Milton Keynes Storm Under 18s (Division 1 South) 4th January 2010
Basingstoke 1 v MK Storm 6
(0-0, 0-2, 1-4)

Milton Keynes Storm shrugged off their first defeat of the season with a committed and ultimately comfortable victory against title hopefuls Basingstoke. Milton Keynes dominated a scoreless first period with a series of prolonged assaults on the Basingstoke goal. The hosts defended efficiently and in depth, but although the period ended scoreless it seemed just a matter of time before they succumbed. Outshooting Basingstoke by 16 shots to 4 summed up MK supremacy.

MK kept their discipline after the break and soon gaps appeared in the home defence. Mboya drove through centre ice, and after quick interplay with Jacob Heron, Josh Nicklin (22:12) sailed unchallenged over the Basingstoke blueline to score. MK continued to threaten, and with Basingstoke restricted to occasional breaks out of defence, they rarely troubled MK's calm and unruffled defencemen. Constant pressure by MK proved too much for the hosts, and MK increased their lead when Connor Goode held the puck up well behind the Basingstoke goal, before releasing it to Jacob Heron (31:06), who smashed it home during the resulting goalmouth scramble. With the match firmly in their grasp, MK stepped off the gas, and when a penalty shot was foiled, they briefly lost their way, and Chris Gill finally had to earn his keep between the MK pipes.

MK looked equally lacklustre after the break, and more committed opposition might have made them pay, but when Nicklin drove determinedly through the heart of the Basingstoke defence, and his neat pass was fired home by Heron (48:25), the balance swung decisively in MK's favour. When Ross Green (54:46) hit the back of the net with a shot the speed of sound, Basingstoke visibly wilted. MK saw out the remainder of the match with a flourish. Nicklin (55:23) continued the rout with a neatly taken goal from an Andy Major pass. Although the hosts grabbed a consolation goal (57:04), MK had the last laugh with a fabulous Joe Day (59:38) finish to a surging drive and pass from Tom Mboya.