Ahead of the new Elite League season starting this Saturday in Longford we sat with, James Glover, Head Coach of the Northern Cyclones and Ireland Men's National Team. As last season's League 1 champions the Cyclones are back in the top division after a 2 year absence.

How are you looking forward to the step up to Elite League? What are your expectations/targets?

Everyone is looking forward to getting back to the Elite League. We opted to play in League 1 last year as our team was re-building but for any player they want to compete at the highest level, and our guys are no exception. It's good to have the Cyclones back competing in the top division.

We are a team that always wants to win, and we have an expectation to compete. Making up the numbers isn’t an option.

It sounds very cliche, but we are literally preparing to take one game at a time and give each team the respect they deserve. There are a lot of good teams in the Elite league this season and every game will be a battle. Everyone has the ability of beating anyone team on their day.

How has preparation been? Any differences from last year? Anything learnt from the World Championships this summer you are taking into club preparations?

Our preparations have been pretty much the same as they always are. Our players go away and do their own thing over the summer and its really only in the last month we have started skating again. The PBS Charity Shield tournament at the weekend was a good opportunity to get some games under our belts and we had some success which was encouraging.

It was interesting when we came up against the Chiefs, who had a strong concentration of Team Ireland players. That game was a little bit more of a chess match with both teams playing a structured system and there wasn’t as much of the 'run and gun’ style that is often seen in Ireland for the last lot of years. I think the sooner we can get every team approaching league games in a similar mind set it will help with the development of the sport and the progression for our national teams.

What teams do you view as being the most difficult to play against this season?

I think every team will provide a challenge. Some teams will be well organised, some will have excellent individual players and some will have it all. I expect last years top teams to be at the top again this season. The Pelicans and Rebels will be right there come the end of the season and perhaps unluckily for us we play them both in the opening round of fixtures. What a great way to get going.

Midland Thunder are an exciting team. Janis Kipars has them well coached and with so many young players they bring a lot of energy. It will be interesting to see how they get on. Kilkenny Storm are the same. They have added some young guys who will be getting their first taste of playing in the Elite League, so they can't be underestimated.

The Rileys are a team I don’t know much about. I wasn’t playing the last time they were involved in the league so I will have to do some homework where they are concerned. As for Cork and Bangor, they both have a ton of experienced players, so you know you are getting a game when you go up against either of them.

Any new additions to the Cyclones roster for the season? What will they bring to your team?

We have added Stephen Lynch and Robbie Brown to our Elite roster this season. I think Lynch is one of the best defensemen in the league and he can contribute on the score sheet too. He’s was one of the founding members of the Cyclones back in the day and its good to have him back in teal this season.

Robbie has a ton of ice hockey experience and is now transitioning into inline. He has over 100 games playing in the top leagues in England and has won the EIHL playoffs with the Belfast Giants. You can see when he is on the puck he has great hands and a really good shot. Good luck if you end up going one on one against him.

Thanks for taking the time James, all the best with the season ahead!