OUR ROOTS PART THREE

The re-formation of the Manchester Storm franchise in 2015 really did cause a ‘Storm’ amongst UK Ice Hockey fans. For many, including myself, it was a euphoric feeling to finally have ‘my team’ back after the heartbreak of losing the original franchise in the early 00’s.

On the flip side of that, there was a minority of fans that branded the ‘re-birth’ of Manchester Storm as a sham, or a ‘fake’ – we decided to take a deeper dive into how the ‘original’ Storm and todays franchise have strongly rooted connections and we ask the question, what really makes a sports organisation, is it the Arena? Is it the fans? Is it the volunteers and staff? Let’s jump into part THREE!

SHELLY KIELY – SOCIAL MEDIA ASSISTANT

How It All Began: When my dad heard Key 103 adverts, he decided to get a family ticket. I attended some games towards the end of the 96-97 season with my family. I was six years old and already playing inline hockey, so we would also sometimes have group outings to go and watch the Storm games. It went from there, we joined the Supporters Club one season and attended some fantastic events, we attended games whenever we could around both myself and my dad’s inline hockey games.

Favourite ‘OG’ Storm Memory: My favourite memory of the old Storm franchise was when Storm won the league in the 98-99 season.. As a kid, match nights were really fun, from watching them play against teams that aren’t around anymore like the London Knights and Ayr Scottish Eagles, to entering competitions and getting on the jumbotron with friends. 

Current Role At The Club: Social Media and PR Assistant, I work as a small team doing social media updates on both home and away match nights and get involved with match night campaigns, from writing some copy, to utilising Instagram, Facebook and X on the run up to fixtures.

DAN THOMSON – HEAD STEWARD

How It All Began: I first became a Manchester Storm fan in 1995 when I was 14 I got a free ticket out of the paper and came to watch them at what was then called the Nynex Arena, what got me hooked was the fast pace, atmosphere, oh and the fighting!

Favourite ‘OG’ Storm Memory: I’ve got a few memories from the old days, winning the league in 1998/99 and the year after winning the Benson and Hedges cup in Sheffield what a night that was!! Can proudly say I was one of the 17,245 people in the Nynex when we sold it out versus Sheffield.

Favourite Current Storm Memory: Memories from the current franchise would be when we retired again the legendary #41 shirt when Brad “Ruby” Rubachuk came back ‘home’ and I had the honour of taking him to the webcast box for a interview and the standing ovation he got coming up the stairs wow it made the hairs on my arms and neck stand up and something I wouldn’t forget. Other memories would be winning the Patton conference and winning the double header in Belfast last season.

Current Role At The Club: My current role for the Storm is head steward something I’ve love doing since 2018, I’ve  been involved as a steward with Storm since we came back in 2015.

IAIN LINDLEY – SOCIAL MEDIA ASSISTANT

Hi, I’m Iain. I’m part of the Storm social media volunteer team. If you’ve ever laughed or cringed (or both) at a daft Twitter pun or a Taylor Swift GIF, that was probably me – I make no apologies. I’m usually found near the front of block 114 at home games – come and say hello!

How It All Began: Like a lot of local kids in the mid-90s, I was distracted just enough from listening to “(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?” to be swept up by Storm fever at the Nynex Arena. With my family I was a regular at games from 1996 onwards. Watching the club lift the league title in 1999 was such a thrill, and I’ll never forget the chorus of car horns after every game as everyone queued to escape the arena car park!

As a volunteer, one huge recent highlight was seeing our silly Valentine’s Day game tweets find their way into the Hockey News.

As a supporter, the away trips stick in my memory the most. The ridiculous 13-9 game at the “fridge of dreams” in Edinburgh; that first win in Sheffield in 2017; beating Belfast and then dancing the night away in Rockies; or the buzzer beater in Glasgow to win the game with five seconds left on the clock. I saw and loved them all, although my bank balance probably has more mixed feelings.

Back in 2019, I found myself in Guildford for a Sunday night away match. It’s a long way to Surrey on a school night and the away section was pretty empty – just myself and Darryl Kinsey, and perhaps a couple of others. With a 3-1 lead as the clock ran down, and the Spectrum even quieter than usual, I bravely attempted a round of “oh when the Storm”. Darryl, to his eternal credit, yelled out the response part, even if it would have been funnier to leave me hanging. Can’t beat out-singing 1,800 home fans when there are two of you though! 

As many of you reading this article know, Darryl passed away suddenly a year ago this month at a devastatingly young age. He would have loved to share his memories of Storm past and present for retro night – make sure you sing extra loud for him on Saturday.