Hockey showdown in the Czech Republic

08 Mar 2012

The Manchester Metros Ice Hockey Club, made up of students from across the city, are returning from Zlin in the Czech Republic after a showdown with the UTB Ice Hockey Team from the Thomas Bata University.

The friendly match attracted a 2000-strong crowd, with the home side winning 8-2.

University of Manchester student Max Drakeley is a Manchester Metros first team player - he said: “Ice Hockey is a much bigger sport in the Czech Republic than it is here in the UK and its national league is considered to be the third toughest in Europe.”

The Manchester Metros first formed in 2001 as a roller hockey club and in 2004 they made their debut as an ice hockey team in the BUIHA (British Universities Ice Hockey Association) league.

Since then the club has developed and expanded and now their first team sits consistently at the top of the BUIHA Division 1 Northern League.  

During the trip the Manchester Metros met with the President of Thomas Bata University, government officials and team sponsors to raise the profile of British Ice Hockey in Europe.

They are also using the experience to learn from the success that the UTB Ice Hockey Team have had engaging with young people and ensuring a consistently high spectator numbers at both league and friendly matches.

Max said: “Hopefully this trip will inspire other Universities across Europe to stage similar matches as it is a great platform to showcase our talents and learn from the fast, technical style played by some European teams. You never know we might bring back some tricks with us for the University Nationals in April!”