It took me a while to realise during the game how shorthanded the Steelers side was.Having only 13 players must have made Blaisdale's job extremely difficult. I don't think 8.1 reflects the standard of play from the Steelers players that made it on to the ice.As one commentator has already mentioned it was Cavalin in goals who made the difference. Having read some of the other postings I am again worried for the future of ISL hockey which my wife and I have found to be a dream come true. The fiasco during the summer was completely new to me - the words self destruct came to mind - and to lose 2 good teams was a disaster. The only saving grace over here is that a majority of fans are unaware of what is happening in the background but I know they would be devastated if ISL hockey was lost in Belfast - there is no other game in town. I detect a certain tension between the BNL and ISL which I am sure is not good for the game in general. I hope I am wrong and the future proves to be rosy as we have enough dinosaurs here in the so-called Irish Football League who would gloat at the downfall of this 'imported and foreign sport'.They think Ice Hockey is dragging away their potential spectators - not so.From the standard of play I have seen in the Odyssey I can not see what is keeping attendance so low in your stadium. If fans only support when winning then they are not appreciating the game of Ice Hockey but just the glory of being winners. They will move onto another sport for their kicks. I apologise for my ignorance in this matter - its just my second year as a sports fans and 44th as a human being so I have a lot of time to make up for and I can't contemplate the demise of something I enjoy so passionately.

..as regards Steelers supporters only supporting when theyre doing well...thats a nice little one pushed forward by lots of other supporters..

The fact remains that a lot of our supporters are missing after the summers debacle...many supporters of other teams said that 'they'll be back, you watch' were wrong..and when they have visited the HOS and seen teh wide open spaces where the old guard (hard core support) used to sit (around 1500 is a popular estimate) then they have admitted to being wrong..

As for only supporting when we're on the up...nah mate..we've only had TWO duff seasons out of TEN so far..thats summat most steelers can live with...
thanks for your reasoned comments tho mate..makes a change from some of the sad childish stuff I've read tonight on other GB's...

Its allus a pleasure to go over the water mate..regardless of result...and its the likes of you lot that are the reason why...

scuff(Red Steeler)

shunters posting does show is that there are still some caring fans out there. All teams have them and it is because of that I believe ISL will survive. Maybe not in its present format but it will make it.

You may have only being watching the sport for a short period of time, but you talk a lot more sense than many who've been watching for years.

Last year I would have been devastated by an 8-1 loss, but this year I'm not really bothered. I still love the sport, but don't have the same passion for my team as I used to because of what happened during the summer. Still, I'll be there mid week and Saturday cheering the team on again....I may even wear my shirt to keep Scuff happy .

All the best and congratulations to Belfast this year....keep enjoying your hockey mate, it is the best sport in the world.

Regards

Doom

Those who know me, will call me a stay-away this season. It's because of all the sh*te at the end of last season and during the summer. We were shafted by the Steelers management and by the ISL, thats how I see it anyway. I had my first season ticket last season, went to countless away games including Belfast. I watched many games the season before when we were not winning many games, losing games from the jaws of victory in fact. The passion is gone for a lot of us, I don't really care if we win or lose now, I miss the game and go along for the entertainment of the sport and the craic with the other fans. Unfortunately others have stronger feelings than me regarding the shenanighans last year and have found other things to occupy their time.

"The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naive forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget." - Thomas Szasz