"Para Ice Hockey Gives Me A Sense Of Freedom"

The sound of your own heartbeat in your ears. Inhale. Exhale. Ignore the beads of sweat trickling down your face. Focus. Where are the defence? Where’s their sniper? Everyones gone, it’s one on one and now you’re the last line of defence. Stop. The. Puck.

Darren Pomfret, goalie for the Manchester Mayhem para ice hockey team, watched the Manchester Storm play the arena was still called the Nynex and Brad Rubachuck was King.

“I went with a group of friends, and I thought that would be cool to play. I had always played goalie in other sports, so it was just kind of natural progression to play in net for hockey too,” he recalls. “So we set to the task of starting with no gear at all. It meant I had pillows duct taped to my legs, padded football shorts, a pillow on my chest and a rugby chest guard complete with shin guards on my arms… a wicket keeper’s glove on one hand and a batter’s glove on the other. I used an old school hockey mask too. I then learnt to skate at a skating boot camp, within a year and a half I was representing Team GB in roller hockey. I even got to take part in the showcase that happened in Manchester for the commonwealth games.”

That’s when the real spark for the game was set alight and took hold. Pomfret was playing for the Balckburn Falcons was taken under team mate, Eric Creegan’s wing. Creegan was also a net minder for the team. However, Creegan collapsed during an away game while playing against a team in Whitley Bay sometime later. He was taken to hospital but sadly passed away en route to the hospital.

“I was 17, and he made me play in gear from the 70’s to help me build up speed.”

Things were going well, and the future sitting in the crease looked promising with a small handful of clubs sniffing around the young goal tender. Then trade struck. Darren suffered a stroke, and everything ground to a halt.

“I always wanted to keep playing, I never wanted to stop playing. Doctors kept telling me that I’d never play again, so I gave up on that dream.” He remembers. “I couldn’t watch hockey knowing I couldn’t play. It wasn’t my choice to stop playing. I missed absolutely everything about hockey - the camaraderie, the locker room banter. I never wanted to stop playing the game.”

It wasn’t until a former team mate, Pete Hagan who had set up the Manchester Mayhem after the Phoenix folded back in early 2017, spoke to Darren about getting back into the game that he considered it. Hagan is the head coach of the North West’s only para hockey team, and was voted the British Para Ice Hockey Association’s “Coach of the Year” in 2019.

“When he asked me about trying it out, I lit up.” Darren smiles. “Pete explained the set up to me, and I was keen to give it a try. The guys on the team helped me get gear, they helped me get to training, and it’s a dent I’ll never be able to repay.”

After so many years paying stand up goalie, it was slight adjustment to get used to playing sledge hockey.

“When I first started playing, I couldn’t secure my self in the sledge properly. It had no straps with metal runners, I got stuck to the ice and couldn’t move. A puck ended up trickling by me very, very slowly. Once I got the hang of things, being back on the ice, it was liberating. Being on the ice gives me a sense of freedom I can’t quite explain, but for the first time in a very long time I felt free. Eating black biscuits again was something I never thought I’d do again. I’ll be honest, I cried.”

Now a regular starter at Mayhem games, Pomfret is easily one of the loudest voices in the locker room, always laughing, and nothing ever seems to get him down for long. He’s a valued team mate and friend to all, but once on the ice it’s a different story.

“I'm constantly threat assessing, trying to read the play and direct my d-men where I need them. Shoutout is a sacred for,” he says. “You never want someone to say that word out loud. Ever. I’ll also never forgive Pat for letting the puck slip by him with 17 seconds left in the game and ruining my chance at a shut out. I don’t like it when someone comes into my crease either, it’s my domain - get out of my house, basically. I remember a game against Cardiff, I faced five shots on the bounce before I could cover the puck. They tested me hard that day. I think I held my breath on a few of those shots. When the ref finally blew the whistle, I don’t think I’ve ever felt relief like it.”

Darren has gone from strength to strength and flourished in his role within the team.

“I can honestly say there are no bad things about being on this team. It’s the most inclusive team I’ve ever been part of, and I’m truly honoured to be part of the team and call these guys my team mates. They’ve helped me in ways that I’m forever grateful for. The banter, practical jokes and game play make it so it’s leaving leaving the real world and going to a place where everyone is truly equal. And for them to have voted me net minder of the year both for the club and for the league is really something. I feel privileged that I still get to play the game that I love.”

Number twenty six. Darren Pomfret. He’s the last line of defence. He’s a puck stopper, a goal killer, a dream crusher. His only goal, is to stop yours.