Hull Seahawks getting 'on message' ahead of Leeds Knights derby clash
HULL SEAHAWKS may have found an overdue run of good form, but head coach Matty Davies is under no illusions as to how much further they have to travel to get to where he wants them to be.
A 9-4 defeat on the road to perennial strugglers Bristol Pitbulls on October 18 could yet prove to be a watershed moment in Hull’s season.
It prompted a furious post-match response from Davies having seen his team fall to their sixth defeat in eight games. Changes were threatened but, as yet, nothing has altered, perhaps postponed by the response shown by his team to that defeat.
They head to Leeds Knights tonight unbeaten since that trip to Bristol with three straight wins.
After two fourth-placed regular-season finishes Davies spent the summer putting together a roster he fervently believes should compete for NIHL National silverware in 2025-26. He still believes that.
“Obviously it (Bristol) was a tough night and a lot of things got said,” said Davies. “But it was probably more about the accumulation of the previous weeks where we hadn’t picked up points and wins I felt we should have done.
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do, we’re still quite a way behind. It’s not like sunshine and rainbows here, it’s just the first steps of getting back to where we need to be. We’ve got ourselves into a bit of a hole and we just need to get ourselves out of it gradually.”
Thursday night’s visit to Leeds is the first in a run of five tough games for the Seahawks, with a double-header weekend against Peterborough Phantoms followed by tussles with Milton Keynes Lightning and Sheffield Steeldogs.
“It is a tough run coming up,” added Davies. “But if I’m being honest, I actually prefer the games against these bigger teams.
“When we get to the end of this run, it should tell us a lot of things, not least where our chances of making the Cup semi-finals are.
“But It’s a big part of the season for us and we’ve got to come out of it with as many points as possible. It’s time to produce.”
Leeds prepare to play host having seen their nine-game winning streak ended with a 6-2 home defeat to the Steeldogs on Sunday.
They are still missing experienced defencemen Jordan Griffin and Lewis Baldwin and young forward Danny Harrison through injury, although head coach Ryan Aldridge is close to announcing a new import D-man to replace American Matt Staudacher, who has returned home.