Basingstoke Bison 3, Manchester Phoenix 0

THE WELLA Bison completed a four-point weekend as the Manchester Phoenix were beaten by three unanswered goals in the second period on Saturday night.

New import forward Matt Reid scored on his home debut, while Curtis Cruickshank recorded a 36-shot shut-out in the victory.

In an even first period the home side had the puck in the net at 17:55 as Joe Ciccarello netted a Martin Filip pass. However, referee Nigel Boniface had already blown his whistle and decided not to allow the effort.

The opening powerplay of the second session went to the Phoenix but, on a breakout from Ciccarello, confusion around the Phoenix goal led to David Kozier drawing a penalty at 24:36.

The Manchester player returned to the ice just in time to see Markku Takala score his first goal of the season as his left-wing shot went through the legs of Jayme Platt - a shut-out hero himself the previous night.

The home side increased their lead at 31:11 as Mark McCoy fed Reid and, from just inside the blue line, he scored with a super shot.

The Bison killed off good pressure on a powerplay, as their man-of-the-match Dave Geris sat in the sin-bin, before making use of their own man-advantage with Phil Roy netting from close range at 37:41.

The final session saw the Phoenix come out with all guns blazing and they out-shot the home side 18-9. However, Cruickshank was equal to everything they threw at him as Kozier and then Shin Larsson-Yahata found to their cost.

Phoenix man-of-the-match Mike Lankshear was often at the heart of the visitors' attacks and the playmaker even got into the act by forcing the Bison goalie to save halfway through the period.

At 42:30, Reid departed from the action with a slight groin strain as Phoenix continued to pile on the pressure.

The best save of the night was reserved for the final two minutes as Peterri Lotila forced the home goalie to save at one post before rounding the net to feed Yahata. The Japanese international looked set to score, only for Cruickshank somehow to recover and knock the puck away with his stick.

Soon after, Platt was pulled for the extra skater and Ciccarello missed the empty net by inches. As the clock ticked down there was one last save from the home goalie as George Awada was denied.

Delighted Bison player-coach Steve Moria said: "Tonight we deserved the two points. We got the lead in the second period and made sure we didn't surrender it. The guys have all played well and Curtis, who is a big part of this team, has got a shut-out."

Scoring, Bison: Reid 1+1, Takala, Roy 1+0, Ciccarello, McCoy, Moria, Filip 0+1. Shots on goal: Cruickshank 36, Platt 35. Penalties: Bison 10min, Phoenix 8.