The Wightlink Raiders are an ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 team based in Ryde

Ryde

Ryde is a British seaside town, civil parish and the most populous town and urban area on the Isle of Wight, with a population of approximately 30,000. It is situated on the north-east coast. The town grew in size as a seaside resort following the joining of the villages of Upper Ryde and Lower...

 on the Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. They are sponsored by Wightlink

Wightlink

Wightlink is a ferry company operating routes between Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in southern England.Their core routes are car ferries from Lymington to Yarmouth and Portsmouth to Fishbourne...

 and play in the third-tier English National Ice Hockey League

English National Ice Hockey League

The English National Ice Hockey League is an amateur ice hockey league below the English Premier Ice Hockey League which is administered by the English Ice Hockey Association. It is split into two conferences, north and south...

 (ENIHL). The team are known for their small ice rink

Ice rink

An ice rink is a frozen body of water and/or hardened chemicals where people can skate or play winter sports. Besides recreational ice skating, some of its uses include ice hockey, figure skating and curling as well as exhibitions, contests and ice shows...

, which has in the past barred them from competing at a higher level.

History

Originally called the Solent Vikings, the team changed to their current name a year later. Although they were known as the Isle of Wight Raiders between 1999 and 2003 when Wightlink withdrew sponsorship, before the company re-joined the club in 2004. They are still the only club to be formally known with their sponsor in their name. Due to the clubs location on the Isle of Wight the team would struggle to survive without Wightlink's support.

In the 1990s, they dominated the English National League (now called the English Premier League), winning the league a record five straight years, including winning the league's cup competition during that time as well.

Team Roster

Management

Coaching Staff

Goaltenders (No longer with club)

Defencemen

Forwards (Non EIHA Trained) (Non EIHA Trained) (Also plays Defence)

Former players

Matthew Brennen GB
Anthony Standing CAN
Daniel Sweeney CAN
Gareth Phillips CAN
Martin Jenneway GB
Ivor Ambridge GB
David Standing CAN
Nicholas Rothwell CAN
Craig Wynn GB
Anthony Etienne Blaize GB
Don Breau CAN
David Wilson GB
David Cannon CAN
Peter Nyman SWE
Tobias Holmqvist SWE
Andreas Ost SWE
Joachim Jonsson SWE
Jonas Andersson SWE
Johan Larrsson-Halleberg SWE
Jani Saartamaa FIN
Mark Wallace GB
Darren Wallace GB
Matthew Causen GB
Matthew Paynter GB
Victor Somfaleanu ROM
Johan Jonsson SWE
Derry Goodburn NZ
David Hadath CAN
Jamie Nagle CAN
Peter Cooper CAN
Bene Acquah GB
Matthew Wynn GB
Norman Pinnington GB
Mel Grundy GB
Daniel Giden SWE
Juraj Rusic SVK
Tolrik van der Het dol Timmerman ZIM
Andrew Johnston GB
Jamie Thompson GB
Drew Chapman GB
Gareth Endicott GB
Alan Armour GB

External links

• Raiders - Official Site of the Wightlink Raiders
• Vectis Tigers
  Vectis Tigers
  The Wightlink Tigers are an amateur English ice hockey team from the Isle of Wight, they are currently in pool A of the southern conference of the ENIHL. Although no promotion or relegation system exists between the leagues , the ENIHL is seen as the third tier of English ice hockey...
  
  - The Isle of Wight's ENIHL Team, the Vectis Tigers