Stephen Wall is an architect by training but in recent years I have devoted more and more time to making comics. I love how the medium allows us to combine storytelling with visual art to create gripping, stimulating and engrossing works. So far I have enjoyed telling stories relating to travel, art and history. I am excited to keep exploring the medium and seeing where it might bring me in the future!
Hey Stephen, the Lightning are currently 4th in the EPIHL. How has the season been so far for you?
It’s going great really considering that we have no home rink so every game day is an away day! It's been an interesting season so far but we signed a great team at the start of the year so it was just about adapting to Coventry as a home venue.
You’re currently sat among the top goalies in the league in stats. The guys either side of you are imports, how would you say the standard of play differs between home grown players and those who are brought in from other leagues?
A lot really! we train over here maybe 2-3 times a week as the import goalies that come over are maybe used to training every day where they come from and the EPL is a bit more" in your face" I think as a goalie as people shoot from everywhere and I've seen a lot of imported goalies struggle in this league.
The Lightning seem to be on a bit of a run at the minute with some good results in recent games. What has been the secret of your success?
Not training lol! No, Nick Poole has put a team together with a "never say die" attitude this year and we struggled at the start of the season getting used to Coventry but once we settled down we have been fine. We have played 12 games in the month of February and trained once so we have been pretty much game head on this last month or so
The most important thing for a team is that they play together as a unit. How is the mood in the MK dressing room and which guys keep you smiling?
to be honest we all get on so well as a team there is no one left out of anything, I knew a few years ago before I came to MK that it was a great place to play and always wanted to get on board at that club, so when I got the chance a took it with both hands.. but if I had to say certain people on the team the ones that stand out for me are Ross Bowers and Leigh Jamieson, Leigh is the biggest character on our team he keeps everybody up beat and he's not short of a few pranks on people, I also last season got a tattoo of Leigh on my leg which sounds a bit silly but I said I would get it done so I did
Looking around the league, who are the players that stand out and the ones you least like to see bearing down on your goal?
there are some really good players on form this season just a few of the top of my head would be Kohorn from Sheffield, Karpov from the Bison and Kovar from the Phoenix all stand out for me but to be honest I love the challenge playing against these sort of players, it makes you feel good when you can shut them down.
How are you finding playing out of Coventry’s rink? Does it cause any problems for the team?
at the start yes it was a big change with all the travelling for training and games it’s been great to see the fans still following us no matter where we go they have been class this year and I would just like to say a massive thanks to them it’s been tough but a fun year so far and now we are in the cup final it would be a great gift to them if we can win it
Last question from us, of all the guys you’ve played alongside, which one would you love to line up with again and why?
Oh that’s a tough question. Brit wise I'd have to say Terry Miles. That guy played with his heart on his sleeve and gave 100% every game and was a beauty to have on your team!
Import wise I'd have to say Jesse Hammill I got along so well with this guy and still do to this day. He was a legend in the EPL and again he gave 100% every game and stood up for every single one of his team mates!
A big thank you to Stephen for answering our questions. You can keep up with the Lightning throughout the season at @MKL_Official. You can say hi to Stephen at @wally931.
We must acknowledge Blueline photography who took these excellent photos too!
If you’ve got any feedback, you can tweet me @MattMerritt. I’d love to hear from anyone who takes the time to read the blog.
If you’re a hockey player/coach/team manager in a competitive league, I’d love to ask you some questions too, please get in touch either here or via twitter
