Features

The plans for the new ice rink in Altrincham have created a buzz amongst the hockey fans of Manchester, and the Phoenix faithful are eagerly awaiting further news from the Club Office.  Richard Allan caught up with Andy Costigan to find out what's been going on behind the scenes with the club and the team.
 
Richard Allan:

Andy Costigan:

Personally, I greeted the response from the fans to the rink in a very positive frame of mind. After all, it's been a tad longer than any of us hoped it would be in coming, it would have been very easy for some fans to drift away thinking the new rink was merely a pipe-dream. Of course, the capacity is a little less than we first intended and one or two have commented (negatively) on that but, the way I look at it is this - a rink that will hold around 24-2500 with a mix of seating and standing is 100% better than no rink at all. Hey, we're getting ice back and that means we can get hockey back - let's applaud the massive effort that's gone into it.

 

AC:  Funny you should mention the other Elite League members as only this week I attended the Board Meeting to give them a progress report on behalf of Neil, and to a man, the other clubs are delighted that we're on the way back. I got the impression that rather than just wanting another club to increase the numbers, they genuinely want to see a Manchester team in the mix.

AC:  Ha ha, shouldn't laugh really should I? I guess at times, it appears we've been positively comatose with so little to announce but, that's been the nature of the way things have gone. It has been quiet but far from dormant. Last season, I took the opportunity (if that's the right world to use) to take some time off from actually watching hockey on a twice or three times a week regimen. Before the start of the season, I said I'd probably take in one game a week to keep an eye on things so to speak but, in the event I didn't. I did watch a few league games and of course the playoff weekend was a great three days with superb hockey. In between times, my biggest hockey event last season was going to Moscow for the Igor Larionov Farewell game in Luzhniki and renewing my contact with one of the greatest players of all time - in my opinion. Hockey has been good to me - I've met him on a number of occasions and I was thrilled to get the invite to go to Moscow for what was an emotional night. But, back to Phoenix things... and my biggest effort whilst we've not been playing has been to keep in touch with people. I've kept dialogue going with a number of player agents, I've kept dialogue going with a number of other people who have helped us in the past and... I've spent hours trawling the 'net keeping tabs on certain players. Only the other night, a player we looked very hard at two years ago popped up on TV - trouble was, he's now playing in the NHL whereas two years ago, he was almost coming to Manchester. At least it proved we were looking at the right kind of guy! (laughs ironically)

 

AC:  Yes, and on a number of fronts. The 'phones have gotten busier as people ring up to ask about seats, tickets et cetera et cetera, and of course, we're now looking to re-establish and, in areas, re-build the structure of the club. Team matters I've no doubt we'll come to soon, but together, Neil, Mark and myself have looked at some re-structuring to bring true definition to areas within the club. The club is the overseeing body - the team is the clubs manifestation on the ice so to speak and there are differences between the two that we all felt we needed to address and the catalyst to making those changes and improvements was the publishing and announcement of the rink plans.

 

AC:  As they say is CB circles, that's a big 10-4 good buddy (laughs). To be fair, we've had a fairly constant trickle of players contacting us right throughout the year. A lot have been foreign players who might not be eligible to come and play in the UK, and we've advised them of the actual status or level they need to be at for us to consider them in the future... and we've had contact from players for whom there would not be a problem. Most of these are younger players looking to get on the ladder so to speak rather than experienced pros but, the numbers are encouraging. Once we get the building under construction, then the emphasis will undoubtedly shift to more seasoned and experienced players. As for coaches, again, the answer is a positive one. Even though we haven't yet formally advertised the position of Head Coach, hockey is a tight-knit community and the word goes around and yes, we've been contacted... and we have researched those interested parties already. 

 

AC:  I knew you would ask that question and I'd dearly like to answer it but, I hope you and the fans will understand, I need to keep my powder dry. Like I said, we've not yet formally advertised the position and that could bring even better candidates to the table than we have interest from so far. But, I know you'd like some indication so I'll try... we've had contact from a couple of players recently retired from playing looking to get into coaching, and we've had contact from three experienced guys. I recently spoke to another coach who I know is looking for a position for next season, but he is at advanced stages of negotiation with a club elsewhere for next season. There is no great urgency to appoint a Head Coach - what Neil has asked/tasked me to do is find candidates, research them, make the initial contact and then we'll draw up a shortlist for interview purposes. I can confirm that is proceeding, and proceeding well, and our formal advert will go out shortly.

 

 

AC:  First of all, it's very important to an area the size of and population of Greater Manchester to have an ice rink for public skating, recreational purposes and specific ice sports. The big arena venues are terrific in terms of appearance and potential numbers of fans they can accommodate, but the simple fact for all arena venues is that their bread and butter is concert dates and not ice hockey. The likes of the MEN can sell out Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, The Eagles et cetera till the cows come home - hockey, regrettably, can't. We needed a facility that to all intents and purposes is ours - a facility where we can determine much better what dates and times we want and/or need for hosting games and holding training sessions. Even in the Ogden days in Manchester, the Storm trained in Blackburn because ice time wasn't always available at the Nynex as it was then. For the Phoenix to have a true home was essential for the future viability of the club and the success of the sport in this area.

 

AC:  Another positive answer - the numbers of youngsters registering an interest in ice hockey is superb. We are very, very keen to introduce a structured Junior Development programme as we want to produce future generations of Phoenix players from our own community. This emphasis on the future will actually form part of the job description for the new Head Coach of the Phoenix and those coaching candidates we've already contacted are fully aware of that expectation. This club will not purely operate a senior team predominated by imported players. We will operate the senior team within the current and future guidelines of the league where the import element is concerned in order to be competitive but, the long-term goal is for a ladder of teams to enable local talent to progress up to the Elite League team...and beyond!!!

AC:  I'm not (personally) aware of direct contact with the figure skating community or any other ice sports body, but I am sure that the new facility will work hard to assist all other ice sports to flourish in the future. Like I said before - for an area the size of Greater Manchester not to have had an ice facility available to the public for the past 2 or 3 years is nuts. My guess is the new rink will be like the proverbial honeypot to bees for all ice sports enthusiasts... and that will be fantastic for not only those sports but, for the community at large. The rink will become an integral part of the recreational and leisure calendar.

AC:  It's a bit difficult to predict when the next big news will come, or indeed the next small news (laughs) - what I would say to all the fans of the Phoenix and people interested in the development of the rink itself is... keep your eyes on the Phoenix website, as news will appear here as quickly as we can publish it. I know that some fans get upset when they see articles in the newspapers that precede the website by a few minutes but, we have to work with the media in order to sustain their long term interest and support. And should the media choose to write material that we haven't specifically leaked or fed them, then that is their prerogative.

AC:  At this moment in time, we are considering interest from a number of parties for the position of Head Coach and we will consider all applications on their respective merits. I have had brief contact with Paul since his departure from Sheffield but, at this moment in time it would be wrong to suggest Paul is coming back - if Paul wishes to be considered then I am sure he will throw his hat in ring accordingly.

 

AC:  Yes there are. I've been to some games and there are players who have caught my eye but ultimately the recruitment of players to the Phoenix Elite League roster will be the sole responsibility of the Head Coach. I will offer my opinion on certain parties and we will endeavour to provide the coach with video to watch - if the person hasn't seen any Elite League hockey this season - but, our new Head Coach will be given total freedom to recruit the bunch of players he wants to work with... specifically and especially where those players need/have to be recruited from abroad.

I'd like to add a bit more Richard if I may... Since the announcement about the rink, we have been a lot busier and things are progressing well. I know people are hungry for news and I promise you, we will hold nothing back... when the time is right to announce things, rest assured we will do. From my area of responsibility, the search for and researching of coaching candidates has heated up considerably. I have my own views on certain aspects and I've asked for and taken a lot of advice from people - vastly more experienced than myself - as to what direction we should consider proceeding in. Over the years, I have made a lot of very useful contacts and my international 'phone bill is running amock at present (laughs). To try to give some indication... in the past month, I have sought the opinion/advice/suggestion - however you wish to term it - of two general managers in the East Coast, a club director in the AHL, numerous contacts in Europe and North America, and an NHL scout who I met a couple of years ago on holiday. Those 'phone calls and numerous e-mails I hope will help me draw up a shortlist of coaching candidates from which we will select the right person to coach not only the senior Phoenix team for season 2006/07 but to implement and oversee a progressive development programme for the future.

Keep the faith - we're on our way back !!!