The 23-24 NIHL Season will be one to live long in the memory of everyone linked to the Swindon Wildcats. As we write this on the eve of our final playoff weekend with the Telford Tigers, any one of the four teams could make the Coventry weekend, but none have been through the journey the Wildcats have both on and off the ice this season.

After a summer of positivity with arrivals such as Josh Shaw from Bristol, Gael Lubwele from Basingstoke, Luc Johnson from Peterborough, and the highlight arrival; Glenn Billing also from the Peterborough Phantoms the expectations were high as the opening puck fell on a refurbished rink in the opening challenge game.

Expectations of trophies and finals swiftly turned into expectations to be skating again the following week. A devastating flood, the night after our final challenge game, literally washed away the ice and with it pushed the club into a period of uncertainty never seen before in Swindon.

As news of the temporary closure of the Link Centre spread around the town, the fanbase and the wider UK community the devastation would only just be realised. The team hunted around for training ice and memories of ‘training’ sessions with one netminder, one defenceman and five forwards proved a near weekly event. After positive conversations the fixture list was quickly altered, with double weekends on road being the new norm for the team. Sprinkled in-between these games were ‘home’ games in Milton Keynes, Cardiff, and Bristol.

Supporting the club would prove to be the number one target for the fans, be it through online raffle’s, kit sponsorship or a Supporters Club backed Go Fund Me the Wildcats soldiered on and when November came around the news the Link Centre would ‘open’ would be music to all ears.

We say ‘open’ because when the players returned to training and the fans were allowed back in the building, the changes both good and bad were there for all to see. Temporary flooring, generators filling up the car park and restrictions on rinkside availability were all put to one side. On the 16th December, the Wildcats were home and it really felt like our season was just starting.

A quick glance at the fixture list realised just how much hockey would be played at the Link Centre before 2024 rolled around, and amazingly the Wildcats had it in their own hands to qualify for the Cup Semi Finals. A team without a rink, both to play in or to practice on confirmed their qualification for the Semi-Finals where a February match up with the MK Lightning would lie in wait.

As we look back on the first half of the season, the undeniable bond of this group was clear to see. Through much adversity and unknown 20 hockey players continued to travel the country for a fanbase who through no fault of their own were unable to watch their team every Saturday night. We’re sometimes quick to criticise when things aren’t going well but sometimes it takes seasons like this to realise how lucky we are to be able to enjoy the game we all love each week on our doorstep.

The off-ice push to get the Wildcats home again from GLL, Swindon Borough Council, the Wildcats and everyone who helped almost felt like a trophy in itself when the Cats skated out again to take on the Sheffield Steeldogs, the team they should have been playing on opening night in September, not in December.

As well as the council, and the rink operators the way the NIHL came together and the other teams supported the Cats cannot be forgotten, it was a true collective effort. On top of this our sponsors rallied around the club too and without the efforts of all, who know where would have been.

A night that would live long in the memory thanks to a big win on home ice alongside a shiny new screen/scoreboard lighting up the arena. As the games arrive thick and fast the results kept coming for Aaron Nell and his team and before we all knew it, qualification for the Cup Semi-Finals were secured.

Going into 2024 the season became more normal in some aspects for the organisation but multiple double home weekends or triple header weekends saw the Cats continue to climb the NIHL table. Before the end of the season came around an agonising defeat in the semi-finals at the hands of the Lightning came around. A win at home before the game going to a crucial overtime period in Milton Keynes saw the Lightning advance and the Cats fall just short of what would have been an unprecedented final appearance from where they were in September.

When the curtain came down on the end of the season, the club finished third in the league and a team of hockey players had completed a brilliant season with a finish everyone in the town could be proud of.

Individually, there were milestones to be proud of Tomasz Malasinski with another 100 point season continuing to lead the line for the Wildcats with other 5 players (Glenn Billing, Aaron Nell, Gael Lubwele, Colby Tower and Chris Jones) all hit the 50 point mark.

From a youth perspective, Josh Shaw, Dylan Lipsey, Jamie Smith and Alfie Druett continued to impress night in night out with some big goals and moments along the course of the season and similarly between the pipes Renny Marr continued to show his worth with wins and shutouts, most memorably keeping the Leeds Knights out in February with a 1-0 win at the Link.

As we look back on the 23/24 season, British Hockey was tested beyond its means with the events it faced over the course of the season and Swindon, potentially against its wishes, played its part in that. They say that things happen for a reason, with the work completed on the Ice Rink the match night experience has grown massively and the rink feels busier than ever.

On a more personal note, the season will also be remembered as the one we said goodbye to a stalwart of Swindon hockey and an undeniable legend of the British game. Stevie Whitfield and Russ Cowley both step away from hockey this summer and they both epitomise the definition of playing for the badge and not the name on the back of their jersey. The commitment they’ve both shown the Wildcats has been incredible and they both deserve an almighty send off when it comes around. Go well both of you, we’ll dearly miss you.

Looking ahead to these Coventry playoffs, if the Wildcats skate out in a semi-final(which they did!) there will feel a sense of mission accomplished, especially considering our recent playoff successes, but when the dust settles after the playoffs the true accomplishment will be getting to this point. A season where the club and the fans have been bonded more than ever before, that’s the real winner.

Words by Ben Callaghan