PRO ice hockey in the South of Scotland is thriving and the Solway Sharks want to start adding trophies to complement the surge in the sport’s popularity.
The club’s past two years in the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL), the second tier of UK ice hockey after the Elite League, have shone an increasingly bright spotlight on the sport in the South of Scotland and the wider Solway area.
Growth has been remarkable, with crowd numbers up dramatically at Dumfries Ice Bowl, also known as the ‘Shark Tank’.
If you attend a game, you will quickly see why people are flocking to the rink to watch 12 men on ice skates, armed with hockey sticks, try to put a puck in the opposing team’s net.
Ice hockey is the fastest team sport in the world; it commands great skill and athletic ability; it attracts enthusiastic crowds; and there is even the occasional fight among players.
But in spite of their growing popularity on the ice, the past two years in the professional ranks have been without any silverware for the Sharks – a rarity for the club and something those involved are desperate to rectify.
Pic: Solway Sharks
TEAMS have been playing out of Dumfries Ice Bowl since 1992. The Solway Sharks were founded six years later, in 1998.
They have always played at a high level and success has been plentiful – two years ago the club completed the quadruple, winning the league, cup, play-offs and national trophy in their respective division.
They had been desperate to test themselves at a more competitive level. And at the end of that trophy laden campaign, in May 2023, a new ownership team came in and decided to enter the team into the NIHL.
Martin Grubb has been Sharks head coach since 2008 and has held an affiliation with the club since 1998.
He said: “We’ve always striven to be the best we can be with limited resources, and I don’t think that changes (with the new ownership). If the resources become a bit better then great, but the club has to still survive, like every club, within a budget.
“For a small town we’ve had a lot of success. Now the hard bit is doing it at a higher level and we’re not far away.”
Grubb believes there will be some in the region who are unaware of the Sharks’ existence.
But he reckons that for many it takes attending just one single match to become hooked.
He added: “A lot of people are attracted to the speed and the skill and the physicality.
“It’s a sport you can skate around and make body contact and, from time to time, there are fights, and some people enjoy that.
“To do that while skating, it’s a bit different to a lot of the mainstream sports.”
THE NIHL is the second tier of ice hockey in the UK, with the majority of its 11 teams being fully professional.
During the season, games are played between September and April, on Saturday and Sunday nights.
The Sharks’ longest away day takes them them down to Romford, East London.
On the step up in leagues, Grubb said: “The competitive juices were there for more, when the opportunity was there, for me, it would have been crazy not to step up.”
Sharks players train three nights a week, while they have access to the ice every day to practice. Some members of the squad also hold down jobs during the day, and the schedule can become pretty hectic during the season.
From Edmonton, Alberta to Georgetown, Dumfries – the players are a tight knit group who all share a love for the sport.
For the past two seasons John Dunbar has doubled up his playing role with an office based head of hockey operations position.
The 33-year-old Canadian has enjoyed a successful full-time career in the game, including spells in the Elite League with Guildford Flames and Glasgow Clan.
Dunbar said: “The owners presented this idea to me where I could play and also have this role as hockey operations.
“No two days are the same. I was also kind of glad I could apply some of the stuff I’d learned a little bit (at university).
“It was a great opportunity where I was still able to complete and do what I really loved.”
Meanwhile, Sharks captain and Dumfries native Liam Stenton, 23, has gone all the way through the hockey set-up in Dumfries.
He added: “I fell in love with it, I started doing the ‘learn to play’ scheme when I was six and I just came through the ranks.”
Attendances are skyrocketing
OFF ice growth at the club has been immense since stepping up to the NIHL.
Crowd numbers at the tail end of last season were breaking the 1000 mark, surpassing attendances at Queen of the South Football Club just across the road.
Grubb said: “The growth in numbers this year has been fantastic to see. We’ve always had a loyal fanbase, probably a bit small in numbers, but now it’s just starting to grow and long may that continue.
“There’s something for everybody, the sport, food, drinks, warm environment upstairs and atmosphere downstairs. There’s a bit of everything and we pride ourselves on being family friendly.”
Dunbar added: “It’s been really cool to see the growth from year one to year two. Our average attendance went up by 150-200 people, substantially higher than year one.”
Stenton said: “When I was playing before we were getting 3-400 at a push. At our last game we had just under 1200, which is our full capacity.
“It’s a testament to the town, the community and the hockey family that we’ve managed to grow the fanbase as much in the last two years.”
‘There’s no point if you’re not going to win’
WHEN you step through the front door of the ice bowl on the left there is a trophy cabinet packed with silver that catches the eye.
But the last two campaigns for the Solway Sharks have been pretty different to the norm.
Everything is going well off the ice; on it, however, success has been limited.
Now the head coach and club captain believe it is the time to reward the fans.
Listen to Martin Grubb here:
Stenton added: “It’s been a hockey town where there has always been some sort of silverware. There’s been the odd year without.
“It’s been a big success in the last 10-15 years in this club. There’s a massive trophy magnet and I think it’s just a matter of time before we bring one in again.
“Next year we’re going to go for it.”
