In the year 2000, Belfast seemed like an unlikely place to establish the first professional ice hockey team on the island of Ireland.
Indeed, with rugby, football and Gaelic games dominating the sports landscape on the island, it is somewhat surprising that a bizarre game played on ice quickly built a cult following in the province.
Decades later, ice hockey has continued to grow and become increasingly mainstream despite the fact many casual fans remain unfamiliar with the intricacies of the sport.
Ask someone on the street what they know about the Giants and they will likely mention the recent cameo appearances of legendary former Premier league goalkeeper, Petr Cech, in nets for Adam Keefe’s side as well as the side’s treble-winning exploits in their 2022/23 campaign.
However, high-profile signings aside, Birmingham-born Giants star Ciaran Long, offers further explanation for the ice hockey phenomenon which has swept Belfast.
“It’s a pretty accessible game and the fast-paced all-action nature of the sport is definitely attractive for spectators,” the 33-year-old explains.
“Apart from the fact it’s a physical and exciting game, it’s a good night out for families with plenty of entertainment on the ice in between the action.
“Of course, the success of the team in recent years has a big part to play because winning trophies will inevitably attract attention from new fans.”
Indeed, Belfast Giants regularly have crowds of close to 7,000 at home games at the SSE Arena - more than double the league’s average attendance.
The Giants compete in the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) which is the highest level of ice hockey competition in the UK made up of 10 teams - five in England, three in Scotland and one each in Wales and Northern Ireland.
There’s no shortage of opportunity for fans to watch ice hockey in a packed, intense schedule running between September and April, with 54 regular league games, an end of season Play-offs competition and a stand-alone cup competition, the Challenge Cup, all of which amounts to two or three games a week, every week.
The Belfast Giants have historically been one of the top teams in the league, with head-coach Adam Keefe playing a major role in their success in recent years, leading them to to eight pieces of silverware – four Challenge Cups, three Elite League titles, and one Elite League Playoff title – in the space of seven seasons.
Following their Grand-Slam in 2022/23, the most recent campaign was disappointing by the Giant’s own high standards with inconsistency and injuries costing them their titles and, despite a strong finish to the season, rivals Sheffield Steelers completed their own clean-sweep of silverware.
With the quality of ice hockey improving every year, Long notes that enhanced competition is good for the progress of the sport.
“The league seems to keep going up a notch every year in terms of quality as the sport grows in popularity, gradually becoming more mainstream,” Long explains.
“Ice hockey in the UK has ebbed and flowed in terms of popularity but has been on an upward trajectory for the last number of years.
“Coming through the ranks with the Great Britain teams and playing Champions League ice hockey has been great because you play against the best teams which gives you a benchmark and something to aim at.
“I’m a relatively rare example of someone my age born in the UK who grew up playing ice hockey. I was basically born into it.
“My mum played and helped set up the Solihull women’s team and my uncle also used to play for the Sheffield Steelers. I used to live about 20 seconds away from the ice-rink and was inspired to play from watching my local team.
“A lot of teams now have youth programmes and there’s a lot of kids who play at the Dundonald Ice Bowl where they are coached by former players.
“We might start to see more home-grown players coming through. My advice is just to give it a go, get on the ice and build a really good foundation in skating and being able to turn quickly. Playing ice-hockey is a really fun and unique experience.”
A lot of teams now have youth programmes and there’s a lot of kids who play at the Dundonald Ice Bowl where they are coached by former players. We might start to see more home-grown players coming through. My advice is just to give it a go, get on the ice
— Ciaran Long
As for any newbie fans, Long is keen to explain the basics to help those unfamiliar with the rules gain a better understanding of what is happening on the ice.
“At a basic level ice hockey is hopefully quite easy to follow: there are two teams of six players each and three periods of 20 minutes each, with 15 minute breaks between the periods,” he explains.
“The objective is to score more goals than the opposing team. If the game is tied at the end, the game goes into overtime or a shootout to get the winner.
“You’ll notice there might be penalties for things like tripping, slashing (swinging your stick at your opponent), hooking (pulling your opponent back using your stick) and so on.
“The important thing to know is that when a player is called for a penalty, they go to the penalty box and their team has one less player on the ice for the duration of the penalty.
“This is what is called a ‘power play’ - when one team has more players on the ice.
“There are also sometimes fights which break out - which is something that has been a part of ice hockey to settle things on the rink - and there is a big penalty imposed for that.
“Each team has three forwards - who try and score goals - and two defensemen and a goalie - who protect their own net and prevent the other team from scoring.
“You’ll also notice markings on the rink. The rink is divided into three zones: the offensive zone, the defensive zone and the neutral zone.
“There are also face-off circles at various places in the rink and the location can depend on the reason for the stoppage in play. The referee tosses the puck between two rival players to get the game started again.
“Finally, there’s the crease which is an area in front of each goal where opposition players may not stand until they have the puck.
“The other thing you’ll notice is that players put in what is called a ‘shift’, with players rotating on and off the ice within a short while.
“It’s an exhausting sport which requires a lot of fitness to give it your all during your time on the ice.
“It’s a team sport, it’s fast, it’s skilful, it’s physical and the atmosphere in the SSE Arena is electric on game nights.
“You don’t need to understand every aspect of the game to have fun watching - it’s a great sport for new fans and you will definitely pick things up the more you watch.”
Optimism abounds for the Giants silver anniversary season which is reflected by a record number of season ticket sales.
In the words of Adam Keefe: ‘They said it wouldn’t last and here we are going into the 25th season’.
Seemingly, there has been no loss of enthusiasm over the years as the Giants seek to regain their seat at the head of the table of UK ice hockey once again.
The Giants made a statement of intent in the off-season with the return to Belfast of Keefe’s trusted lieutenants Scott Conway and JJ Piccinich and Gabe Bast, while also bringing in new signings such as Bobo Carpenter and Pierre-Olivier Morin to bolster the roster.
The Belfast Giants have four wins from four in pre-season and kickstart their 2024/25 campaign this Saturday with a trip to Scotland to face the Dundee Stars on Saturday and the Fife Flyers the following night.