WINGER Derek Campbell struck midway through the final period to inflict the first home defeat of the season on Elite League leaders Coventry Blaze. Two goals in as many minutes earned the Vipers quick revenge for September’s embarrassing 7-1 home defeat against the Midlanders. On 50 minutes, former Vipers captain Jonathan Weaver unintentionally put the puck into his own net, with the goal being credited to the man who replaced him as team leader, David Longstaff. Then Campbell linked up with line-mate Colin Shields and defenceman Ben Storey for the decisive goal on 52 minutes. It was Campbell’s 10th score and 25th point of the season, and the win puts the Vipers level on points with the Blaze, who have two games in hand. They were turning away fans at the Skydome before the game, such was the attraction of watching the country’s top two teams go head to head for the second time this season. And those who did get in didn’t have long to wait for some excitement, as a fight broke out within the first three seconds when combustible Vipers winger Andre Payette clashed with Danny Stewart. The game also brought together the top two netminders and, with the Vipers having to kill penalties, Ryan MacDonald – just behind former Newcastle favourite Trevor Koenig in the rankings – was the busiest of the duo during a scoreless first period. It was equally tight and tense in the second, with neither side finding a way past Koenig or MacDonald, the Vipers’ man of the match. The first score came just 33 seconds after the restart. A Vipers powerplay spanned the interval but it was MacDonald who was retrieving the puck from his net rather than Koenig. The Blaze’s top points scorer, Adam Calder, hit his 13th goal of the season, but it was not to be a lucky one. Tonight the Vipers take on the Sheffield Steelers in Yorkshire, with the outcome determining the top two places in Challenge Cup Group B. The Vipers have already qualified for the knockout stages. BLAZE: Calder 1+0, Carlson and Pease 0+1. VIPERS: D Campbell and Longstaff 1+0, Johnson, Shields and Storey 0+1. | 
