Warriors³ tame the Raptors
On Sunday 26th July 2026, our development team took on fellow Leodiensians, the Raptors, in a friendly scrimmage at Planet Ice, Leeds.
With the intensity of the Bottom of the Barrel (BOTB) Cup season now over, our Warriors³ team took the opportunity to keep things local and give Leeds’ latest recreational team, the Raptors, a friendly game.
1st period:
The Warriors made the perfect start, opening the scoring through Jonjo Marshall, who finished confidently after just a few minutes with an unassisted effort.
The lead was quickly doubled when Andy Palfreyman converted from Stella Giwisser's pass, putting the Warriors firmly in control.
The Raptors pulled one back to make it 2-1, but any hopes of building momentum were swiftly extinguished. Phil Pearce restored the two-goal cushion after good work from Zach Huntley and Craig Baker, before Marshall struck again, this time finishing off a move created by Josh Moss and Pearce.
The Warriors continued to pile on the pressure as Tomasz Molenda added a fifth from Jake Croft's assist.
Although the Raptors grabbed a second goal to stay in touch, Marshall completed his first-period hat-trick, finishing from a pass by Pearce to send the Warriors into the break with a commanding 6-2 advantage.
Warriors 6-2 Raptors
2nd period:
The Warriors maintained their intensity after the restart. Freddy Monk extended the lead with assists from Croft and Paul Eaglestone, before Croft got on the scoresheet himself, combining neatly with Molenda to make it 8-2 after two periods.
Warriors 8-2 Raptors
3rd period:
Despite the result being seemingly beyond doubt, the Raptors refused to give in and produced a determined response in the final period.
Two quick goals reduced the deficit to 8-4 before the Warriors responded through Croft, who finished confidently after another assist from Molenda.
The Raptors continued to battle, adding two further goals to make the scoreline more respectable at 9-6.
However, fittingly, the final word belonged to Marshall, who collected his fourth goal of the afternoon with another unassisted effort to round off an entertaining 10-6 victory.
Final score:
Warriors 10-6 Raptors
Points scorers:
Jake Croft 2+3
Jonjo Marshall 4+0
Tomasz Molenda 1+2
Phil Pearce 1+2
Andy Palfreyman 1+0
Freddy Monk 1+0
Stella Giwisser 0+1
Zach Huntley 0+1
Craig Baker 0+1
Josh Moss 0+1
Paul Eaglestone 0+1
Marshall's four-goal performance deservedly stole the headlines, while Jake Croft enjoyed an outstanding all-round game, scoring his first ever Warriors goals and collecting a huge 2+3 to make him the top points scorer on the night.
Tomasz Molenda recorded a goal and two assists in an excellent performance that saw eleven different players register points.
This included Andy Palfreyman who also notched his first Warriors goal while Phil Pearce contributed a goal and two assists.
It was an enjoyable attacking display from the Warriors, who moved the puck well throughout and shared the scoring across the line-up.
Although there will be lessons to learn after conceding four goals in the final period, the overall performance was full of positives, with the Warriors' fast start ultimately laying the foundation for a deserved victory.
For both Jonjo Marshall and Phil Pearce, this was their final game for our development team as they have been moved up to the Warriors² team for next season. Congratulations guys, you’ve both had an outstanding season.
This was our development teams final game of the season, but please keep an eye out for challenge games and/or new fixtures being scheduled for next season’s Bottom of the Barrel Cup.
Here’s the link : fixtures and results.
