New head coach Karl Lennon is in at the deep end as the Invicta Dynamos start their season against the champions.

The Mos head to last season’s league and cup winners Streatham on Saturday for the first game of the 2022/23 season, beginning with a Southern Cup encounter. On Sunday they welcome Junior Raiders to Planet Ice, Gillingham, for their first NIHL South Division 1 match under the new coach.

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Lennon is looking to reset the club after a few tough years and “bring back the winning culture”. He’s put together a younger team, one with a more local emphasis, but with a smattering of top talent for the level.

“I can’t wait,” he said. “For me, if you are not trying to compete with the best guys, you are not competing at all.

“We don’t want to just take part, we want to really get involved at the business end of the table this year.

“Obviously we had a lot of games with them (Streatham) last year and with exception to a couple of fixtures, where we played poorly, there were some very close encounters.

“There is definitely something there in the making and as a squad we are definitely stronger this year.

“I think we also have some more positive attitudes in the squad as well, which will help us massively going to a tough place to play.

“The season is long, but for us it is about closing that gap and managing expectations. We finished sixth last year, we are not expected to finish first this year. We would love to, but we need to take a step towards that.

“We have some really talented individuals. I think more importantly they are collectively working hard together in training and I don’t see why we shouldn’t be aiming for higher than we placed last year.”

Lennon has some experienced goalscoring talent at his disposal, with Stanislav Lascek and Juraj Huska skating for the Mos, but has put a big emphasis on emerging local talent, too. Both Ed Stedman and Matty Bell have agreed two-way deals from the Invicta Mustangs.

A strong connection between the two teams was something Lennon was quick to develop and he’s keen to help the players in Ali Rogers’ Mustangs team get higher-level exposure.

The Dynamos coach said: “We identified four or five areas where we struggled last year. A, there wasn’t enough people and B, we had quite an old roster compared with the teams in the division. We took far too many penalties, which in hockey can really kill you as a team.

“The three main focuses in recruitment was to lower the age, gain a few more bodies and pick players who really don’t take silly penalties. We have done that, which is great, and we have picked up one of the outstanding imports from our competition, Stanislav Lascek.

“Juraj Huska has been here for a while now, he has turned 40 and his career is winding down. Age is important, but only in the right places. Experience is also great and we have got a lot of younger players who can learn a lot from him.”

Mos’ home game against Raiders starts at 5.15pm. Tickets are available online or from reception before or on the day, priced at £12.50 adults, £10.50 over-60s, students with NUS cards £10, £5 for 5-14 years and free for under-5s. Family tickets (2+2) cost £33.

The club have a temporary restriction on numbers at Planet Ice whilst work at the venue is completed and have encouraged fans to purchase tickets in advance, saying: "In order to avoid disappointment, we would strongly encourage all supporters to purchase their tickets via the online booking system. This will enable the club to manage the situation as effectively as we can."