The Swedish football season is drawing to an end, with daytime temperatures in Lulea already dropping to around zero. The alternatives in the Swedish winter appear to be ice hockey, or simply ‘hockey’ over here, and basketball. I’m happy to watch most sports and had already checked to see when the fixtures coincided with my business trips.
Lulea seems to be a hockey town, rather than football, although that may very well be true of most places in Sweden. The local allegiance to the puck, rather than the ball, was strengthened by Lulea winning last season’s domestic championship. That’s an impressive feat for a small town close to the arctic circle.
The league title meant that this year Lulea would also play in the Champions League. I managed to pick up tickets online for a fixture with an Italian side at Lulea’s Coop Norbotten Arena.
The group stage of the Champions League was drawing to a close with each side needing a win to progress to the knockout rounds. The international competition isn’t as popular as the domestic league and despite the six thousand capacity arena was announced as being half-full, it seemed quieter than that.
For those of you not familiar with the format, hockey is played over three twenty-minute sessions, with an eighteen-minute break between each period. That’s pretty much the perfect timetable to punctuate the action with regular beers.
It was a close game. Lulea went two goals up but were pegged back and a late Bolzano equalizer took the game to overtime. When this happens, the teams drop from six players to four and play next goal the winner. The extra space on the ice meant that it was never likely to go too long and Lulea sealed the win just fourteen seconds after the restart. It’s not as good as football, but it’s a pleasant way to spend a winter’s evening.
Trail of the Lion King 