New development pathway launched in Sheffield

[mark]

The Sheffield Steelers and Steeldogs, in collaboration with the Sheffield Ice Hockey Academy, are thrilled to announce a landmark partnership designed to build the most comprehensive player development pathway in the UK. This pioneering alliance for the 2025 season will establish Sheffield as the first UK city offering an unbroken progression through every level of the sport from youth hockey through to the Elite level, empowering young talent to pursue their dreams in the sport. The partnership includes a transformative investment in the Sheffield Scimitars NIHL team, setting the stage for a seamless player journey from under-10s all the way to the pros.


Read the full story

https://sheffieldiha.com/siha-steelers-steeldogs/

[Jayboy]

Thats simply fantastic news and something a great deal of us have been calling for for years, in fact decades, and enormous credit to everybody concerned for getting it done, over the years many things have stood in the way, not least the politics played down in the junior leagues with parents and coach and owners never seeing the big picture and always somebody not wanting to loose their own little slice of the pie... for me this is the best news regarding the sheffield hockey community in years. you cant underestimate the difficulties that they must have overcome to get this over the line. a great deal harder than many would ever consider...

[paul johnston]

After all the criticisms Steelers have received over the years, it's the Steelers that are showing the way forward.
A very well done and big thumbs up to everyone who has helped this happen.

[mark]

After all the criticisms Steelers have received over the years, it's the Steelers that are showing the way forward.
A very well done and big thumbs up to everyone who has helped this happen.

I don't think this will stop the criticism from those who have always hated the very existence of the Steelers, and there are plenty of those still about, mostly hanging around in the lower reaches of UK Ice Hockey but at least it will identify who they are. Done correctly this can be a game changer for UK ice hockey and should be a model for how other clubs should move forward and create that pathway through to the top levels. Shows the benefit of not being a Planet Ice tenant and having a decent relationship with the operators of the rink.

[ginger]

Absolutely the best news. This is exactly the framework that's needed.

There's a lot of normally vocal critics of anything EIHL/Steelers based that are pretty quiet at the moment.

[paul johnston]

Absolutely the best news. This is exactly the framework that's needed.

There's a lot of normally vocal critics of anything EIHL/Steelers based that are pretty quiet at the moment.

Ha ha, funnily enough one of those is now high up the food chain at the Dogs.

[mark]

Absolutely the best news. This is exactly the framework that's needed.

There's a lot of normally vocal critics of anything EIHL/Steelers based that are pretty quiet at the moment.

Ha ha, funnily enough one of those is now high up the food chain at the Dogs.

The credit I would give him is that as the facts have changed, so has his opinion. Trying to pull all this together will have been very difficult as so many people will have been trying to protect their own little empires instead of seeing the big picture. Some will have spent over 20 years preaching that the Steelers are the "big bad" ( bonus points if you get the reference ) and now have to work with them instead of against them. There is a huge responsibility on the Steelers to get this right, to run it professionally based on ability, tolerance and transparency. I do believe that long term it could be one of the biggest decisions Tony Smith has made in Ice Hockey, I wish them the very best moving forward.

[paul johnston]

Absolutely the best news. This is exactly the framework that's needed.

There's a lot of normally vocal critics of anything EIHL/Steelers based that are pretty quiet at the moment.

Ha ha, funnily enough one of those is now high up the food chain at the Dogs.

The credit I would give him is that as the facts have changed, so has his opinion. Trying to pull all this together will have been very difficult as so many people will have been trying to protect their own little empires instead of seeing the big picture. Some will have spent over 20 years preaching that the Steelers are the "big bad" ( bonus points if you get the reference ) and now have to work with them instead of against them. There is a huge responsibility on the Steelers to get this right, to run it professionally based on ability, tolerance and transparency. I do believe that long term it could be one of the biggest decisions Tony Smith has made in Ice Hockey, I wish them the very best moving forward.

Definitely the way forward, and if you are good enough you'll progress through to the Steelers/EIHL level. Will be fantastic when, not if, we have a ton of local lads playing for the Steelers.

[ginger]

Absolutely the best news. This is exactly the framework that's needed.

There's a lot of normally vocal critics of anything EIHL/Steelers based that are pretty quiet at the moment.

Ha ha, funnily enough one of those is now high up the food chain at the Dogs.

The credit I would give him is that as the facts have changed, so has his opinion. Trying to pull all this together will have been very difficult as so many people will have been trying to protect their own little empires instead of seeing the big picture. Some will have spent over 20 years preaching that the Steelers are the "big bad" ( bonus points if you get the reference ) and now have to work with them instead of against them. There is a huge responsibility on the Steelers to get this right, to run it professionally based on ability, tolerance and transparency. I do believe that long term it could be one of the biggest decisions Tony Smith has made in Ice Hockey, I wish them the very best moving forward.

Yeah massive credit to Jamie - talked, listened and changed his opinion (and maybe changed others as well the other way). Generally a good sign of a person when they are critical, but open to being constructive.

It's a huge opportunity - and it's started off very well. Lets hope it keeps progressing!

[Doom]

This is something which has been required for a long time.

Purely from a selfish Steelers perspective, I want us to attract the top British talent to our city to give us an edge over our rivals.

I don't want the likes of Liam Kirk, Robert Dowd or Kieran Brown going to our rivals in Belfast, Cardiff or Nottingham, I want them here in Sheffield.

With a proper pathway now in place, this should hopefully attract the top young talent to our city.

Maybe for different reasons, but the Sheffield Academy lost Alex Rushby to the Nottingham Academy. He's one of the top talents in the country and we should be looking at keeping players like him.

It will be interesting to see how this all develops

Regards

Doom