Raiders IHC is an ice hockey team based in Romford, participating in the National Division of the National Ice Hockey League (NIHL), the second tier of British ice hockey.
They were known as the Romford Raiders when they were based at the Romford Ice Arena in the London Borough of Havering. They were founder members of the English Premier Ice Hockey League but have competed in the NIHL since 2012. Their development team was the Romford Spitfires, which played in Division 2 of the NIHL before being succeeded in 2009/10 by the Romford Fury.
The team moved to Leyton, East London, in 2013, when it adopted the new name London Raiders. Its team colours are white, gold, and blue, and fans of the team are known as the Gold and Blue Army. The team returned to Romford in 2018, keeping the Raiders name until 2024 when they reverted to Romford Raiders under former owner John Scott.
History
The club was founded in 1987 under the name Romford Raiders and coached by Gord Jeffrey, who went on to become a hero amongst the Romford fans.
Some of the best-known players to play for the Raiders include Rob Stewart, Dave Whistle and Mike Ellis, all of whom went on to play and coach at the highest levels in the UK.
The Raiders' first-ever match was played on Sunday 13 September 1987, against the Oxford City Stars. Romford's first captain, Erskine Douglas, also scored the Raiders' first-ever goal.
On 28 November 2010, during an English National League game against the Bracknell Hornets, Danny Marshall scored his 1,232nd point as a Raider when he assisted on a short-handed goal by Frankie Harvey. With that point, Marshall became the club's all-time leading scorer, surpassing Gord Jeffrey's long-standing record.
In 2013, the Romford Ice Arena was sold by Havering Council to investors. The team subsequently had to move to Lee Valley Ice Centre and became the London Raiders.
On February 3, 2018, the Raiders played their first game at their new home back in Romford, the Sapphire Ice and Leisure Centre. Raiders would come back to win 5–2 against the Cardiff Fire in front of a sell-out crowd. Former Romford Junior Olegs Lascenko scored the team's first-ever goal at the new venue, however, it was Cardiff's Jackson Price who scored the first goal overall. In 2024, the team came under new ownership and returned to using the name Romford Raiders.
Season Records The following list details the Raiders' finishes in the league and notes any playoff success.
League SEASONLEAGUERANKPOSTSEASON1987 - 1988Heineken League Division 2262510 - -37921351ChampionPromoted1988 - 1989Heineken League Division 1246216 - -1452011411Relegated1989 - 1990Heineken League Division 2241716 - -217152352Promoted1990 - 1991Division 14023215 - -293245484Qualification loss1991 - 1992Division 13615516 - -262256356Qualification1992 - 1993Division 13212416 - -221239285 -1993 - 1994Division 1 South4427512 - -3282355921994 - 1995Division 1 South - - - - - - - - - - -1995 - 1996Division 2 South221606 - -17875323Final group South1996 - 1997English League South222011 - -19246411Qualification South1997 - 1998English League South201136 - -19588255Championship Round South1998 - 1999English Premier League3212317 - -155168278Did not make playoffs1999 - 2000English Premier League245217 - -78127125Did not make playoffs2000 - 2001English Premier League322129 - -174106444Champion2001 - 2002English Premier League281828 - -16979384Qualification2002 - 2003English Premier League4219617 - -218199448Qualification2003 - 2004English Premier League322129 - -198131443Qualification2004 - 2005English Premier League3217213 - -144113364Semifinal loss2005 - 2006English Premier League4824519 - -214204537Qualification2006 - 2007English Premier League4414425 -1175234339Did not make playoffs2007 - 2008English Premier League4016 -2013137176378Qualification2008 - 2009English Premier League5422 -2453197259576Quarterfinal loss2009 - 2010English Premier League545 -46121473701410Did not make playoffs2010 - 2011English National League South Division 1402956 - -244101633Conference SF loss South 12011 - 2012English National League South Division 1363105 - -2359362ChampionConference Final loss South 12012 - 2013NIHL South Division 1322228 - -205115463Semifinal loss South2013 - 2014NIHL South Division 13217312 - -142128374Quarterfinal loss South2014 - 2015NIHL South Division 1369324 - -120191218Semifinal loss South2015 - 2016NIHL South Division 13611223 - -135174248Quarterfinal loss South2016 - 2017NIHL South Division 12811413 - -92105265Semifinal loss South2017 - 2018NIHL South Division 1 32 16- - 13 2 1 121 106 37 4Conference SF loss
Cups SEASONLEAGUERANKPOSTSEASON1988 - 1989Autumn Trophy6213 - -436253Did not make playoffs South & East1989 - 1990Autumn Trophy4103 - -333823Did not make playoffs South East1990 - 1991Autumn Cup8107 - -457025Did not make playoffs Group C1991 - 1992Autumn Cup8206 - -386645Did not make playoffs Group C1992 - 1993B&H Cup6105 - -346324Did not make playoffs Group B
Club roster 2022-23 Source:
(*) Denotes a Non-British Trained player (Import) NetmindersNo.Nat.PlayerCatchesDate of birthPlace of birthAcquiredContract32 Bradley Windebank LHarold Wood, England 2018 from Chelmsford Mohawks22/2335 Ben Clements LChelmsford, England 2022 from Invicta Dynamos22/2339 Ethan James LLondon, England 2019 from Essa Stallions22/23
DefencemenNo.Nat.PlayerShootsDate of birthPlace of birthAcquiredContract3 Elliott Dewey RBasingstoke, England 2022 from Basingstoke Bison22/2311 Tom Relf 'A' RFrimley, England 2021 from Sheffield Steeldogs22/2313 Daniel Scott 'A' RChatham, England 2018 from Basingstoke Bison22/2314 Jack Cooper RLondon, England 2014 from Harringay Racers22/2321 Callum Wells RHarold Hill, England 2017 from Chelmsford Chieftains22/2343 Ethan Reid RScotland 2022 from Chelmsford Chieftains22/2355 Sean Barry RChelmsford, England 2017 from Chelmsford Chieftains22/23 Marco Pascale R2003 (age 19)England 2022 from Raiders IHC 2Two-Way
ForwardsNo.Nat.PlayerShootsDate of birthPlace of birthAcquiredContract10 Brandon Ayliffe RHarold Wood, England 2017 from Chelmsford Chieftains22/2312 Mikey Power RLondon, England 2022 from MK Lightning22/2319 Harry Gulliver REssex, England 2022 from Manchester Storm22/2329 Jake Sylvester LChelmsford, England 2017 from Chelmsford Chieftains22/2351 Erik Piatak* RKežmarok, Czechoslovakia 2019 from DEAC22/2357 Ashley Jackson LTunbridge Wells, England 2022 from Invicta Dynamos22/2363 Aaron Connolly 'C' LNorthfleet, England 2018 from Basingstoke Bison22/2386 Tommy Huggett REngland 2018 from Chelmsford Mohawks22/2389 Blaho Novak LBratislava, Slovakia 2022 from Unattached22/2395 Jacob Ranson RRomford, England 2019 from Streatham IHC22/2398 Tjay Anderson LEngland 2021 from Raiders U18Two-Way Adam Laishram RAshburn, ON, Canada 2022 from MK LightningCover Harvey Briggs REngland 2021 from Streatham IHCTwo-Way Adam Erskine REngland 2021 from Raiders U18Two-Way Matthieu Gomercic* LWinnipeg, MB, Canada 2022 from Atlanta Gladiators22/23
Team StaffNo.Nat.NamePositionAcquiredPlace of birthJoined fromSean EastonHead Coach2017Chelmsford, EnglandChelmsford Chieftains, NIHL 135Ben ClementsPlayer-Assistant Coach2022Chelmsford, England55Sean BarryPlayer-Assistant Coach2022Chelmsford, EnglandErin RosePhysical Therapist2021England
2021/22 Outgoing + OutgoingNo.Nat.PlayerShootsDate of birthPlace of birthLeaving For15J.J. PitchleyRRomford, EnglandBees IHC, NIHL17Rio Grinell ParkeLLondon, EnglandMK Lightning, NIHL24Ollie BaldockRChelmsford, EnglandChelmsford Chieftains, NIHL 136Callum BurnettREnglandChelmsford Chieftains, NIHL 191Lukas SladkovskyLPrague, Czech RepublicPeterborough Phantoms, NIHL
References
External links Romford Raiders Official Site NIHL League Official Site London Raiders Official Site London Raiders statistics at eurohockey.com London Raiders statistics at Elite Prospects Romford Raiders page at Hockey DB