Olympian, field hockey legend and NIHL South Division 1 All-Star Ashley Jackson is both returning to the ice and to the Invicta Dynamos for the 2021/22 season with the 33 year old agreeing terms in Kent for the upcoming campaign.
Ashley Jackson trained in Gillingham as a junior but it was in field hockey that he would go on to make his name – the talented sportsman excelling on the AstroTurf to become arguably the nation’s greatest hockey star.
Alongside success at club level, Jackson featured for England and Great Britain on the international stage with appearances at the Commonwealth and Olympic games and he secured his place in the history books with more goals for his country than any other player.
Despite his incredible field hockey success, Jackson maintained his love of ice hockey and he briefly returned to the sport with the Invicta Dynamos in 2014/15 where he showed that his talents also translated to the pad with 7 points in 8 games.
In 2016/17 he then signed full time and was a hugely influential player as the team secured the NIHL Southern Playoff title. In 35 outings the forward tallied an impressive 62 points – 27 of those were goals with the remaining 35 being assists.
Post season the club’s supporters voted him their Player of the Year and he was also selected by his peers across the league for the NIHL South All Star line-up.
In 2017/18 Jackson switched to the Basingstoke Bison but he would finish the year back in Kent where he secured another 25 points in 28 games despite the Mos enduring a challenging campaign as they were forced into Britain’s second tier.
Since then the cultured forward spent half a term with Raiders IHC in 2018/19 before taking to the ice for the same side again in the Spring Cup whilst the regular season was halted by Covid in 2020/21.
Now though he is set for a full time return to the Dynamos where his abilities are sure to boost the side’s roster ahead of the much anticipated hockey restart in September.
Speaking on the capture of Ashley Jackson, Player-Coach Anthony Leone said, “I’m very happy to have been able to bring Ash back to the Mos. Obviously we have played together before and we were together again during the Spring Cup with the Raiders so I know exactly the calibre of sportsman and person we’re getting.”
“Ash is a dedicated athlete with a fantastic level of professionalism and masses of invaluable experience. On the ice he has excellent vision and a great understanding of the game. Off the ice he gets on great with the whole team, is a positive influence on the other guys and a key part of the changing room.”
“I am very confident he will have a big part to play for us in 2021/22 and look forward to working with him again.”
Asked what brought him back to ice hockey and to the Dynamos Ashley Jackson said, “I’ve always tried to be on the ice as much as I can when my hockey allowed me to be. I just love the game and this time around it’s not only nice to come back home but I’ll also be able to train and play as much as possible around my schedule.”
“I’ve had some great times here. Playing a home tie against Chelmsford over the Christmas period in front of a full crowd with the barn rocking still goes down as one of my favourite sporting memories from all over the world. Obviously winning the playoffs in 16/17 was also a highlight as was being part of the legends game too.”
Speaking on his hopes for the season Jackson added, “I’d really love to help recreate the atmosphere we’ve had in the past with a full and loud crowd getting behind the team and helping us compete for trophies.”
“On a personal level I just want to be as good as I can be and hopefully bring others with me too. If we enjoy being together as a group and doing what we do it will result in a lot of wins. Every one of us has had a few long years now and I can’t wait to get back playing in front of our fans again”.
Ashley Jackson will wear the number 51 shirt when the new season gets underway in September.
Picture supplied by Dave Trevallion.