Old boy Greg quick to pick up where he left off

Greg Pick reckons Phantoms have the right core of players to claim English Premier League honours.
Greg Pick in action on his return to the club. Picture: Tom ScottGreg Pick in action on his return to the club. Picture: Tom Scott
Greg Pick in action on his return to the club. Picture: Tom Scott

The 23 year-old defenceman returned to the city club on an 18-month deal last week following the demise of Manchester Phoenix.

Pick helped Phantoms to play-off glory in 2014/15 during a three-and-a-half year stint in Bretton before moving north last summer.

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But after a turbulent time at the bottom of the table with Phoenix ahead of their recent collapse, he is now looking forward to life back in the fast lane with Slava Koulikov’s trophy hopefuls.

Pick said: “At any level of any sport, you need a strong core of guys who are capable of getting the job done.

“That core at Phantoms has not really changed since the play-off winning season.

“We’ve also got the same coach using the same systems and things are looking really good at the moment. I think we have a good chance of silverware.

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“A couple of Slava’s great strengths as a coach are finding quality players and giving younger guys the opportunity to perform.

“Coming back into the building now, you can see that some of the lads who I played with in the past have really kicked on, and that Slava has also added some good new talent.”

Pick returned to the Phantoms fold in trademark style by dropping the gloves against Guildford last Saturday night.

He traded blows with Flames man Andy McKinney in the closing stages of the city side’s 6-1 win.

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“I don’t think Slava necessarily wants me doing that all of the time,” admitted Pick. “But we were 6-1 up and in control of a game that had a bit of spice.

“It was good to get a fight under my belt on a night when all of the boys answered the bell when it was needed.

“It was certainly nice to win a game after having such a tough season up in Manchester.

“Having played against Phantoms a few times this season, the thing you really notice – even more so than in previous years - is the high tempo of play.

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“Slava likes to roll the lines and we are capable of catching teams cold. If we hit them hard we can rack up the goals and that’s what happened against Guildford in all honesty.

“I’m glad to be back here, but I’m also saddened about the way things ended in Manchester.

“There are some great supporters and people behind the scenes up there.”