Sheffield Steelers' old boys salute legend as he skates back into the English game

Hand lit up Sheffield's scoreboard in a memorable period from 1995 to 1999, before heading back north to Ayr Scottish Eagles.

He was the consummate performer who had a reputation for unselfishly teeing up linemates to finish his offensive move.

The league and play-off winning Scot has now been appointed Head Coach at Whitley Warriors, where the former Great Britain hero is also hoping to help the sport flourish at the grassroots level.

Hand was an early-day version of current South Yorkshire superstar Liam Kirk, in the sense he was that rare breed of Brit that was drafted into the NHL.

In 245 outings at Sheffield, the IIHF Hall of Famer recorded a breath-taking 151 goals and 273 assists for 424 points.

He is Steelers' seventh all-time points scorer.

Now after four seasons running the bench at Murrayfield Racers, the 55-year-old is back south of the border, bringing his expertise to the NIHL 1, the league in which Sheffield Scimitars play.

Former Sheffield coach Alex Dampier (1993-98) said he was delighted his old player was back contributing to English hockey.

Old Steeler forwards like Scott Allison, Ivan Matulik, and Paddy O'Connor were similarly quick to congratulate him.

Hand, whose number 16 shirt was retired alongside Ken Priestlay's number 9, 20 years ago, said he was "delighted to be appointed Head Coach.

"My job now will be to build the squad for the challenges ahead.

"It will not be easy and will take time but my aim is to get there and build a legacy in Whitley Bay. I will be reaching out to players old and new to outline my vision for the team and get them on board with the journey.

“We will work in partnership with the juniors to create a pathway for good local talent into the Warriors setup, as that must be the future of the club.”

Whitley Bay Rink Management issued a statement saying: “Tony is arguably one of the best players Britain has produced and with him comes a wealth of knowledge and extensive coaching experience.

"We are confident with Tony at the helm, the Warriors will be challenging for league and cup trophies."

Hand made his senior debut icing for Murrayfield Racers in 1981 at the age of 14 and went on to amass over 4,000 points.

Hand was drafted by Edmonton Oilers in the 12th round of the 1986 NHL draft, making him the first British player to do so, icing alongside Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier.

Meanwhile, swish defenceman Jérémy Beaudry, who played with distinction for Sheffield in the EIHL Series of 2020-21, won't be on Steelers' shopping list this season.

He has signed a contract extension with Slovakian outfit HK Spisska Nova Ves.

Beaudry scored more goals than any other defenceman in the EIHL Series.