Fife Flyers: Farewell lap of ice as final day defeat seals last place in EIHL

It started in defeat and it ended in defeat - season 2021-22 is not one Fife Flyers will look on with much pleasure.

The first full campaign since the pandemic was long and taxing for the fans, players and coaches, and already the talks is of where the club goes from here after finishing tenth and last in the EIHL - the exact same spot it occupied when the 2019-20 campaign was cut short.

Flyers finished the season with three games in three nights, and three defeats - a grim 6-1 loss to Dundee, and back to back defeats at the hands of Glasgow Clan, 7-2 in Renfrew and 4-3 at Fife Ice Arena.

As games go, Sunday’s finale was a scrappy non event.

There was barely a check thrown all night - and this from two teams which once ignited rinks with full-throttle hockey.

Flyers took the opening period 2-1, coming back from a Rodney Southam shot from inside blue line which took a deflection past Shane Owen at 7:47

Tommi Jokinen set up James Anderson for the equaliser two minutes later, and Matt Carter shot them ahead after 15 minutes.

The second period could best be described as nondescript.

Fife held the upper hand going into the third, only to cough three goals in four minutes - Tim Shoup’s shot was going nowhere near the net until it took the cruellest of deflections.

And 2-2 quickly became 3-2 courtesy of a Nathan Laporte goal from close range, and 3-2 quickly became 4-2 via Dyson Stevenson as things went a bit Pete Tong for Fife.

They did push back and Carter executed the goal of the game after 54 minutes, skating in from the right and flicking as fine shot past Shane Starrett.

As the clock wound down, Fife went on the powerplay, and pulled Owen more than once in a bid to end the game, and the season, with a flourish, but it wasn’t to be.

There is much to be done before the ice men return.