OUIHC Men's Captain

Cambridge University Triumph in Restored Ice Hockey Varsity Match

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Cambridge Blues Triumph in Restored Ice Hockey Varsity Match

Despite having Blues status since 1933, it has been three years since a bona fide University Men’s Blues ice hockey team has played a recognised Varsity Match. Not since the Oxford Blues won by a score line of 17-1 in 2012 has an Oxford University ice hockey player earned an Oxford Blue in the sport. This changed on Friday 13th March 2015.

Since the resurgence of the Men’s Blues team, the men’s contingent of the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club (OUIHC), the scheduling of a Varsity Match with Cambridge has slowly become a reality with the reviewing of the Varsity Match rules following two years of unrecognised Varsity Matches played between Cambridge and an unaffiliated Oxford team.

Following a rule change by the Oxford Men’s Blues Committee, the notion was then passed unanimously by the Cambridge Men’s Blues Committee which clarified that the official Varsity Match in which Blues can be earned will only be played by a University team of matriculated students that is recognised by the University as being registered with the Men’s Blues Committee, the Sports Federation (for Oxford) and the University Proctors. It is worthy of note that as a gesture of good faith, the team offered an olive branch to the new players of the Oxford Blues who were due to graduate that year (the team of the Oxford Ice Hockey Trust which is not eligible to play the official Varsity Match and earn Blues). This provided one last opportunity for them to play for the University and earn their Oxford Blues in the Varsity Match – they declined.

Given the opportunity presented to the matriculated Oxford students of the OUIHC, the 10-man Oxford roster eagerly anticipated a heated affair, travelling to Alexandra Palace in London with a cohort of fans and alumni.

Oxford started the game strong with a clear strategy of solid defence and opportunistic attacking play. To Cambridge’s surprise, it was Oxford on the immediate attack from the face-off, with the Jesus College duo of fresher Ben Verboom and MCR President Damien Frost who opened the scoring. After a great offensive effort by defensemen Frost to beat the Cambridge player to the outside, it was Verboom who directed the cross-crease pass goal-wards past a stunned Cambridge netminder.

The Cambridge Light Blues came back strong with star player Christopher Finch spear-heading the attack. Several minutes later, the Light Blue had tied the game and had quickly added two more, utilising their mobile defence led by Spencer Brennan who notched two assists.

The game quickly turned into more of what the Oxford team had expected with a deliberate Finnish style of hockey shown by the Dark Blue, keeping the opposing players to the periphery forcing low percentage shots. However, Cambridge showed why they had the top two point scorers in the league by exhibiting their shooting accuracy and potting a couple more goals to extend the lead.

However, just like the start of the period it was Oxford who would get the tally. Winnipeg native Dallas Clement split the D after a defensive error and sniped a snapshot high glove side. The score line ending the first period was 6-2 in favour of Cambridge.

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Caption: A result of Oxford forcing Cambridge to the outside through the neutral zone

With the first period behind them, coaches Mitch Breisner and Naeem Bardai reiterated the game plan and moved versatile Teddy Hall fresher Josh Hammond from defence to forward. The resulting period was a much more composed one for the Oxford side, playing a deliberate collapsing defensive structure to frustrate the talented Cambridge players. Despite tallies from Finch and Swede Oscar Willsby for Cambridge, the resilience shown by forwards Daniil Butman, Dan Lock and Hammond epitomised what it meant to take a hit in order to make a play.  Selfless was the defence of Oxford and clinical was the attack, with Clement driving the puck forward following a restart after Cambridge’s 9th goal. The Aularian split the Cambridge defence for a breakaway and following a sweet fake to the backhand, slotted the puck on his forehand past an out-of-position Cambridge goalie – Roman Tourenne.

 

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Caption: Dallas Clement scoring his second goal of the game on a breakaway

Entering the third period, the score line was 9-3 to the tabs, reflecting the size and the talent of their roster. With almost double the numbers of players compared with Oxford, Cambridge forced the play and the tempo, shunning the Dark Blues into their own zone and exploiting the depth of their bench. With tallies from Michal Barabas, Captain Jaason Geerts and Finch’s hat-trick goal, the Light Blue would have run away with the score if it wasn’t for Oxford goaltender Alan Keeso. After coming out of a NCAA programme to Oxford’s Geography department and Saïd Business School, the Canadian MBA showed why he was arguably one of the better goalies in the league and best imports Oxford has had in a long time. Keeso was sound in his positioning and quick to react, stifling the Cambridge snipers and preventing a Varsity record being set in the number of Cambridge goals scored. In recognition of his stellar performance between the pipes, he was awarded the Man of the Match award for which there was no doubt from either the Oxford or Cambridge camps.

 

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Caption: Oxford’s star goaltender Alan Keeso faced 73 shots during the contest

With the final buzzer, Cambridge were triumphant in a 12-3 victory over their Oxford counterparts. Despite the score line, the Oxford Dark Blues showed outstanding commitment and sportsmanship throughout and had arguably played their best team game of the season despite having only 9 skaters. Thoroughly deserving winners Cambridge showed why they finished 2nd in the league and are favourites for the National Championship title. Credit goes to their players and captain Jaason Geerts after a tremendous year.

OUIHC Men's Blues

Caption: The Oxford University Blues Varsity squad (Top left to top right: Naeem Bardai – coach, Damien Frost (A), Daniel Lock, Dallas Clement, Martin Vesely (A), Joshua Hammond, Michael Breisner – coach, Ben Verboom; bottom left to bottom right: Jordan Thompson, Daniil Butman, Tim Donnison (C), Alan Keeso)

Victories must be taken and celebrated wherever they appear and the restoration of an official Varsity Match is certainly one of them. The awarding of Oxford Blues, like in other Oxford University sports, is an honour and something shared and recognised alike with many great alumni of this ancient institution. It seems only fitting that students can once again earn their Blues and join this distinguished list in the year 2015 – the 130th anniversary of the 1885 Ice Hockey Varsity Match played between these two historic universities.

Prospective men’s players who wish to partake in the Blues Varsity Match and have an opportunity to earn their Oxford Blues are encouraged to contact the Men’s Blues Captain at ouihcmen@gmail.com.

 

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Caption: The Oxford and Cambridge Blues Teams come together for a united photo showing mutual respect for each other and support for their respective women’s teams

(Ice) Hockey’s Continuing Benefits and Oxford University Sports

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By Alan Keeso, MBA ’15

For roughly two decades of my life, hockey – or ice hockey so as not to confuse my British friends – occupied the majority of my time. If I wasn’t playing it or training for it, I was thinking about it. While playing junior hockey in Strathroy, Ontario, our coach and mentor, Pat Stapleton, a former Chicago Blackhawks and 1972 Summit Series defenseman, outlined three key interdependent elements critical to success in the game:

interdependent

I have yet to experience anything that brings these elements together like hockey does. As a goaltender, each one had heightened importance. A lapse in discipline at any point in the game could be the difference between a save and a goal. Admittedly, I still think about hockey every day. Whether I’m just walking around, working, or even during stressful days of infantry field training, I’ll be automatically, imaginatively, and momentarily back on the ice in a game looking out through the cage of my helmet.

Being very much aware of the deficiencies in the interdependent elements of my game that limited my performance and consequently my career, I carry regret. However, my imaginative return to the ice in some of the past jerseys I’ve worn also results from the fact that I channel lessons learned from hockey to drive me forward. I learned to correct my approach too late to salvage a hockey career, but I learned in time to reinforce these lessons in other arenas of life, where I’ve found they have universal applicability.

I don’t have to think long to attribute unique opportunities for growth and development I’ve had to hockey. For example:

  • Learning the ropes of the scouting process at a young age taught me professional conduct. Young hockey players learn how to give a good handshake long before their peers, despite the frequent limp handshakes during post-game line-ups.

The Wet Fish Handshake. Courtesy of jokers during post game handshake lineups.

  • Leaving home at a young age to play junior hockey was an experience all to itself. Young players live with a new family and go to a new school. Through junior hockey, I navigated three different high schools and teams.

 

  • The jump from Canadian junior to US NCAA hockey allowed me to represent my school through hockey while earning an undergraduate degree (mostly in that order of priority) in Boston.

 

There comes a day however, when you realize –finally – that it’s all over. For me, that happened almost 10 years ago, and I’m now in the hockey afterlife. In my hockey afterlife practices are evil, and games come with a stipulation that there’s beer afterward. Additionally, I can only play when the boss let’s me. The boss is my groin.

Amazingly, the unique opportunities that hockey (and sports in general) provides continue. My MBA classmates Caryn Davies (US gold medal rowing Olympian) and Sam Peter (South Africa Rugby Varsity Cup veteran) will agree with me that competing for Oxford University enables new networks and social circles along with balance.

Rowing, rugby, and cricket are the three major sports at Oxford University, and their athletes compete for prestigious Oxford Full Blues. It’s the highest honour a student athlete can achieve. The honour of earning Blues has been in effect since the 1860s, and in addition to being recognized as a successful athlete at the national level, the student is entitled to wear the distinguished Dark Blues Blazer and gain admittance into Vincent’s Club. The club was founded in 1863 and includes members such as Sir Roger Bannister and the Rt Hon Cecil Rhodes. Our Director of Careers here at Saïd Business School, Derek Walker, will be the first to tell you that earning a Blue is something to quickly add to your CV.

Vincent’s Club, Oxford. Photo courtesy of vincents.org.

Spectacularly, ice hockey here at Oxford University has Blues status. The Oxford University Ice Hockey Club (OUIHC) is born from a history that dates back to 1885 with the first Varsity Match versus Cambridge. Oxford is recognised as the second oldest team in the history of the sport. The Oxford Canadians were later formed in 1905, becoming the first Team Canada. If that’s not enough, the team’s esteemed alumni list includes the likes of the Rt Hon Lester B. Pearson (former Canadian Prime Minister and Nobel Peace Prize winner), Clarence Campbell (former NHL President), and Mark Carney (current Governor of the Bank of England).

130 years on, OUIHC – through partnership with the Women’s team and our friends from Oxford Brookes University – has a fun, integrated, and inclusive community that is in keeping with Oxford University’s continually evolving combination of tradition, prestige, heritage, and integration, while also maintaining standards for Blues status and Varsity Match rules.

The 2014 OUIHC Men’s and Women’s Christmas Party.

Recently, the OUIHC Women’s and Men’s teams were invited to the Rhodes House to meet one of our distinguished ice hockey alumni, John McCall MacBain, who made headlines in 2013 with his Foundation’s landmark £75 million donation to the Rhodes Trust. John is passionate about ice hockey at Oxford University, having been Co-Captain of the team, and continues to provide massively generous support. Our teams had the opportunity to meet and chat with John and tour the Rhodes House, which itself has a brilliant history.

Rhodes House, Oxford. Photo courtesy of cecilrhodes.co.za.

I certainly encourage students who are planning to attend Oxford University to further engage with this 800+ year old institution as Caryn, Sam, and I have done by joining its sports teams, contributing to their pursuits of victory over Cambridge, and potentially earning a coveted Blue in the process. Truly, the hockey afterlife is good

Women’s Blues open 2014-15 season with dramatic win

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The Oxford Women’s Blues played the first league game of the season this weekend away against the Coventry and Warwick Panthers. The girls were keen to show the rest of the league that they are a team to count on this season.

The game started in a high tempo and the women took the lead in the first shift through Gabi Smyth who scored her first ever goal on a rebound. The team kept working hard and the next goal came a few minutes later from a beautiful break out in the neutral zone where Linda Perkio and Smyth assisted Jenn Lawrence on the second goal of the night. The entire team played well and managed to hold the Warwick boys back with the help of some impressive saves by Kate Koch. The period ended with a 3-0 lead for the Oxford team after Lawrence scored another goal.

The girls kept skating hard during the second period despite a short bench. Eight minutes into the second period the second line joined the score sheet after some hard work in front of the net resulting in a goal scored by Pollyanna Fitzgerald, assisted by Charlotte Cato. Seconds later Lawrence won the face off following the goal and went on to score another goal, increasing the lead to 5-0. The men on the Warwick team was getting frustrated and started using their size and strength more to their advantage. A particularly hard check on Smyth resulted in a powerplay for the women. However, the Warwick team was putting on a lot of pressure and not having practiced their powerplay much the team struggled to keep possession of the puck. During a break away Warwick scored a goal to make it 5-1. This did not stop the girls who went on to score another goal less than a minute later making it 6-1. This was the fourth goal of the game for Lawrence and it was assisted by HyunSeo Park. Before the end of the period Warwick managed to score another goal leaving the score 6-2 at the intermission.

The third period was tough for the girls. The short bench meant players were getting tired, struggling more to get the puck out of the defensive zone and to keep the players out of the slot. Warwick scored three goals leaving the score 6-5 halfway through the period. The girls were still working hard but were tired and lacked the strength to keep the men away from their goal. Luckily goaltender Koch was holding her ground and when an unfortunate Warwick player fell over in her crease he earned himself a good beating. Some of the skaters also played very physical and Lawrence got herself a penalty for checking from behind. Soon after she joined the team back on the ice, the Warwick team got a 2 minute penalty. Oxford coach James Buchanan Smith took this opportunity to call a time out to give the girls some extra rest and instructions to score a goal during the following power play. The girls did what they were told and after just over a minute of power play Fitzgerald scored her second goal of the night assisted by Cato. Warwick soon answered with another goal  leaving the score 7-6 with 5 minutes left of the game. During the last minutes of the game the girls worked hard to keep their defense solid. The last goal of the game was scored by Canadian Lisa Choi with a nice top corner shot that pinged as it hit the backbar of the net.

Player of the game for Oxford was awarded to Jenn Lawrence after an impressive 5 points, leaving her top scorer of the league. Park earned MV Piggy for skating hard throughout her first ever hockey game. Overall it was a great performance by the team. Now some more training and well deserved rest is waiting before the double header in the coming weekend.

Men’s Ice Hockey (OUIHC) regains Blues Status

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Vincent's Club - plaque

Men’s Ice Hockey (OUIHC) regains  Blues Status

The Oxford University Ice Hockey Club are proud to announce the reinstatement of Blues status to the men’s team at the Vincent’s Club. The club have re-entered the men’s team into the top university league (BUIHA Division 1) as the Oxford University Blues.

Roughly 18 months ago, the outcome of the longest meeting in the history of the Oxford Men’s Blue Committee, was a loss of Blues status for men’s ice hockey after the Men’s Blues players resigned from the OUIHC. The subsequent formation of the Oxford Ice Hockey Trust by these players and the disaffiliation from the University resulted in failure to reinstate Blues status as they were not recognised as a University team – unanimously agreed on by all Blues captains at the Men’s Blues Committee meeting. The Oxford Ice Hockey Trust now operates under the control of the remaining individuals from 2012 and their team, the Oxford Blues, does not have affiliation with the University, the Sports Federation or the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club.

The revival of the Men’s Blues team over the summer of 2014 has paved the way to recognition from the Men’s Blues Committee as a bona fide Blues team capable of awarding Blues to matriculated students who play the recognised Varsity Match against the Cambridge Blues. The attainment of Blues by male ice hockey players dates back to the acquisition of Blues status in 1933 but despite 79 years of hockey history since this date, no Blues have been awarded since the 2012 season when Oxford beat Cambridge 17-1 on home ice. The club and sport at the University boasts a distinguished list of Blues athletes and alumni that includes Clarence Campbell and Lester B. Pearson (former Prime Minister of Canada).

Given the high turnover of student athletes in university sport, the current men of the OUIHC have yet to earn their Blues, or even play a recognised Varsity Match, something that up until the 2014 season has not been possible. With the opportunity presented, this may well lead to an official Blues Varsity to be played between these two historic institutions and in any case is another chapter in the history of the sport that dates back to 1885.

Oxford University (Ice Hockey) Club reform Men’s Blues team

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Oxford University (Ice Hockey) Club reform Men’s Blues team

It has been two seasons since the split of the men’s Blues players from the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club (OUIHC), players that made up a team that formerly held Blues status with the Men’s Blues Committee as well as registration with the University Sports Federation. Since the disaffiliation of the top men’s team, the second team, the Oxford Vikings, took up the mantle as the sole University men’s ice hockey team. However, due the extraordinary success of the Vikings in the 2013-14 season, the Club decided to re-form the Blues team, the “Oxford University Blues”, and enter them back into the top tier of university ice hockey.

Since the start of the season, the revived Men’s Blues team have had their fair share of ups and downs. One such obstacle has been competition for recruitment with the Oxford Ice Hockey Trust, a charity and team established since the split and run by the players who orchestrated the breakaway from the University club. This team does not represent the University of Oxford and cannot earn Oxford Blues, instead they are governed by a chairman and have no affiliation to the University.

The current Men’s Blues team, jointly with the Women’s Blues team and our talented hockey neighbours from Brookes University, collectively known as the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club, strive to create and promote a fun, integrated, and inclusive community that is in keeping with values that initiated the formation of the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club in 1921 when Englishmen and Rhodes scholars united to form a joint club.

Through the club and respective Blues teams, new players have an opportunity earn a coveted Oxford Blue, the highest sporting accolade that Oxford awards to it’s student-athletes and gain admission to Vincent’s Club. Such Oxford sporting alumni include Olympians Sir Matthew Pinsent, Sir Roger Bannister and specific to hockey – Lester B. Pearson and Clarence Campbell.

The Oxford University Blues hope to continue the success of ice hockey at Oxford that the club has enjoyed since it’s golden era in the 1920’s-30’s with the hope of re-instating an official Blues Ice Hockey Varsity Match that has not been played since 2012.

Men’s Blues team reformed

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After the players of the 2013 Men’s Blues left the OUIHC, there has been no Men’s Blues team in the OUIHC. This changed in the lead up to the 2014-15 season when the remaining male Oxford University students decided to reinstate a Men’s Blues team the purpose of playing the Varsity Match against Cambridge and to earn Blues as the alumni of the OUIHC have done.

Blues players resign from OUIHC

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In November 2012 fifteen players from the Men’s Blues team resigned from the University Sports Federation and the OUIHC, fully aware that they were leaving the history of the club behind. In October 2013, a new team independent of the University was formed – The Oxford Blues Varsity Ice Hockey Team, governed by a charity also established in that year – the Oxford Ice Hockey Trust. The OUIHC, a registered club with the Sports Federation and the University since 1921, remained after the split and consisted of a small number of Oxford University men’s players as well as two teams: the Women’s Blues and the Oxford Vikings (the men’s second team). The OUIHC remains the only University affiliated ice hockey club and the only club to allow students the opportunity to earn Blues in the Varsity Ice Hockey Match.

OUWIHC – women’s team under OUIHC banner – drops ‘W’ in favour of OUIHC unity.

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Oxford University Women’s Ice Hockey Club (OUWIHC), a team name underneath the banner Oxford University Ice Hockey Clubs (OUIHC), was disbanded in order to promote unity of all teams under the Oxford University Ice Hockey Clubs banner – a single club, with three teams, registered with the Oxford University Sports Federation. The Oxford Women’s Blues have not identified with OUWIHC since 2011 and the constitutional disbandment was passed in 2012. Today the Women’s Blues continue to be a team under the OUIHC banner as it has done since 2007. | OUIHC ©