Match Report: Romford Raiders 3-2 – Milton Keynes Lightning (SO) | 11 October 2026

Romford Raiders 3-2 – Milton Keynes Lightning (SO): Lightning recovered from a two-goal deficit at Sapphire Ice and Leisure Romford on 11 October, but Barret Kirwin’s shootout conversion gave the hosts the NIHL National win. Romford had led 2-0 in the first period before Carter Hamill brought MKL within one. Liam Stewart’s third-period equaliser took the game beyond regulation, and five minutes of overtime could not separate the sides.

With Cole Ceci in goal for Romford Raiders and Jordan Hedley in goal for Milton Keynes Lightning, Romford made the early breakthrough when Tjay Anderson scored at 01:03, assisted by Andrew Coxhead. The Raiders held that 1-0 lead through much of the opening period. Lightning recorded nine shots on goal in the first 20 minutes, while Romford recorded 16, but neither side added to the score until a Lightning penalty gave the hosts an extra skater late in the period.

Archie Hazeldine received two minutes for tripping at 14:59. Just five seconds later, Kirwin scored on the power play from Jarrett Baker and Jake Sylvester to make it 2-0. Romford had turned their early lead into a two-goal advantage, but Lightning cut the gap before the break. At 16:50, Hamill scored at even strength, with Stewart and Bradey Johnson supplying the assists. It was Hamill’s first goal in four competitive games, following three goalless games, and it brought MKL back to 2-1 just 1:46 after Kirwin’s goal.

Romford still had the lead at the first interval, though Hamill’s reply had changed the task facing Lightning. Rather than having two goals to find after 20 minutes, they needed one to draw level. The teams had met in Milton Keynes two weeks earlier, when Lightning won 4-2 after trailing in the first period. This time it was the Raiders who carried a one-goal advantage into the middle period.

The second period produced no goals despite a marked difference in shots on target: Lightning recorded 19 to Romford’s four. The Raiders kept their 2-1 lead throughout those 20 minutes. Late in the period, Carter Hamill was given two minutes for hooking at 36:07, and Jarred White received two minutes for slashing ten seconds later. The penalties overlapped, but Romford did not extend their lead. Lightning’s shot total showed how often they tested the hosts in that period; it did not change the one-goal margin on the scoreboard.

Romford then had two penalties of their own before the second interval, with Leo Bacallao called for holding at 39:21 and Marco Pascale for slashing at 39:59. Both carried into the start of the third period, but Lightning’s equaliser came later, at even strength. Stewart scored at 43:04 from Danny Weight and Kell Beattie to make it 2-2. His goal completed Lightning’s recovery from 2-0 down and marked the fourth successive competitive game in which he had scored.

That left most of the final period for either side to take the lead. Neither did. Romford put 11 shots on goal to Lightning’s six in the third, but the score stayed at 2-2 through the end of regulation. Lightning had answered both first-period goals, first through Hamill and then through Stewart, without going ahead themselves. Romford, having held the lead from the opening minutes until early in the third, now had to find a way past MKL in the additional phase.

Overtime also ended without a goal. Lightning recorded four shots on target during the extra five minutes and Romford two, leaving the score at 2-2 after 65 minutes of play. The shootout therefore decided the official result. Kirwin’s recorded penalty-shot conversion at 65:00 gave Romford the 3-2 win; it was the deciding shootout entry, not a goal scored during overtime. Having also put the Raiders 2-0 ahead on the power play, Kirwin supplied both their second regulation goal and the final separation between the teams.

Lightning took one NIHL National point from the shootout defeat, making it a three-point weekend overall. Romford earned the extra point after maintaining their first-period lead until Stewart’s equaliser and then settling a game that remained level through regulation and overtime.

Source: Official NIHL National gamesheet.