Belfast Giants

The Belfast Giants are an ice hockey club from Belfast, Northern Ireland that compete in the Elite Ice Hockey League. They play their home games at the 7,100 capacity Odyssey Arena.

Currently this season the Belfast Giants are sponsored by Coors Fine Light Beer and are know as The Coors Belfast Giants. Previous major sponsor was Harp Larger who sponsored the Belfast Giants in their first three seasons.

Sectarianism had long been seen as a significant problem in some sports in Northern Ireland such as football. When the club was established, the Giants were keen that the club not attach itself to a particular faith or community, instead wanting to represent Belfast as a whole.

A number of policies were subsequently introduced to try and ensure this. Particular clothing (such as football shirts) which might have displayed a person's political or religious affiliation were banned, flags were not permitted to be bought into the arena. The British national anthem, traditionally played before games at other arenas around the country, is not played before Giants games.

These policies have been successful and the Giants have quickly built a large and enthusiastic fanbase who did not have to fear the sectarianism that marred some other sports in the province.

Initially members of the now defunct Superleague, the Giants won the championship in 2001-02 and were play-off champions in 2002-03. With the Superleague's demise, there were concerns that the Giants would not survive because of major financial problems which had developed.

However, with the creation of the new Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) for the 2003-04 season, the Giants survived. The Giants finished 4th in the league's first season, but failed to reach the post-season play-offs..

The Giants finished runners up in the 2004-05 season behind the Coventry Blaze but were winners of the Cross-over League Cup, which was played with teams from the BNL.

In 2005, The Giants unveiled the biggest signing in the history of British ice hockey; NHL All-Star and Olympic Gold Medal winner, Theo Fleury. He made his debut against the Edinburgh Capitals. The Giants won 11-2, with Fleury scoring a hat-trick. With 4 additional assists, he was named man of the match.

Besides Fleury, several other players who previously played in the NHL have played for the Giants; Paul Kruse, Jason Ruff, Paxton Schulte, and Jason Bowen, Bowen and Kruse having played almost 600 games between them.

The Belfast Giants currently have 2 supporters clubs, one official and one un-official. The supporters clubs are; The Official Belfast Giants Supporters Club (OSC) and the Nixx Giants Supporters Club. Both supporters clubs appeal to different people though they co-operate to better support the Belfast Giants. There is also several popular fans websites/forums that also support the Belfast Giants in their own way - Kingdom of the Giants (KOTG) and Fortress Odyssey.

On March 5, 2006 The Giants were declared Elite League Champions for the 2005-06 season after 2nd placed Newcastle Vipers lost 5-2 to Edinburgh.

Facts

Sponsors: Coors Brewing Company (Primary Sponsor), Charles Hurst Usedirect (Secondary Sponsor), Zoom Airlines, FonaCab, David Lloyd Leisure, Belfast CityBeat 96.7FM, Michelin (Say No To Bullying & Adopt a School campaigns)

Founded: 2000 into the British Ice Hockey Superleague

Arena: Odyssey Arena (capacity 5,800 - 7,100)

Training Grounds: Dundonald International Ice Bowl(capacity 600+) & The Odyssey Arena (capacity 5,800+)

Uniform Colours: Jersey - Red, Black, White & Teal with 5 sponsor logos. Helmets - Black with Charles Hurst Usedirect logos and yellow tyre print sticker down center. Socks - Michelin patches below knee.

Logo Design: shows Finn McCool with a hockey stick.

Mascots: Gordie The Gorilla & Michelin Man (Say No To Bullying & Adopt a School campaigns)

Motto: In the land of the Giants, everyone is equal.

Notable Players

Current squad

Signings as of 11th October 2006

Goaltenders
Number		Player	Catches	Acquired	Place of Birth
34		Mike Minard	L	2005	Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada
31		Kevin Kelly	L	2006	Dublin, Republic Of Ireland

Defencemen
Number		Player	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
44		Todd Kelman	L	2000	Calgary, Alberta, Canada
77		Roman Gavalier	L	2004, 2006	Poprad, Slovakia
6		Leigh Jamieson	R	2003	Milton Keynes, England, U.K.
2		Jean Philippe (J.P.) Morin	L	2006	Gaspe, Quebec, Canada
18		Graeme Walton	R	2003	Belfast, Northern Ireland, U.K.

Forwards
Number		Player	Shoots	Position	Acquired	Place of Birth
14		Mark Dutiaume	L	C	2006	Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
17		Jason Ruff	L	LW	01/03/05/06	Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
71		Jeff Hutchins	L	C	2006	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
39		Curtis Huppe	R	RW	2004	Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
41		George Awada - C	R	RW	2004	St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A.
16		Marc Levers	R	C/RW	2004	Derby, England, U.K.
12		Shawn Skiehar - A	L	LW	2005	Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada
20		Mark Morrison - A	R	C	2003	Belfast, Northern Ireland, U.K.
15		Gareth Martin	R	RW	2003, 2006	Belfast, Northern Ireland, U.K.

Staff
Number		Player	Position	Acquired	Place of Birth
--		Ed Courtenay	Head Coach	2005	Montreal, Quebec, Canada
--		Jason Ruff	Player/Assistant Coach	2005	Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
--		Jason Ellery	Equip. Manager	2004	Cardiff, Wales, U.K.

Short-Term
Number		Player	Position	Acquired	Place of Birth
26		David Morrison	Defenceman	2006	Belfast, Northern Ireland, U.K.

Honoured Jersey Numbers

• 11 Colin Ward
• 27 Paxton Schulte

Captains

• 2000-02 Jeff Hoad
• 2002-03 Paul Kruse
• 2003-04 Jason Ruff
• 2004-05 Shane Johnson
• 2005-Pres George Awada

Franchise Scoring Leaders

These are the Top 10 Points Scoring Leaders for the Belfast Giants:

Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points

Player	POS	GP	G	A	Pts
Jason Ruff	LW	115	85	122	207
Todd Kelman	D	366	67	122	189
Curt Bowen	LW	219	84	103	187
Paxton Schulte	RW	233	81	101	182
Colin Ward	LW	233	84	93	177
Kevin Riehl	C	177	61	112	173
Curtis Huppe	RW	121	74	78	152
Shane Johnson	D	320	43	110	153
George Awada	RW	109	59	62	121
Rod Stevens	RW	176	67	65	132

Last Updated: 01/12/2006

Honours

• 2001-02 Superleague Champions
• 2002-03 Superleague Playoff Champions
• 2004-05 British Cross-League: 1st Place
• 2005-06 Elite League Champions

External links

• Coors Belfast Giants Official Website
• Belfast Giants Official Supporters Club
• Fortress Odyssey Belfast Giants Supporters Commumity
• Kingdom of the Giants
• Belfast Giants Fan Site
• Offical Elite Leauge Website