WIDNES Wild got back to winning ways in the most dramatic of fashions with a 4-2 win over near neighbours Altrincham Aces at Silver Blades Widnes on Sunday.

The win saw them bring an end to their 3 game winless streak and saw them leapfrog the Aces into 4th place in the Laidler Conference league table.

Following on from a 3-3 draw away in Altrincham a week earlier, expectations were high and the Wild team was bolstered by the return of Czech import player Pavel Vales and robust defenceman Joseph Gilbert.

The opening period followed the same script as most of the Wild’s recent games with the Widnes side having most of the play, outshooting their opponents by some distance but somehow failing to find the back of the net. The Aces played their part well and went close to scoring on several occasions.

Towards the end of the period, the Wild got themselves into penalty trouble and played the last 3 minutes two players short. However, the defence held out and the period finished goalless.

The second period saw Altrincham racking up the penalties and it was during a 5 on 3 powerplay that player coach Ollie Barron fired in the first goal of the game to give the Wild the lead on 25 minutes.

The Widnes team were able to breathe a sigh of relief – albeit a very brief one as, within 2 minutes the Aces drew level and then - with a terrible sense of “déjà vu” for the Wild fans, actually took the lead with a second goal less than 90 seconds after that.

The various niggles that had persisted between the two local rival teams came to something of a head in the 33rd minute when Altrincham’s Joe Greaves unnecessarily ploughed into Wild netminder Greg Ruxton and was quickly admonished by Widnes defender Joe Gilbert. There were a few scuffles around the periphery and Gilbert and Greaves were both handed 2+2 minute penalties for fighting.

The referee also awarded the Aces a penalty shot – which is quite a rare occurrence in an ice hockey match – and with the score standing at 1-2 to Altrincham and Widnes looking far from convincing at that stage, things looked rather gloomy. However netminder Ruxton pulled off a great penalty save from the Ace’s former Wild player Tom Revesz to keep Widnes in with a chance in the latter stages. The rest of the second period was played without major incident and finished with the score still at 1-2.

The major turning point in this game, as it turned out, occurred in the 45th minute when Aces player Andy Dunn was given a “5+ game” penalty for spearing plus a further misconduct for abuse of an official. This meant that Altrincham had to play a man short for the duration of the 5 minute penalty and represented the Wild’s best chance of dragging themselves back into the game.

Sensing the importance of the moment, the Wild pushed forward peppering the Aces goal with shots.

Altrincham’s former EPL netminder Declan Ryan was particularly outstanding and the solid defence around him repelled attack after attack.

The clock ticked down on the Widnes powerplay opportunity and it looked as if the chance had been squandered.

But then, Pavel Vales made a clever play on the Aces blueline and the puck dropped to Ollie Barron, who fired in the equalising goal with just 3 seconds left on the penalty.

The rink erupted with joy and relief and the celebrations were even louder 60 seconds later when Danny Bullock raced down the ice and connected with a Ken Armstrong pass to double Widnes’ lead. However there were still 10 minutes left to play – and that one-goal lead looked very precarious.

The lead was still 3-2 as the game reached its final minute and, with the face off down in the Widnes defensive zone, the Aces took off their netminder to add another forward to their attack in the hope of forcing a late equaliser. The atmosphere was electric around the Widnes rink and the tension almost too much to bear.

The Wild defended the face off and Tom Ratcliffe surged forward hoping to score in the empty net at the other end and make the result safe for Widnes. Unfortunately, he was dispossessed of the puck

and the pressure was quickly brought back on the Widnes goal.

The clock seemed to be ticking down in slow motion at this time and Widnes called a time out with 36 seconds left to play.

The pressure cooker atmosphere intensified as play was restarted for the final time. Once again, the Wild defended the face off and pushed forward to clear their lines.

Pavel Vales made a forward pass to Will Barron who fired the puck into the empty net from the edge of the Aces blue zone to score with just 6.1 seconds left on the clock to make certain of victory.

The 4-2 win saw the Wild move ahead of Altrincham in the Laidler Conference. They are now in 4th place – 1 point behind Nottingham Lions who they play on Sunday in Nottingham.

After the game, player coach Oliver Barron said: “It was another tricky fixture - the Aces games are always a high tempo physical game to play in. We started off playing good hockey and killed a big 5 on 3 penalty to go in 0-0 at the first.”

We seem have an issue with 2nd periods at the minute and this is something we have to improve upon - we must play for the full 60 minutes. It was disappointing to go in at the end of the second 2-1 down and we must start converting our chances to goals in order to pick up vital points.”

The third period I made it clear that I wanted a response from everyone and I was delighted with the character and heart we showed to come back to win the game.

I saw a big improvement in every guy in the 3rd - every single one of them stood up and gave it their all. The crowd in the third period really did give us a lift. It is great to have such a loud fan base and, as ever, we appreciate all your support.”

Looking ahead to next Sunday’s game away against Nottingham Lions, Barron said:

“I am hoping we have now reached a turning point in our season. It’s fair to say that we have had some disappointing results but, as other results showed this weekend, this league is wide open. I said previously that I believe the top 5 teams will take points from each other over the course of the season.”

This weekend we face Nottingham which, again, will be another tight fixture. I am hoping for a few key players to return to squad for the trip to the National Ice Centre.”

Sunday’s match saw the 100th appearance in Widnes Wild colours for team captain Shaun Dippnall, Tom Jackson and Ken Armstrong. All three players were presented with a special award after the game.

The game also saw the first ever visit to Silver Blades Widnes of the Liverpool based “British American Sports Network” who produce the highly popular “Drop The Puck” NIHL ice hockey TV programme. Highlights from the Wild’s dramatic 4-2 win over Altrincham will be shown on the Made In Liverpool Freeview TV channel this Sunday at 10am. For anybody who is unable to receive the channel, the whole programme will be also available to view on YouTube from 11am on Sunday.

Widnes Wild may be away next weekend but there is still exciting ice hockey to watch at Silver Blades Widnes.

The Wild women’s team play Kingston Diamonds in the Women’s Premier League on Sunday 27th November. Face off is at 5.30pm and admission is free.