McSorley happy after experiment ends in defeat

The Great Britain coach Chris McSorley was full of praise for his youthful squad after they went down 4-0 to the Olympic qualifiers Ukraine in the Euro Hockey Challenge in Hungary.

Defeat was hardly unexpected as McSorley had picked an experimental side for the tournament which contained just one Superleague player. "Giving home-grown Brits a chance of international experience is far more important than winning," said the coach. "It gives me and my staff a chance to evaluate these rookie players on an international stage and we've been greatly impressed."

The Canadian McSorley's outspoken comments at the last Euro Challenge at the start of September, that the Superleague was "dying on the vine", turned out to be prophetic after two clubs, Scottish Eagles and Manchester Storm, folded this week.

"I have great sympathy for the people involved at both clubs but this step backwards can have a cathartic effect, bringing all the leagues together under one governing body," McSorley said. "In turn it can see the return of British players to the line up and a limiting of the number of imports, giving fans the chance to identify with their teams."

With just five active teams, the Superleague will have been encouraged to see a sellout crowd of 6,802 at Belfast Giants' 3-2 home loss to Sheffield Steelers, while the Giants 3-3 draw at Nottingham Panthers attracted 4,404.