Leeds Knights: The temporary assignment that turned into a full-time commitment for Ryan Aldridge

GIVEN he was only supposed to come up to Leeds for a month, it hasn’t worked out too badly for Ryan Aldridge.

Today (Thursday) marks three years to the day since the 46-year-old first stepped behind the bench for Leeds Knights.

It ended in a 4-3 defeat at home to one of his his former teams, Basingstoke Bison. Since then, however, things have gone rather well.

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At the time, Aldridge was on something of a break from hockey, having coached non-stop since he first took the reins as player-coach at Bracknell Bees in 2005.

The last six years of coaching had been away from the grind of a regular British hockey season as he took on the role of head coach at the Swindon-based Okanagan Hockey academy.

But even though he had thrown himself into his new job in pest control in the ‘real’ world in and around his home town of Swindon, there was something missing.

Then, in mid-January 2021, the call came from Knights’ owner Steve Nell - his former boss at Swindon Wildcats - and the rest, as they say, is history.

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One month turned into staying on board with the Knights until the end of the 2021-22 season.

STICKING AROUND: Ryan Aldridge, in charge behind the Leeds Knights bench for only his second game, against Sheffield Steeldogs on January 21, 2021, part of what was supposed to be a temporary one-month spell in charge. Picture: Bruce RollinsonSTICKING AROUND: Ryan Aldridge, in charge behind the Leeds Knights bench for only his second game, against Sheffield Steeldogs on January 21, 2021, part of what was supposed to be a temporary one-month spell in charge. Picture: Bruce Rollinson
STICKING AROUND: Ryan Aldridge, in charge behind the Leeds Knights bench for only his second game, against Sheffield Steeldogs on January 21, 2021, part of what was supposed to be a temporary one-month spell in charge. Picture: Bruce Rollinson

Then, that summer, Nell asked him to make the move permanent. It wasn’t an easy decision but, after talks with his family, he agreed to stay in West Yorkshire.

Two league championships and a play-off title later, it would be easy to see why Aldridge made the decision to stay in Leeds. But as he is quick to point out, the success he has helped bring to the organisation has been anything but simple.

“It was only supposed to be for a month!” recalls Aldridge. “The first month I came up, I was taking two days a week holiday from work, to cover everything up here and then Steve asked me to stay until the end of the season, so I had to go back to my then boss and ask him.

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“Luckily, he was a hockey guy and allowed me to take more holiday and then one thing led to another and I ended up coming up here full-time.

CHAMPIONS: Head coach Ryan Aldridge (centre) leads the celebrations as Leeds Knights win the NIHL National league title for the second year running. Picture courtesy of Jacob Lowe/Knights Media.CHAMPIONS: Head coach Ryan Aldridge (centre) leads the celebrations as Leeds Knights win the NIHL National league title for the second year running. Picture courtesy of Jacob Lowe/Knights Media.
CHAMPIONS: Head coach Ryan Aldridge (centre) leads the celebrations as Leeds Knights win the NIHL National league title for the second year running. Picture courtesy of Jacob Lowe/Knights Media.

“I got out of hockey because of family and having children and looking at the bigger picture, but I probably missed hockey more than I realised. My wife probably realised that more than me!

“Did I think it was going to be as special as it has been so far? Probably not. That first year was supposed to be a building year and we lucked out on getting the imports that we got and having the Brits we had.

“And we just seemed to take the lead by storm that first year, but the league is getting better and better and we feel like we are building even more than we were back then.”

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Aldridge admits now, three years on, that his first-ever visit to Elland Road Ice Arena - affectionately renamed ‘The Castle’ by Knights’ fans - sparked something inside him.

THE MAN BEHIND THE BENCH: Leeds Knights' head coach Ryan Aldridge, instructs his players during a home game earlier this season. Picture: Jacob Lowe/Knights Media.THE MAN BEHIND THE BENCH: Leeds Knights' head coach Ryan Aldridge, instructs his players during a home game earlier this season. Picture: Jacob Lowe/Knights Media.
THE MAN BEHIND THE BENCH: Leeds Knights' head coach Ryan Aldridge, instructs his players during a home game earlier this season. Picture: Jacob Lowe/Knights Media.

“If I’m being completely honest, the very first time I walked into that building and I saw the shape of the building, the way it is laid out. I was like ‘Wow, this is pretty special’,” he added.

“It felt like a real, old-school North American building - it just had a very nice vibe about it. And having gone for a drive around the city, it just felt as if I was meant to be here.”

Having won the most-coveted regular season league crown for two years running, the Knights again find themselves in the midst of another fierce title race in the UK second tier.

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Aldridge believes this season is proving tougher than any his team have been involved in previously.

“We’re a young group and we won early and, from a fans’ point of view, from our point of view, our expectations are higher than they were,” he said.

“Winning is hard to do on a consistent basis, it comes at a price.

DO YOU REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME? Leeds Knights celebrate winning their first-ever trophy - the 2022-23 NIHL National league championship - with a victory at former champions Telford Tigers.DO YOU REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME? Leeds Knights celebrate winning their first-ever trophy - the 2022-23 NIHL National league championship - with a victory at former champions Telford Tigers.
DO YOU REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME? Leeds Knights celebrate winning their first-ever trophy - the 2022-23 NIHL National league championship - with a victory at former champions Telford Tigers.

"There is no let-up really and this league keeps getting better every year.

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“It’s hard on the players and their personal lives, when there is a constant demand or expectation to win and be at your best.

"Some people think it should just happen, some people don’t realise how much you’ve got to give.

“It’s a hard thing to keep going and sometimes we have to take a step back from everything and realise we have done really, really well – but it’s not going to happen every single year.”

And while winning trophies is always enjoyable, Aldridge gets more satisfaction from the challenge of trying to maintain that success.

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“I think I enjoy the ‘what’s next’ aspect to it all, how we can improve it,” he said.

“The sport is getting more professional (at this level) and it’s a case of ‘where are you finding your next gems?’, ‘how do we produce them. It’s the constant method of making our team stronger and deeper.

“Obviously it is nice to win the trophies but, for me, it’s as much about the performances that get you there.”

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