Sydney Draws its Battle Lines

The Australian Ice Hockey League’s (AIHL) Sydney derby – known as the Sydney Battle – is set to have a little extra spice this season, as both the Sydney Bears and Sydney Ice Dogs will call the recently refurbished Macquarie Ice Rink home in 2017.

Both sides are fired up heading into this weekend’s season opener for Sydney, and fans can expect a face paced, high impact game when players hit ice on Saturday night at 5pm.

 “In terms of a turf war, it’s never been more real than it is now, said Ice Dogs Captain Scott Stephenson

“The Sydney Battle really brings out the competitive spirit and I know we’ll both teams will be pushing hard to stake out a claim on the Macquarie Rink.”

The Ice Dogs are excited about the move to the larger metro Ice Rink, while for the Bears, the move to Macquarie is a homecoming of sorts, who originally launched as the Macquarie Bears in 1982.

Last season the teams met four times, sharing competition points with a pair wins each. The Ice Dogs however managed to outscore the Bears 17 – 14, to claim a + 3-goal differential on the season.

“I wouldn’t say any team has an edge in this league,” stated Stephenson.

“Every year is a fresh start, and to be honest, last year we were only a few points behind the Bears in the standings.”

The Bears know the importance of starting the season on the right foot: their open night line-up will be bolstered by returned Australian representative players Brian Funes, Richard Tesarik, Cameron Todd and goalie Anthony Kimlin, who was named goalie of the tournament at the IIHF World Championships (DIV II Group A).

“We’re going to be a physical team, said Sydney Bears Captain Michael Schlamp.

“We’ve got our Australian representatives back, and being the first home game at the new rink we want to send a message to the Ice Dogs and start the season on a high note”.

Schlamp who is entering his eighth season as the Bears captain and knows this year’s Sydney Battle is going to take the cross-town rivalry to the next level.

“It’s always a big rivalry no matter where we play, but the Sydney Battle is going to be bigger this year, he continued.

 “They (the Ice Dogs) are always a tough team to play, they’re tough and physical, but we want come out and dominate and make Macquarie our home.”

Get into game using #SydneyBattle

Fans can catch all the action of the Sydney Battle at the Macquarie Ice Rink this Saturday night from 5PM. Children’s tickets start from the $10, Adults from $20. Buy your tickets online to avoid lining up at the gate.