Peterborough Phantoms show no mercy to the basement boys
The red-hot city side reeled off a 9-2 triumph against Invicta to follow up a 13-1 drubbing of the same strugglers the previous Sunday.
Their latest victory was a ninth in a row in all competitions and featured eight different scorers with teenage defenceman Bradley Bowering among them as he registered the first senior goals of his promising career.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdVeteran import Ales Padelek made the only breakthrough of the first period in Gillingham when the exploits of Invicta netminder Conor Morris frequently kept Phantoms at bay.
But he was powerless to prevent a four-goal salvo from the city side in the space of five minutes during the middle stanza as Robbie Ferrara, Corey McEwen, Bowering and Will Weldon all lit the lamp.
And another blitz followed early in the third period when powerplay goals from Petr Stepanek and Glenn Billing, and an even-handed effort from Nathan Pollard, all arrived in little more than two minutes.
A second Bowering effort completed Phantoms’ tally late on and was sandwiched by consolation goals for the hosts as Edmund Piacka and Anthony Leone both beat back-up Phantoms netminder Ryan Bainborough, who had replaced Jordan Marr earlier in the final session.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdIn fact Phantoms would have reached double-figures against the lowly Dynamos for the second successive weekend had Stepanek not seen another effort washed out during the second period.
Phantoms remain second in the NIHL Division One South standings – four points behind pacesetters Bracknell, but armed with four games in hand.
The city men now turn their attention to the first leg of their NIHL Autumn Cup semi-final against Swindon on Friday (November 2, 7.30pm) at Planet Ice. The second leg in Wiltshire is the following Friday.
Phantoms’ next league outing is on Sunday (November 4, 5.30pm) when Basingstoke visit Bretton.
MATCH DETAILS
Goals
INVICTA
51.40 Piacka (PP) ass: Best/Susters
57.50 Leone ass: Morgan/Colvin
PHANTOMS
5.30 Padelek ass: Robson/Buglass
26.13 R. Ferrara ass: Bowering
26.51 McEwen ass: Stepanek/Norton
27.44 Bowering ass: Padelek
30.48 Weldon ass: White/Long
42.35 Stepanek (PP) ass: Robson
43.57 Billing (PP) unassisted
44.44 Pollard ass: Robson/White
55.01 Bowering ass: Long/Romeo
Men-of-the-match
INVICTA – Owen Dell
PHANTOMS – Bradley Bowering