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Yeah but there’s a big difference between those teams, and a team which it takes ~$30K to put together for the season, which gets put forward as a prem team in our sport. No one’s going to keep doing that for ever, and we’re not just talking about the players.
It was another rough season for the team, everyone’s aware of that. They showed signs of how they could play – competitively – and signs of how they shouldn’t.
I should note, Stampede and Thunder do get together pre-season. That’s part of the point of the open grade moving to pre-season.
Dunedin players in the stampede just didnt work for the reason of travel, ie Dunedin had to travel to Queenstown and 6.5 hrs of travel for practice just aint practical. My opinion is when Dunedins kids (our peewees have been dominating for the last couple of years) come through is when we will see real consistancy at the top. It was never going to happen in the first 4 years unless there is rigourous recruiting done to bring in players from outside the area which requires incentives. Thunder has introduced a whole crop of players to a new level of competition otherwise unavailable and is helping to raise standards all round To drop the thunder after the first two years would be very shortsighted
"Kyle":27x1fa0y wrote:(Admirals lost the final in the first season Aaron)
[/quote:27x1fa0y]I didn’t say Admirals went a longtime before there FIRST win, I said long time without winning over the 2006-2008 seasons they had 20 games between wins.
The only thing dropping thunder would achieve for Southern would be to drop Thunder.
There were at most 3 players from Dunedin in the Stampede and most of them were on the 3rd or 4th line.Introducing the Thunder didn’t weaken Stampede, it just provided another avenue for Southern Players to compete. In saying that I think a close relationship with Stampede in a development programme would help. Perhaps running “combines” (they do this in the NFL) where the two teams travel to the other centres in Southern and run skills camps, to find and foster the other talent in the region. (not that this doesn’t happen already between thunder and stampede there were members of all clubs in the Southern Region. (Alex, Manitoto,Tekapo, Gore, Queenstown and Dunedin))
Having a even a local assistant coach who would be around for at least 2-3 years would help as well. Just to give some consistency, because it feels like we are starting again every year.
But honestly throw in 5 imports, and a good coach boom instant success.
Also realise that a lot of the other juniors in other regions will eventually end up at some sort of University, and odds are that uni will be Otago. So having a NZIHL team based in Dunedin is important. Just look at Rick Parry where would he have played if there was no Dunedin team.Also you can’t not have games in the magnificent facility
Also you can’t not have games in the magnificent facility
[/quote]Besides the fact that the thunder have the only dedicated changing room in the League so we need a team to use that.
Not any more! Apparently they got kicked out on Sunday night.
Back slumming with us mere mortals now!
"Kyle":d8v8braw wrote:Not any more! Apparently they got kicked out on Sunday night.[/quote:d8v8braw]How come?
I’ll need to make sure we have enough players to make me look good first. Any extras you can have. As the years go by though, its getting harder and harder to make me look good
"Ryan":lfd6xutb wrote:"Kyle":lfd6xutb wrote:Not any more! Apparently they got kicked out on Sunday night.[/quote:lfd6xutb]How come?
[/quote:lfd6xutb]Season’s finished? I dunno, I was not the one doing the kicking.
It was only during the season. We will be back next year……..
Also World winter games are using them?
Aaron your first comment with being young and what not is totally right. Look at the NHL. The Islanders were terrible when they first came into the league back in the mid to late 70’s. Then when the 80’s hit, they were the team to beat. What people don’t realize is that expansion teams take a lot of time to get up and running successfully. Nashville is another example. It took them about 6 years before they reached the playoffs in the NHL. Dunedin will be up there in the next few years. I can’t remember who made the comment about the pee-wees but if you look at that, it will be those guys in the league and it could very well happen. The trick will be keeping them in the sport (which is what Dunedin risked losing if they did not get the Thunder and there was a very good chance that a lot of our good players would move on and leave the sport). Anywho, be patient. The Thunder’s time will come.
"battered_and_bruised":3kxg09d9 wrote:The trick will be keeping them in the sport (which is what Dunedin risked losing if they did not get the Thunder and there was a very good chance that a lot of our good players would move on and leave the sport).
[/quote:3kxg09d9]It’s become increasingly apparent from my position that we don’t have good structures for players to bridge the gap from our U16s, which provides a fairly good platform for our up-and-coming players, to Thunder. Despite the fact that some players are having to make the leap (Tom and Reagan Wilson have done this this year) it’s not ideal. Some players are good enough to make that leap, there needs to be somewhere for the rest to go and stay in competitive hockey. Currently Southern, despite some good efforts this year, isn’t working for our U19s.
DIHA will be looking at two things to try and support Thunder in this. One will be a Dunedin Junior league. This possibly might be linked to high schools, or run separately. I’d argue it should be checking, but we’ll have to work through that. If we can get three teams up and running in that, then we’re providing a base for midgets to flow into when they get up to the right skill level, and we’re raising the vision of older youth hockey to a higher standard. Someone might come out of U16s and not be ready for Thunder, but a couple of years of work and they might.
The second will be a prem league, probably pre-NZIHL season. I’d suggest that we’d have enough players to have three solid contact teams, between Thunder, better juniors, a whole bunch of contact people that aren’t playing Thunder, and some SNC guys that have recently being trying to bridge the gap to contact hockey. Potentially there could be a 4th non-checking team for oldtimers, women etc (so each round there would be a non-checking game).
Talking to a couple of Thunder guys their squad will likely be providing some leadership for both these leagues – coaching the junior teams for example – and the club will be providing the structure into which the whole thing falls.
Actual decision-making and work on making this happen would begin over the summer.
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