The Morley Glass Leeds Knights and Leeds Junior Knights have voiced their intent to set up a team in the NIHL1 by submitting an ‘Expression of Interest’ to England Ice Hockey.
This marks a pivotal moment for ice hockey in Leeds as both the club and academy demonstrate our commitment to nurturing talent within West Yorkshire.
Ryan Aldridge, Head Coach of the Leeds Knights, emphasised, “Our primary goal is to create a clear pathway for our local junior players. The junior academy has a lot of promising talent, and it's important that we provide them with a clear route for their development. Our aim is to retain local talent within West Yorkshire, allowing them to progress further. This is an exciting time for both Leeds Knights and the Academy and I look forward to seeing players develop throughout the junior levels and become senior players within Leeds.”
Collaborating closely with Leeds Junior Knights, the Leeds Knights are dedicated to improving pathways for players to gain experience and we aim to cultivate emerging talent.
Davey Lawrence, Assistant Head Coach of the Leeds Knights, will take on the role of Head Coach for the NIHL 1 team. Davey said “Having an NIHL 1 team is the next logical step for us as the Leeds knights. It will allow us to develop the next group of players who will hopefully fulfil their dream of becoming senior hockey players at higher levels. It will also allow us to integrate players into the National League team when the time is right or certain players are ready. Having a senior team below the knights will help the players gain the experience and develop the necessary skills to play senior hockey and bridge the gap up to the National League. At Leeds there is a good core of youth players within the junior programme for which this will serve well. It’s an exciting time for hockey within Leeds and Yorkshire right now and it’s great to be a part of it.”
Chairman of the Leeds Junior Academy, Seth Bennett said “We’re all really excited to put the next step of the player pathway in place in Leeds. Since day one, I’ve worked very closely with Steve Nell and the Knights organisation to ensure that Junior Hockey could start and then begin to thrive in the city. This next collaboration is absolutely huge for both the junior club and for the senior club as we’ve got a lot of talent coming through. We have had a number of players representing GB at U16 level and women’s U18 level this year and we’ve got numerous players in the England squads, and it makes sense now that there is that pathway all the way up to National League.”
Seth continued “We’re really excited knowing that Ryan Aldridge is going to be here for the next few years as well that’s gonna make a huge difference to how we develop the junior players to ensure that they’re ready to play Senior hockey at the Castle and continue the teams recent vain of success largely inspired by younger players.”
As the Leeds Knights and Leeds Junior Knights embark on this thrilling journey, we are confident that our commitment to growth and development will lay the groundwork for a successful future for aspiring players and the wider growth of ice hockey in the UK. We are excited about our entry into the NIHL1 and hope to set off into the NIHL1 League in good stead.
