Last week we brought you an exclusive interview with Fife Flyers netminder Blair Daly, here is the final part of that exclusive interview.
When asked about how the team morale is in the dressing room, Flyers have picked up 4 points in their opening 11 league and challenge cup games, Blair was positive about the spirit in the team.
“We may not have a lot of points under our belts at the moment, but we have put in some good performances. We played a great match last week against Cardiff, playing very will, but unfortunately weren’t able to capitalise on such a good performance taking a silly penalty late on, that probably cost us the game.
“The loss to Edinburgh was particularly hard to swallow as it came off the back of such a positive performance against Cardiff. We were all prepared for the game on Sunday, but for some reason, it went all wrong, and we were once again heavily outshot. Everyone was down after that, the changing room was silent and there was a lot of soul searching going on. But we have to put it behind us and get back to normal. Todd has spoken to the players and he has made it absolutely clear that that level of performance is completely unacceptable, not only from his point of view but from the view of our fantastic fans. They shouldn’t have had to witness that performance. There were major roadworks that our fans would have sat through to get to the game last week, paid their hard earned money and they would have left disappointed with the performance they witnessed.”
With Blair being based in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh, he has had the opportunity within the last week to show Matt Siddall, Mike Hamilton, Matt Cohen, Danny Stewart Garrett Zemlak and Aigars Brencis some of the sites. “Being based in Edinburgh, I had the opportunity to bring some of the guys over and show them some of the tourist sites and sample some of the restaurants in the Scottish capital. We have also had a few team nights out, so that we could get to know one another better. Todd has been able to help the guys settle in Fife, as he was once in their position too, and the team is bonding really well.”
With such positive team spirit in the camp Blair shared who’s the biggest character in the changing room.
“Sidds! He is a bit of a joker. He has everyone laughing, he’s such a great character on and off the ice! Just some of the things he comes out with have us all laughing.”
Making the step up to the Elite Ice Hockey League also brings the chance for all of the team to watch new players they may not have seen before, so are there any other netminders that have caught Blair’s eye?
“It is hard to say. There is no-one that has really stood out for me, yet, because we haven’t had many shots on goal so it has been hard to judge the other netminders. Stephen Murphy though, is always someone who has stood out, his stats have always been impressive and I am sure they will be as equally impressive this year too.
“As for imports, well our own imports are up there with the best. Matt [Siddall] is a guy who plays with major intensity and he is a good guy to have on the team. Mike [Hamilton] has great skill, and Danny brings a lot to the team with his experience. Matt [Cohen] has to be one of the best positional D-men I have ever seen play.
“Benoit Doucet for Belfast also looks a really great player, as does Jon Pelle, he put up great numbers last season for Cardiff and once he gets back on the ice he will be a real danger. David Clarke at Nottingham is always very dangerous in front of the net too.
“Belfast, I think, will be the team to beat this year. They have had a couple of guys out injured but they have been able to run with 12 imports to cover those injuries. It was hard to judge Sheffield because when we played them they were carrying a few injuries.”
With Flyers having played 11 games, Blair has found himself featuring in 7 of those games and been in very impressive form, with many fans calling for him to be called up to Team GB.
“For me, I am just going to take each game as it comes, and this is just my first season in the top level, we’ll see how things work out at the end of the season. I would like to have made the starting position my own over the next few seasons. I wasn’t even expecting to play as many games as I have already this season, but I am a bit behind with top level experience compared to some of the other guys because I made the decision to stay and play at Fife instead of going to another team. I have been asked a few times over the past few seasons to join some EIHL teams, but for me Fife is the place I want to be playing my hockey. The people associated with this club make it a really special place to be; the management, the staff, the fans – they all make this a brilliant club to be a part of.
“Nobody could ask for better fans than we have at Fife.”
Fife Flyers are on the road this weekend with Flyers visiting Braehead Clan on Saturday (7pm face-off) and visit Edinburgh Capitals on Sunday (6pm face-off).
Part 1 of our exclusive chat with Blair can be found here.
