The Billingham Stars are an ice hockey team from the town of
Billingham
Billingham is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England. The town is on the north side of the River Tees and is governed by Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council. The settlement had previously formed i ...
in the borough of
Stockton-on-Tees in
County Durham. They are currently members of the
National Ice Hockey League
The National Ice Hockey League (NIHL) is a set of professional ice hockey leagues administered by the English Ice Hockey Association. It is currently the second tier of British ice hockey, below the Elite Ice Hockey League. Formerly called th ...
playing in its Moralee Conference. The Stars play their home games at the
Billingham Forum.
The Stars are currently coached by ex-Durham Wasps players Robert Wilkinson and Stephen Foster.
Notable ex-Billingham players include current GB International and
Sheffield Steelers
The Sheffield Steelers are a professional ice hockey team located in Sheffield, England. They were formed in 1991 (see 1991 in sport) and play their home games at the Utilita Arena. They are currently a member of the Elite Ice Hockey League. ...
Robert Dowd and
Patrice Lefebvre
Patrice Lefebvre (born June 28, 1967) is a Canadians, Canadian-born Italian former ice hockey player. Lefebvre played three games in the National Hockey League for the Washington Capitals during the 1998–99 NHL season.
Biography
Lefebvre was bo ...
who went on to play 3 games in the
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
for the
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...
.
History
The Billingham Bombers were founded in 1971 as members of the
Northern League. In 1982 they became a founder member of the
British Hockey League
The British Hockey League was the top-flight ice hockey league in the United Kingdom from 1980 until 1996 (with a short break between 1981 and 1982), when it was replaced by the Ice Hockey Superleague and the British National League. The league r ...
and changed their name to the Cleveland Bombers. Between 1991 and 1995 the team played under the name of the Teesside Bombers before reverting to their original name. Between 1982 and 1986 and again between 1990 and 1994, the Bombers played in the Premier League, the top flight division of British ice hockey at the time.
In more recent times the Bombers won the English League Northern section regular season championship and Northern section play off championship during the 2005–06 season.
The Billingham Bombers did not compete in any league due to a refurbishment of their home venue
TFM Radio Ice Arena in the 2009/10 and 2010/11 seasons
Ice Hockey returned to the forum in the 2011/12 seasons after merging with the
Northern Stars
Northern Stars are a New Zealand netball team based in South Auckland. Since 2017 they have competed in the ANZ Premiership. The team was named after the Matariki star cluster which is also featured on the team's logo. They were grand finali ...
who were facing problems with their home rink, the
Metro Radio Arena
The Utilita Arena Newcastle (formerly the Newcastle Arena, Telewest Arena and Metro Radio Arena) is a large indoor arena in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Owned and operated by ASM Global and sponsored by Utilita Energy, it hosts mu ...
. The new club was renamed Billingham Stars.
In 2011/12, the club's first season back following two seasons away from Ice Hockey, Billingham Stars were successful in their attempt to become champions of the English National League, Northern Division. The Championship was finally won with the penultimate league match, at home to
Trafford Metros in a 2–2 draw, giving Billingham the final point required to ensure the title.
In 2012/13 Billingham Stars finished as runners up to
Solway Sharks
The Solway Sharks are the only senior ice hockey club in South West Scotland or Cumbria and play out of Dumfries Ice Bowl, King Street, Dumfries, Scotland.
In the 2015–16 season the Sharks played in the English National Ice Hockey League No ...
for both the League and Cup as well as runners up to the Blackburn Hawks in the end of season playoffs.
In 2013/14 season Billingham finished the season in 3rd position and were knocked out of the end of season Playoffs by 2nd placed Blackburn Hawks.
In the 2014/15 season Billingham finished 2nd to Blackburn Hawks, whilst also making the end of season playoff finals at Dumfries, Scotland. Billingham Stars lost the playoff final game vs Blackburn Hawks.
In 2015/16 season Billingham failed to make the Playoffs finishing in 5th position. However, as a consolation they did win the Northern Cup Competition.
Club roster 2022-23
(*) Denotes a Non-British Trained player (Import)
2021/22 Outgoing
Retired Numbers
Club Records
League titles
*ED1: 2 (1998/99, 1999/00)
*ENL: 3 (2000/01, 2005/06, 2011/12)
Play-Off Titles
*ED1 Playoffs: (1998/99)
*ENL Playoffs: 3 (2000/01, 2011/12)
Cup Titles
*NIHL Northern Cup: (2015/16)
Individual Records
*Most Games Played: Paul Windridge (569)
*Most Goals Scored (All Time): Paul Windridge (367)
*Most Assists (All Time): Paul Windridge (712)
*Most Points Scored (All Time): Paul Windridge (1,079)
*Most Penalty Minutes (All Time): Scott Ward (644)
*Most Goals Scored in a Season: John Hutchings (120) (1987/88)
*Most Assists in a Season: Pat Mangold (136) (1987/88)
*Most Points Scored in a Season: Pat Mangold (252) (1987/88)
*Most Penalty Minutes in a Season: Ricky Box (187) (2006/07)
References
A to Z Encyclopedia of Ice HockeyElite Prospects - Billingham Stars Roster & Stats*''Nottingham Panthers Statistical History 1946–2000'' by Mick A. Chambers
External links
Official Website of the Billingham Stars
{{stockton
Ice hockey teams in England
Billingham
Sport in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees