One Giant falls as GB Ice Hockey prepare for a date with destiny

From the five Belfast Giants players that have been selected for Team GB’s squad ahead of next month’s Olympic final qualifiers in Riga, Latvia, only four have made it.

With Mark Garside, Colin Shields, David Phillips and Craig Peacock all fit, Stephen Murphy will have to sit out through injury after having have been selected for the squad.  Assistant GB coach Doug Christiansen and equipment manager Jason Ellery will be the additional Giants involved.

GB will then travelled to Latvia on Wednesday ahead of the start of the four-team tournament and will face the hosts, as well as France and Kazakhstan.

So now Basingstoke Bison net minder a former Giants player, Stevie Lyle, will replace Stephen Murphy in the Great Britain squad for next week’s Olympic final qualifiers in, Latvia. Murphy picked up an injury in mid-January for the Stena Line Belfast Giants, but was given as long as possible to prove his fitness for the four-team tournament.

GB head coach Tony Hand said: “We knew it was always going to be touch and go with Stephen Murphy and sadly he has not made it. He is a tremendous net minder and is he really disappointed not to be going, but we have a fantastic replacement in Stevie Lyle. Stevie is in terrific form this season with Basingstoke and he is an experienced performer in major international tournament.”

“I always said we had a very strong squad and a very strong list of replacements. It speaks volumes of how good our British talent is at the moment in that we lose two players so close to the tournament, but are able to bring in two quality players to replace them.”

GB begins the four-team tournament in Riga with a game against the hosts Latvia on Thursday, before facing France (Friday) and Kazakhstan (Sunday). Good post tournament news as they (Team GB) picked up $100,000 support.

The British Olympic Association has succeeded in securing a $100,000 (U.S.) grant from the International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Solidarity World Programme to support Ice Hockey UK in its efforts to qualify a British men’s team for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

The BOA applied for the grant in 2012 and received word from the International Olympic Committee this week, coinciding with the start of the programme this month. The entire grant will be directed to Ice Hockey UK and will be utilized to help defray expenses associated with team training camps, travel for competition and other costs associated with the ongoing effort to qualify for the Games.

The grant from Olympic Solidarity is for a Team Sport Award and is designated specifically for team sports on the Olympic Winter Games program. Great Britain advanced to the final Olympic Qualification Tournament by winning an Olympic Pre-Qualification event in Nikko, Japan in November 2012.

Great Britain last made an appearance in the Olympic ice hockey tournament at the 1948 Olympic Winter Games in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Great Britain won the gold medal in ice hockey at the 1936 Olympic Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.

British Olympic Association Chief Executive Andy Hunt said: “Ice Hockey UK is attempting to accomplish something that hasn’t been done for more than 60 years, and we are delighted to support their efforts by securing this grant. Equally, we greatly appreciate the support of Olympic Solidarity in reviewing, and ultimately approving, our grant request.”

Ice Hockey UK Secretary General Andy French said: “Ice Hockey UK is overwhelmed with the support of the British Olympic Association and delighted with the International Olympic Committee in reviewing and approving the grant requested for ice hockey to support our efforts to qualify the Great Britain Men’s Team for the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi and, if we are successful in doing so, create some modern-day history for our sport in the UK.”

• Remember you can listen to all the action this weekend, along with plenty of other commentaries of sports we feature on UKAmericanSportsFans.com, by visiting bbc.co.uk/5livesportsextra, and ESPN are showing the first two games live, with the third and final game to be confirmed as live or delayed broadcast.