Ellwyn Dawkins 1982 - 1987
Playing Participant in the Legends of Peterborough event March 16th 2008

Ellwyn Dawkins can lay claim to having played in the first ever hockey game in Peterborough, a non-regulation exhibition game on 23rd May 1982 …… but he was playing against Pirates for the Streatham Bruins in a game where Streatham had to lend the Pirates a spare set of red shirts !

It wasn’t until the latter stages of the following season that Ellwyn jumped ship to join Pirates where he established himself in time to be an ever present in Pirates championship winning 1984/85 season, an achievement he repeated in the Unger/McEwen/Bidner inspired championship winning 1986/87 season, scoring his one and only Pirates goal in the process.

Ellwyn was one of the first cult heros amongst Pirates fans. He was a tough no-nonsense D-man but, above all else, he was a scary guy on the ice …… Peterborough hockey’s first enforcer. A timely shift from Ellwyn, a quiet word and many an opposition bad guy was suddenly rendered harmless. People still talk about the day Ellwyn took on the ultimate bad boy, Barons Charlie “Chuck” Taylor, and put him on his backside. You simply didn’t do that to Taylor but Ellwyn did …… and the cheers are still reverberating around the rafters today !

Still very much involved in and contributing to Peterborough hockey today as a well respected Development coach, Ellwyn’s appearance on the 16th March is sure to bring a special and well deserved cheer.