Sheffield Steeldogs v Leeds Knights: Frustrated Dogs target overdue derby joy at expense of in-form Knights

The Steeldogs came off second-best on both nights against Hull Seahawks at the weekend, twice letting a three-goal lead slip to lose out 5-4 on both occasions.

It saw them lose slight ground on their East Yorkshire rivals in the NIHL National regular season standings but today, at Ice Sheffield, they have an opportunity to quickly get over their miserable weekend.

It won’t be easy though, coming up against a Leeds Knights team they have not beaten since February 2023 and who are enjoying a 10-game unbeaten run.

The only blemish, if you can call it that, within that run was a 2-2 draw against the Steeldogs in the first leg of their NIHL National Cup semi-final in Leeds on December 20.

New Years’ Eve brings an opportunity to determine who wins the overall tie and takes on Romford Raiders in the two-leg final sometime in January.

And while there was plenty of frustration in the Steeldogs’ locker room across both nights at the weekend, the way they came from behind to tie the first game at Elland Road 11 days ago gives them grounds to believe they can end their winless streak against this particular Yorkshire rival.

“I’ll admit, it was tough to take two losses like that, not ideal in terms of preparation for this semi-final and, all in all, a tough weekend,” said Morgan.

“Disappointing results, definitely, but there were still a lot of positives in both games. And this is an opportunity for us to bounce back from the last two games straight away.

“It is the Cup and it is a different format, so that gives us a different perspective to look at it - we know it is a one-off game.”

Given the teams’ head-to-head record and respective recent form, Leeds will go into the game as favourites but, as was seen in the first leg earlier this month, the Steeldogs are a match for anyone on their day.

On that occasion, the Knights held a 2-0 lead before the Steeldogs struck back twice in the last 10 minutes - the equaliser coming with less than one second remaining - to leave the hosts and their fans stunned.

It was no more than the Steeldogs deserved who matched their rivals blow-for-blow on the night. It will require them to repeat that kind of performance on home ice today.

“We’ve just got to replicate what we did last time at Elland Road and make sure that we play for 60 minutes and apply ourselves throughout,” added Morgan.

“It felt like a victory in that first leg. If you looked at both benches when the buzzer went, they were pretty much slumped in defeat and we were bouncing around as if we’d won the thing, which is understandable given how late we equalised.

“But what it has done is set this up really nicely and it should be a great game.”

Head coach Ryan Aldridge brings his Knights team down to South Yorkshire for a second time this season - they won 5-2 in the league at Ice Sheffield in early November - in ominous form, their last defeat coming against main league title rivals Milton Keynes Lightning on November 23.

Two convincing wins against Solway Sharks at the weekend ensured they remain hot on the tail of leaders Lightning, who are one point better off but having played two more games.

But it is the Cup competition which holds a special appeal for the Knights and their fans, it being the only second-tier trophy they are yet to get their hands on.

The closest they came was two years when they lost out over two legs to Peterborough Phantoms. The Steeldogs won the Cup in 2022 under previous head coach, Greg Wood.

With both teams facing their third game in four days, Aldridge expects tiredness to be a factor.

“I’m expecting it to be another good game,” said Aldridge.

“It’s going to be two teams that will be playing their third game in four days, but there’s no excuses because both teams are in the same boat.

“So, on that big ice pad, there will probably be some tired legs out there at some point.

“It would be nice to get through to that final. It’s tough when you’re going for the Cup and the league because it definitely takes it out of you for the league with the four extra games, extra minutes for players and you end up with more three games in three nights situations.

“The final is something that we’d love to get to and to be in with a chance again of lifting that trophy - but it is going to be tough to get there.”