Jonny Wookey
Tuesday April 5th 2022
The Jonny Wookey Memorial ice hockey game commemorates the memory of St. Andrews student and ice hockey club founding member Jonny Wookey who tragically died young in 2012. The proceeds will donate to the foundation the Wookey family has set up in honor of their beloved Jonny.
Due to the pandemic, a majority of the current team have not yet played in a Wookey Memorial game. Only a handful of the fourth year players had the chance to play in their first year in the spring of 2019. So, for the team, this is an exciting opportunity to be back on the ice and for the St. Andrews Typhoons to face off against the Edinburgh Eagles.
Ice hockey is one of the most exciting sports to watch. It is incredibly fast-paced which makes for constant entertainment. Unlike sports like American football in which whistles and stoppages of play constantly interrupt the flow of the game. Ice hockey does not disappoint from an atmospheric perspective.
The stands of Fife Ice Arena will be packed with students, ranging from those who have never even heard of ice hockey to those who used to play themselves growing up in Canada or the US. For any spectator, the memorial varsity game promises to deliver fun, entertainment, athletic skill, and a night full of great school spirit.
The St. Andrews Typhoons are, like most sports teams here at the university, an entirely student-run endeavor. The coaches, captains, and players are one in the same, taking on the role of player coach when named captain of the team. This year, the Typhoons are led by the Rochon brothers and Hubert Borque. The three of them together - Ben Rochon, Connor Rochon, and Hubert Bourque - work together to organize practices and organize line-ups for games.
In the last contest for the Wookey Memorial game, St. Andrews came out on top defeating Edinburgh 4 to 1. The Typhoons are hoping to be supported and cheered on by another full crowd to beat the Edinburgh Eagles this year.
For those that do not know much about the sport of ice hockey, aside from its minute rules, the basics are simple: two teams of five skaters and a goalie face off against one another trying to score more goals than their opponent. Watching an ice hockey game, one can quickly pick up on the basics and the electric atmosphere of a rowdy crowd makes it that much more fun to watch.
The game is entertaining, the energy is electric, and the sport itself is incredibly impressive. Not many can stand on ice skates let alone begin to skate, handle the puck, pass, shoot, and score, all while striding along ice on razor thin blades. Ice hockey is a sport of incredible coordination, dexterity, and speed.
For those possibly interested in trying out ice hockey, the St. Andrews Typhoons are an incredibly inclusive, tight-knit group. They welcome anyone from any skill level to come along to their weekly practices. The team has incredible camaraderie which they owe to the many bus rides together, locker room antics before and after practices and games, and of course the St. Andrews tradition of Wednesday sports socials.
The St. Andrews Typhoon’s season thus far has been a bit of an abridged version of what would be a normal ice hockey season. This year they have played only a handful of games due to difficulties with finding ice time because of ongoing covid restrictions.
Looking forward, the team is eagerly preparing for their important upcoming game against the Edinburgh Eagles for the Jonny Wookey Memorial Varsity Game. But they are also thinking long term and have their eyes on the British University Ice Hockey Association nationals tournament that will take place later in April.
Be sure to purchase a ticket to the Jonny Wookey Memorial Varsity Game!
Image: University of St. Andrews