Adam Wood won’t let the underdog tag faze him as Streatham Redskins look to beat Chelmsford Chieftains in the cup final on Easter weekend.
The Redskins overcame Invicta Dynamos, second in the league, 6-3 on aggregate in the semi-finals of the NIHL Cup last month.
But the south west London side face an even tougher test in the two-legged final against the league leaders.
Wood said: “Quite clearly they are favourites but obviously we want to win silverware this year and it would mean a lot for the fans.
“We beat Chelmsford quite recently with a few players missing and I think it’s going to be pretty good for the club.
“This is only my second season at Streatham but it would mean a big deal for a lot of the guys that have been there a lot longer, who haven’t won anything.”
Last season the Redskins came agonisingly close to reaching the final but fell just short against the Chieftains, losing on penalties.
Wood believes confidence can play a big role in their two legs, especially with a fully fit squad available again and key players returning.
He said: “We’ve got a full squad, which makes a huge difference.
“We don’t have guys out there too tired because we are short of numbers. Everyone is pretty much full health.
“These factors play a huge part. I think everyone is feeling pretty good about it.
“Confidence will definitely come into it because we’ve been on a pretty good run recently.
“So confidence is important, just realising that the teams are beatable and we have done it comfortably.”
The Redskins sit 19 points and three places behind leaders Chieftains after a mixed weekend in the league.
Redskins suffered a disappointing 6-1 loss away to Wightlink Raiders on Saturday, who are one place above them in third.
But they redeemed themselves on Sunday with a 5-4 win against seventh-placed Solent Devils, continuing their unbeaten home record coming back from 3-0 down.
The cup final will take place over two legs, with the first match being played at Streatham Arena on Saturday 26 March at 5:30pm and the second at Riverside Leisure Centre on Sunday 27 at 6:30pm.
Wood says coming out of the first leg at home with a victory is vital.
He said: “They are very strong in the rink, they are training there all the time, playing there all the time and it’s a smaller rink than ours.
“I think taking a fair lead into the away leg is crucial.
“However, anything can happen on the day and we didn’t expect the semi-finals to be quite as comfortable as it was.
“We have a lot of big game players that will step up when needed, so I think it will be an interesting weekend.”
Image courtesy of Rick Webb, with thanks
