Murrayfield Racers 'working hard to ice a competitive team' amid uncertainty over future

Murrayfield Racers are in discussions with Murrayfield Ice Rink over securing the necessary ice time to compete in this season's SNL.

Final preparations are taking place for the return of the SNL, which has been in abeyance since the pandemic forced the league to shut down in March last year, but doubts remain over Racers’ participation due to difficulty securing the required ice time at Murrayfield Ice Rink.

The situation has led the Edinburgh side to lose key players in recent weeks with Scott Boyd and Ethan Reid both confirming their departures amid the ongoing uncertainty.

Racers have issued a statement in a bid to reassure supporters over their intentions to compete in the 2021-22 campaign, but the club also admit the current situation does not look positive.

"Obviously, things are a bit unsettling at the moment with Racers’ players heading elsewhere and the uncertainty over the upcoming campaign," the statement read.

"Firstly, we can confirm that club officials have been liaising with other clubs to secure ice time for some players while we strive to resolve our future.

"As things stand, we are awaiting clarity regarding ice-time for next season and confirmation regarding the league structure in Scotland.

"Given that we are unable to offer firm assurances about either of those elements at this moment in time, it is only natural that players want to secure their short-term future and the club have been helping with this process.

"However, please be assured that club management are working hard behind the scenes to ensure that the Racers will be on the ice in 2021/22.

"Thank you to all our fans for your continued patience. We know things don’t look positive at the moment, but we are 100 per cent committed to icing a competitive team this season.

"Please keep the faith and we will hopefully be able to issue a more promising update over the coming weeks."

In a statement released on August 21, Scottish Ice Hockey confirmed that final planning for the 2021/22 SNL season was underway.

"The deadline for clubs to confirm their intentions has passed and we can now begin the process of organising fixtures for the upcoming campaign," it read. "The composition of each league and fixtures will be announced in due course."

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