2010

JUNE

Steelers owner Bob Phillips last night assured 200 fans that a "little bit of a hiccup" , his description of the liquidation of the club's operating company, would not endanger their season ticket money. Speaking at a forum at Abbeydale Sports Club he said "The money is in safe hands." Phillips accepted there had been a 'mis-wording' on Steelers website that the money had been "ringfenced" from the liquidator, explaining the cash was in a Steelers " trust account" which could not be touched.

JULY

Steelers owner Bob Phillips has been stunned by the resignation of almost his entire staff. Co-founder Dave Simms, who has piloted the club since 1991, coach Dave Matsos and general manager Mike O'Connor have all refused to work with Phillips, following the liquidation of two operating companies running the club in the last five years. A joint statement read, "It is with sadness and regret that the management team of O'Connor, Matsos, and Simms have decided to resign from the club with immediate effect. They will be joined by office manager Betty Waring and promotions and marketing assistant Luke McDonald. O'Connor, Matsos and Simms advised Bob Phillips of their decision on Wednesday.

“I am leaving Sheffield very proud of what I have accomplished there,” Matsos said. “And I have no hard feelings for Bob Phillips, none whatsoever. He’s been great to me. I have had some great times and I am sad to be leaving. It is not a personal thing against anyone.

Sheffield Steelers is up for sale. Owner Bob Phillips has agreed to sell Steelers after weeks of criticism from fans, sponsors and creditors. A stumbling block may be how much Phillips wants for the club he bought for around £200,000 from Norton Lea , the former Chesterfield FC owner who may also fancy taking over again. Bob Phillips' decision to sell Sheffield Steelers will have put creditors of two of his failed companies on red alert. Phillips still owes an estimated £150,000 to creditors of his doomed South Yorkshire Ice Hockey Franchise Ltd in 2005.

Bob Phillips is blaming the management team that walked out on him of being guilty of incidents of poor administration and financial bungling. Bob Phillips, who is selling the club after two Steelers operating companies went into liquidation, last month promised hundreds of fans at a public forum in Abbeydale that their 2010/11 season ticket money was safely held in a "Trust account". But, last week, Phillips was forced to write to fans saying that 'volunteers' in the club office had now discovered that season ticket money HAD gone into YS by mistake and" against strict instructions". Cheques made out by fans to Sheffield Steelers had been banked by Yorkshire Sport(YS) trading as Sheffield Steelers he admitted "Sadly that money is now lost to the club forever."

Steelers owner Bob Phillips is turning to one time Cardiff Devils compatriot Troy Walkington as a possible new Sheffield coach. With Steve Munn turning him down this week, Phillips needs to find someone to run the 2010/11 team, and help him with some administrative tasks as he attempts to sell the club.

But later on Bob Phillips says he has taken the club off the market and also signed a new player coach. The Welshman says ex NHL centre Ben Simon will take over coaching reins from Dave Matsos. While The player has yet to sign a contract, Phillips said Simon was a "100 per cent certainty" to join up.

Owner Bob Phillips stepped down today. He said he was walking away from duties as non executive chairman and his wife Maraini would be general manager of the club. We have an outstanding player in Ben Simon coming in to take over as player/coach and a well respected explayer in Neil Abel running the bench, Ben has been in contact with most of the players and has been given their commitment to return.

AUGUST

Sheffield Steelers have yet to sign an agreement for ice time at the Arena for the season which starts with a home game in 34 days time. Recently, owner Bob Phillips admitted the club's relationship with their landlords was "not great". Dave Simms told nearly 200 fans at a forum in Dronfield this week that he had been "gutted" to quit alongside general manager Mike O'Connor and coach Dave Matsos, but he still felt it had been the right thing to do. Simms made a number of other public criticisms, but also went out of his way to persuade fans to continue to support the club. "Owners come and go, but fans should support the shirt. We, the fans, own the hockey club, not any one person. Ben Simon comes across well and has my support."

Ben Simon agreed to step up as player-coach and before his departure Matsos had signed the bulk of the side. However, Steve Munn returned after a year in Japan and perhaps the most important  signing was that of netminder Ervins Mustukovs.

OCTOBER

Sheffield Steelers owners say they have banked a £100,000 investment which will help secure the club to the end of the season. And Bob and Maraini Phillips claim further cash injections from the same source are available to them at any time. The announcement may go some way to allaying the fears of fans who have seen two Steelers operating companies liquidated in the past five years.

On the ice the Steelers, particularly Jonathan Philips, were dealt a massive blow with the long term loss of Philips due to a knee injury sustained during their defeat at home to Braehead. He would be out until January. Steelers proved many doubters wrong when challenged with a schedule that consisted of six games in eight days. Sheffield claimed four victories, with losses coming against Cardiff and Nottingham. To make matters worse, Sheffield have been majorly depleted through injuries to Mark Thomas (broken foot), Geoff Woolhouse (knee injury), and Jerramie Domish and Rob Globke just recently returning from injury, as well as the aforementioned Philips.

NOVEMBER

Steelers owners Bob and Maraini Phillips have vowed to defend themselves amidst a police investigation into their financial conduct. Police said they were investigating whether a personal debt had been paid by company money. Mr Phillips told the Star that he and his wife had "loaned hundred of thousands of pounds to this club over the years, any money we have used is our money." Asked specifically how much they have put into the club, he replied "£700,000, £800,000. I don't know, well in excess of half a million." The couple say they do not currently take a penny in salary out of the club.

In their 8-0 shutout of Newcastle Vipers, Rob Globke scored a record four shorthanded goals to help Steelers’ title challenge. Joey Talbot also helped with five that month just one in that Newcastle game. Steelers moved to within four points of league leaders and their opponents Giants with this huge win in the first of an Odyssey double between the two title challengers over the weekend.

DECEMBER

Bob Phillips controversial reign as owner of Sheffield Steelers is over, he is selling the club to Secret Millionaire Paul Regan for around £90.000. The 43 year old relative newcomer to hockey is owner of Elite League rivals Cardiff Devils, the club ironically which Phillips once owned. He told the Star "The club isn't worth anything as it is really. It is a loss making business because the crowds have dropped. But I am spending my money on the basic of what it will be, not what it is" he said. New Steelers owner Paul Regan was on the end of an acrimonious exchange of words as this team beat Nottingham Panthers 6-3 last night. The multi-millionaire businessman, who earlier had been barracked by Panthers fans when he introduced himself on ice to the near 6,000 Sheffield Arena crowd, had hit back by jokingly referring to them as a small club. But after the match, when he went to shake the hand of Nottingham official Gary Moran, he was met by loud criticism for making a "cheap shot" An embarrassing shouting match developed as newly installed PR Dave Simms sought to intervene.

Their good run continued into December and they were on a streak of three successive wins when they went to Nottingham after Boxing Day. Here a straight hat trick from Joey Talbot was enough to give the Steelers a double weekend win over their arch-rivals. However, the game was wide open until the final few moments when Talbot got the game winner and his hat trick and then the visitors found the empty net inside the last minute.

2011 

JANUARY

Steelers today unveiled another new owner and this one is made in Sheffield. Tony Smith boss of Eckington based Rhino Sports manufacturers has acquired a 15 per cent stake in Ring Corp, the company that holds the right of Steelers and Cardiff Devils.

Steelers new owner Paul Regan has no intention of adopting the one time club dream of a new rink in Rother Valley Country Park. But Regan had little intention on moving Steelers to any new rink there. He told the Star , "I knew nothing about it until the week before last. As far as I was aware, the Yes! Project is more likely the 'One day in a million years time project.'

Former Sheffield Steelers owner Bob Phillips has been declared bankrupt. The bankruptcy has come quickly Phillips, aged 58, was only served with the petition on Christmas Eve.

This successful month, on the ice, was marred only by the debacle against Cardiff at the Motorpoint. I witnessed, and walked out of, a totally inept display by Sheffield against a Cardiff side on a record breaking run. Sheffield capitulated to a 7-1 defeat which left people wondering “can a person really own two clubs without bias”. Nb: Paul Regan also owned Cardiff Devils. Fortunately it was only a blip and the Steelers made it six wins out of six for the remainder of the month, keeping the momentum up as they chased Cardiff for the title. Indeed, in the next game they routed Edinburgh with Neil Clark getting five in an 18-1 win.

FEBRUARY

Possibly the title-defining moment came in Cardiff in the middle of February. The month previously, Sheffield had got pole position in the League as Cardiff’s record-breaking run of twenty two games came to an end. Back to back games, against their nearest rivals, saw Steelers run out eventual winners in an overtime game which was settled by a rare strike from Mark Thomas. This was after Scott Matzka had equalised a Jeff Legue goal to tie the game at 4-4 and send it to overtime. The next night, at the Arena, Steelers saw off Cardiff 5-2 with Robert Dowd getting two goals with Jeff Legue getting the game winning goal. Coach Ben Simon said afterwards “A lot of guys stepped up this weekend, but the hard work has to continue”.

MARCH

The Sheffield Steelers were today celebrating after being announced as 2010/11 Elite League Champions. The title run in came down to the wire, between the Steelers and fierce rivals the Cardiff Devils. Both were even on 87 points from 54 games, but Sheffield winning one more game in regulation than their counterparts was the determining factor.
  
Sheffield’s final two games were against the Braehead Clan who were playing in their inaugural season in the Elite League. 
The South Yorkshire side traveled north of the border on Saturday (19^th March) to face the Clan at the Braehead Arena in the penultimate league game. Sheffield strolled to a 5-1 victory in a game where they didn’t even get out of second gear, preserving energy for tomorrow’s eagerly awaited rematch.

The same two teams battled it out once again twenty-four hours later at the Sheffield Motorpoint Arena in front of a bumper crowd. Sheffield cruised to a 7-2 victory to ensure they were crowned 2010/11 Elite League Champions for the first time since the 2008/09 double-winning side.

APRIL

In a game worthy of the play off final Steelers dominated the first part of the semi final racing into a two goal lead. But Nottingham came back and took the lead only for Ben Simon to take the game to overtime. However, inside two minutes Robert Lachowicz scored the game winner to end a disappointing post season for Steelers.

Ben Simon has quit Sheffield Steelers two days after the end of a glorious season in which he came third in the Elite League. The highly principled player coach felt the new salary offered to him the biggest single slice in a reduced overall player's budget left too little room for the rest of his players. Club owner Paul Regan insists the club must not bust the wage cap, as it had done at the beginning of the season, to accommodate him. Simon could not be a "special case" he said.

Sheffield Steelers have signed Ryan Finnerty as their new player coach, the lighting fast appointment coming just two days after league winning boss quit. Finnerty comes from the club owner Paul Regan's other club, Cardiff Devils although he was a fan's favourite in Sheffield for two and a half years.

Ryan Finnerty believes his best chance of success as new Sheffield Steelers player coach is in retaining his top British players, yet he's been hit with an early setback over want away Rob Dowd. Dowd appears to have agreed terms with Belfast Giants and is probably the first Steeler to move elsewhere.

Rival coach Paul Thompson says he did the honourable thing in permitting Sheffield Steelers to recruit Ryan Finnerty even though he'd signed him first. Thompson is Steelers unlikely Fairy Godmother as Finnerty, now installed as Steelers player coach, originally signed for Thompson's Coventry Blaze three weeks ago.

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