Cardiff Canucks 2 – 3 Oxford Rising Stars
Match report by Ian Dibley
Cardiff Canucks vs Oxford Rising Stars
Sunday 17th November 2024
Oxford Rising Stars travelled in buoyant mood looking to replicate their home form in an away game. Stars were without Joe Edwards, who the previous week had created 5 of the Stars goals, but this gave opportunity to Under 18 players Alfie Wilks and Charles Gaskin. The teams had been pretty evenly matched in the reverse fixture, some 6 weeks earlier, and so it continued. Play was end to end until Oxford broke the deadlock when Ed Crotty netted after good work from Ciaran Wilson, in the 14th minute. This was to be only goal of the first period.
The 2nd period saw an early penalty on the home side, which despite all of their efforts, the visitors were unable to take advantage of. Further penalties disturbed the flow of the game, until in the 34th minute the home side equalised through Noah Betts, with the assists going to Lewis Hallewell and Dan Bird. With less than a minute to go in the period Charlie Cameron-Reid skated away with the puck down the right side of the ice and unleashed a wrist shot, from the bottom of the circle past netminder Morgan Garside. The assists going to Theo Bundock and Huw Eden-Parish.
Into the 3rd period and a two-minute penalty on, the home sides, Giovanni Raffaelli was to prove to be pivotal in the game as Stars increased their lead when Bundock scored on the powerplay, assisted by Crotty and Wilson. The home side, came back at Oxford and with just over 10 minutes remaining reduced the deficit to one goal when Hallewell netted this time with the assists going to Betts and Bird. Cardiff dominated the play, but were unable to find a way past Stars netminder Charlie Hanley and his defence.