Six Nations 10 Peterborough 9

ARROWS FINISHING KICK SAVES THE DAY

by thistles forever

PETERBOROUGH - This one was a Peterborough special. No team is better at convincingly earning a win then giving it away on the last lap. Doesn't matter if it's the 6th game of the '97 Semi Final against Whitby or Tuesday night versus Six Nations, the Lakers can outplay the best and still lose.

The Arrows looked like a team having made a long trip on a humid day. Without Jason Henhawk and the newcomers from Burlington the visitors were off their game. Yet they played like champions in the end and won 10-9. Winning was pretty well the only thing they did right the entire evening.

The first period held all the promise of a terrific night's entertainment. A frantic pace coupled with invisible referees made for an electric 20 minutes. Slight edge to the home side. They had a half step on the Arrows and it showed as they doubled Six Nations in shots 22-11. On the scoreboard the Lakers won the period 4-3. Great individual work from Raweras Mitchell(who needs to do up his chin strap) Roger Vyse and Chris White.

Not sure what happened during the intermission but the visitors didn't show up for the second session. Peterborough put them on their heels early with two more goals and kept them there, doubling them in shots again, this time 24-12. Yet this period would be the home team's downfall. They had the Arrows on the ropes but did not deliver the knockout punch. Kalen Bennett scored straight out of the penalty box to end the period 7-4 and keep Six Nations in striking distance.

Brad Self was the Lakers scoring hero and practically the only player who could beat Jake Henhawk. The big stars were the foot soldiers who continually outworked the Arrows. The likes of: Dustin Hunt, Brian Croswell, Josh Wasson, Ryan Creamers and Scott Eldridge all stood out. What hurt the Peterborough cause was their power play. Six Nations penalty killing owned them all game.

For 6 minutes into the third it still looked like a safe Laker win. The turning point came during a fight. As the main event concluded, Drew Bucktooth and Scott Evans went toe to toe. All that happened was Bucktooth grabbed Evans collar, while the Peterborough star mouthed away at him. Obviously neither wanted to fight and get thrown out. And they didn't fight - yet they still received game expulsions. Harding and Line had a good game much of the night but they letdown badly on this one. For nearly a minute both referees watched Bucktooth and Evans. They could easily have separated them but they just watched. Fortunately both players separated themselves. No punches were thrown. Still they both got tossed, deprieving fans of two of the games best performers.

The effect was far greater on Peterborough, a real psychological blow as the home side lost almost half its offence. Seconds after the game misconducts Delby Powless set up Roger Vyse and it was 8-6. The seige was on! There was a brief respite for Peterborough when Jamie McIntyre sent Brad Self away and he once again beat Henhawk. Vyse replied with 11 minutes remaining, making the home town supporters very nervous. Over the final 10 minutes their worst fears would be realised.

One Arrow who really picked up his game towards the end was Mark Anderson. At the 12 minute mark he went end to end and beat McIntyre through the legs. 9-8 as the Laker advantage continued to slip away.

A Six Nations power play led to much drama. McIntyre robbed Stew Montour on a break away. Next Vyse dinged one off the post. Self grabbed the rebound and went alone the other way but Henhawk denied him. Shortly after, self fed Dan Carey but the Arrows netminder came up big again.

Peterborough got some relief thanks to an undiscipline penalty by Vyse with 5 minutes remaining. However the Lakers lost possession after 20 seconds and the visitors held the ball the rest of the time. Peterborough's checkers backed off in their own end, rather than risk surrendering a shorthanded goal. The best laid plans of mice and men. As the penalty ended, Ken Bestard took a dumb slashing penalty, realising Coach Martin's second biggest fear. The visitors punished them. Raweras Mitchell took a rebound off the boards and tied the contest 9-9. On the following possession Powless scored the winner from outside.

Peterborough still had a couple of minutes left but momentum was totally against them. Russ Davis did give them hope by taking a penalty with 77 seconds remaining. A harmless outside shot from Self was the best threat the Lakers could manage. Shots in the last period favoured Six Nations 16-9. Christmas had come early for the Arrows. Meanwhile the dismayed Lakers limped off the floor shaking their heads.