After its ice rink temporarily closed to provide crucial support during Covid, Deeside Dragons Ice Hockey Academy has returned to become one of North Wales’ best kept secrets.
With player numbers dwindling after its unexpected closure, the club’s future was in doubt. But thanks to National Lottery funding from Sport Wales, junior numbers are booming and a team for women and girls has been created.
It hasn’t always been smooth skating for the Dragons. In 2020, the Deeside ice rink was turned into a makeshift Covid hospital. And later a vaccination clinic. As the only ice rink in North Wales, there was nowhere for ice hockey players and skaters to participate.
But this is a story of a club reborn. When the Dragons finally stepped back onto home ice in December 2022, there were only ten remaining junior players.
With the help of former and current senior players volunteering as coaches, the club got back on its feet.
Not only has the club recovered, but it’s now got a bigger junior section than ever before. 115 boys and girls are training regularly. Word spread, the rink filled, and suddenly Deeside had juniors travelling from Lancashire, Manchester, Birmingham and further to take part.
“The Deeside Dragons have definitely achieved one of the biggest comebacks in ice hockey. And this has been powered by our amazing volunteers, a brilliant ice rink and the support we’ve had from the National Lottery and Sport Wales.”
Ice hockey can be expensive. Specialist kit and equipment can raise the costs before even stepping onto the ice. But with National Lottery funding via Sport Wales, the club were able to buy:
The funding has kept costs down for families. This has helped the Dragons to set up a girls’ team and get even more children playing hockey. Junior numbers at the club are at their highest ever level.
“Ice hockey can be an expensive sport, so the support from Sport Wales and the National Lottery funding has been crucial. The equipment has helped the whole junior academy and all the teams within it. It’s even enabled us to launch an under 16 girls’ team – something that wouldn’t have been possible without the backing."
Emma Pearson is a former player who started an under 16 girls’ team in 2023 and is Head Coach. Her husband Phil is a goalie for the senior team and an academy coach.
Although she isn’t a mum to daughters, Emma has always been passionate about women and girls in sport. Since the funding, there are more opportunities for girls and women to play ice hockey with the creation of the under 16s girls teams. And now, Emma is determined to set up a women’s side.
“Our younger girls in the Academy start off by playing mixed ice hockey with the boys, and the boys are all really supportive of the girls playing. But, as they get older, it gets difficult to play together because of the physical nature of the game. That’s why setting up an under 16 girls’ team has been so important. Next season, we hope to have a women’s team too so that there’s a full pathway for women and girls.”
The next generation of Dragons have their sights set on great things with the new girls’ team. Local talents like 11-year-old Eadie Amos, who first started on the ice as a figure skater, is thriving in the squad. 10-year-olds Violet Foster Noble and Savannah Morgan are also making the most of their opportunities in the team.
In their first season of playing in the league, the girls’ team was firmly seen as the underdogs. But they finished third, defeating well-established teams. This year, the girls are aiming to reach the playoffs.
The Deeside Dragons are proof of what can be achieved with National Lottery funding. From ten determined juniors to a thriving academy of more than 100, Deeside is carving out a legacy built on grit and love of the game. And you get the sense, this is just the beginning.
Want to create more opportunities at your sports club? Find out how National Lottery funding can help.