450Crosstown rivals the West Auckland Admirals and Botany Swarm met over the weekend in their first of two matchups this season.
Game one on Saturday night at Paradice Avondale saw the Botany Swarm start off with a dominant performance, keeping the West Auckland Admirals to zero shots on goal for the first 6 minutes of the game. Ondrej Kozak, assisted by Thuler and Attwell, struck first scoring at 13:54 in the first period to give the Botany Swarm a 1-0 lead.
The second period resulted in only penalties being added to the stats sheet, with four from the West Auckland Admirals and one from the Botany Swarm.
The third period however saw the West Auckland Admirals bring things back to an even game, with Fraser Ellis scoring on a powerplay at 3:12, assisted by Challis and Daigle. The West Auckland Admirals then extended their lead with a second powerplay goal at 9:37 in the period, which would be the last goal of the game, ending in a 2-1 victory for the West Auckland Admirals.
Down 1-0 to rivals Botany Swarm, the West Auckland Admirals' powerplay took over in the third period to win last night’s home opener ⚓️
Posted by Puck Yeah on Saturday, May 22, 2021
Game two saw the Botany Swarm host the West Auckland Admirals at The Hive, Paradice Botany, where a special tribute was held was held for Botany Swarm player Michael Attwell, celebrating his 150th NZIHL game.
The scorekeepers were kept busy from puck drop, with the first goal scored by Justin Daigle at 0:20 in the first period, assisted by Challis and Henderson. This was followed by a second goal to the West Auckland Admirals at 14:36, awarded to George Coslett and assisted by Daigle. The Botany Swarm added their names to the scoresheet at 15:33, with Michael Attwell scoring an unassisted goal on powerplay.
1️⃣5️⃣0️⃣ NZIHL games! An iconic moment at The Hive for Michael Attwell.🎥: Botany Swarm
Posted by Puck Yeah on Sunday, May 23, 2021
The second period saw the West Auckland Admirals extend their lead to 3-1 with an unassisted powerplay goal by Fraser Ellis, in what would be the only goal scored in the period.
The third period was an intense mix of goals scored and penalties served, with Jordan Challis, assisted by Henderson & Ellis and later Dylan Dickson, assisted by Coslett, adding two more goals to the West Auckland Admirals tally. The Botany Swarm took advantage of a powerplay, with Alexsander Polozov scoring, assisted by Kozak and Attwell. The final goal of the night however would be awarded the West Auckland Admirals, scoring a shorthanded empty net goal with just 31 seconds to go in the period.
Final score of game two 6:2 to the West Auckland Admirals.