taking top spot in the standings from former MK Lightning and Guildford Flames shooter Gary Clarke (745).
Smital was treated to a standing aviation by the Hive faithful following the game, which saw Bees rack up a second successive win on home ice, and the player was undoubtedly proud of such an achievement.
The moment, though, was somewhat tinged with a touch of disappointment, with Smital telling The Wokingham Paper: “To be fair I’m very happy about it and sad at the same time because my wife was playing over in Guildford and my youngest lad was away with the Under-18s, so it was just the little guy (Smital’s youngest son) who was here to see it, but I have to be glad.
“As soon as I made that pass to Callum (Fowler), that pass I am likely to remember for the rest of my life because, I’m not going to lie to you, it was a really nice pass for a back door tap in.
“It was good that I achieved it and to top it all off it was a 10-3 performance, so even better.
“It was a great night.”
Smital saw Frantisek Bakrlik lead the goal-fest on Sunday with a hat-trick, as Vanya Antonov (2), Matt Towalski (2), Fowler, Matt Foord and Tom Beesley also netted as Bees put the league newcomers to the sword in clinical fashion.
With their home form in good order, Bracknell must now attempt to end a run of defeats on the road, but to do that must overcome a bogey Peterborough Phantoms side which won all five fixtures between the two clubs last season tomorrow night (7pm).
And Smital hinted at a possible change in tactics as they look to arrest their away day blues in Cambridgeshire.
“It’s going to be tough,” said the coach.
“They (Peterborough) have got a strong team and we are going to have to be extremely disciplined and try to stay out of the box.
“Regarding the game plan, I have not gone through it yet but we are going to play slightly different and maybe more defensively and just wait for our chances.
“They (the Phantoms) always go hard in a small rink, bad ice, so we just need to take what is available and make sure we do our job.
“If we are able to do our job right we should be able to take some points off them.”
A derby day with Basingstoke Bison then awaits Bees at The Hive on Sunday (6pm).
Follow us on Twitter: @WokinghamSport
