STEVE NELL: Reasons for optimism at halfway point (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

STEVE NELL: Reasons for optimism at halfway point

1:20pm Wednesday 23rd December 2009 in Steve Nell's Column

WE’VE had a week or so since our last game (a win at home to Bracknell) and we’re raring to go for our fixtures over Christmas.

We go to Basingstoke on Boxing Day and then have Romford back at the Link Centre on December 28 and I think we can be positive about the second half of the season.

The players put in three decent performances before our break.

Although we lost 3-1 at Slough and 4-2 at home to Sheffield, I think we could have won those two games and then we had the 5-2 home win against Bracknell.

There has never been a bad mood in the squad, even though it’s not easy when you are not winning games. But everybody is hoping for a better second half to the season.

We’ve made a few tweaks to things behind the scenes which hopefully will set us up well.

People have often said that Ryan (Aldridge, head coach) should get rid of certain players but it’s not that easy at this level of ice hockey.

These are the players we have got and it’s about getting on with it.

I’m confident – but not over-confident that we can get a couple of wins.

We’re capable of doing that against every team we play, but doing it for the whole 60 minutes is the key.