NEWS: Clan announce leadership group

Glasgow Clan, sponsored by Aspray Glasgow West are delighted to announce their leadership group for the 2021/22 season.

Dyson Stevenson has been designated the ‘C’ while Matt Haywood, Cody Sol and Mikko Vainonen will all be alternate captains.

The announcement comes as Clan prepare for their first Premier Sports Elite League game on Sunday when they take on Belfast Giants.

New captain Stevenson is proud to be given the ‘C’, but insists his game won’t change with the extra responsibility.

“It’s a massive honour to be selected as captain of the Glasgow Clan,” he said. “It’s exciting to be recognised as a leader, but I won’t change my game because of it.

“If anything, it just makes me play harder and want to put my teammates before myself even more.

“We have plenty of leadership on the team and as a leader, I’m not overly loud in the room, but I feel I show my leadership mostly on the ice with hard work and always putting my teammates first.

“That said, if something needs to be said in the room, I am not afraid to say it and keep myself and my teammates accountable.

“I’m excited for the season to start and from being around the guys the first two weeks you can tell we have a great close group of guys.

“That, for me, is a major key to success in winning hockey games.”

Matt Haywood, the club’s longest serving player, spoke of his pride at being part of the leadership group for the coming season.

“It’s always an honour to be given a role like this,” he said. “As everyone knows, I’ve been here for a long time and this is something that is always a special privilege.

“The team have been great to work with so far and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do under Malcolm this year.”

Defenceman Cody Sol is keen to use his extra responsibility as an experienced player to help his team-mates.

“It’s always an honour to wear a letter,” he said. “I strive in being a locker room guy, and doing what I need to do on the ice for my teammates.

“As an older guy you learn a lot along your career, I want to use that to help our team grow.

“I’m excited about our team, we have a good group of guys and can’t wait to get started on Sunday with the boys.

Making up the group is Finnish defenceman Mikko Vainonen and he’s relishing his new role with the team.

“I’m very happy and honoured to be given this opportunity,” he said. “We have a great group of guys here and I hope we can have a lot of success this season.

“I’m proud to be made an assistant captain of this team and I’ll looking forward to the challenges we’ll face together.”

Head coach Malcolm Cameron is pleased with his picks for the respective roles and believes they will be real assets for him and the team.

“It’s my pleasure to pick Dyson to be our captain as well as Cody, Matt and Mikko as alternates,” he said.

“Dyson was my captain at Wichita Thunder so I know exactly the qualities he’ll bring in that particular role.

“He’s a guy who’s well respected in the room, will say the right things and lead by example on any given night so it was a choice I was more than comfortable with.

“For my alternates, Matty Haywood is a stalwart of this team and knows it like the back of his hand. He has so much respect, which you see straight away, that makes him a logical choice.

“Cody and Mikko are also two players with plenty of experience and I’ve seen first hand already what they bring in terms of leadership and a drive to succeed.

“They carry that on to the ice with pride and I know the rest of the guys will respond to them positively too.”