Tom Carlon – April 2011

With all the traditional speculation doing the rounds at this time of the year, we caught up with Tom Carlon to get the low down on his plans and his time with Phantoms ……….

I can appreciate you may not want to reveal all the details but can you confirm for definite whether you’ll be back in a Phantoms shirt next season ?

“Unfortunately, I can definitely confirm that I won’t be back in Peterborough next season !”

After the two cracking seasons in Peterborough, you’ve made yourself a very popular player with the fans here – I guess that must have made it a tough decision to make ?

“It was definitely one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make in hockey. I love the players there and I’ve made some very close friends, especially Wally and Yards. I also love the fans in Peterborough because they accepted me from the start and I can honestly say that Peterborough have one of the best sets of fans in the league.”

Looking back over your time here, what will you take with you as your highlights ?

“There’s been a few for me really – making it to Coventry and winning an end of season award this year are the two that probably stick out for me.”

….. and who were the individuals who influenced you most in your time here ?

“Dwayne Newman for definite – he is the ultimate professional and probably the nicest guy I’ve ever met and I’ve learnt a lot from him. Jeff Glowa is another one – the way he plays the game is great to watch and great to learn from – both ends of the ice he plays hard and smart. Jeff was one of the two reasons (the other being Z) that I had my highest ever point scoring season – he will always find you with a pass and makes everyone around him a better player.”

You had chance to play with Chris Allen in his brief time with Phantoms – how do you think he’ll get on in a player-coaching role and do you think it will be a popular move with the players here ?

“Its a shame to not see Cruicker back behind the Phantoms bench again but I liked Chris Allen – he is an incredible player with a lot of experience and I think his playing experience alone will help the team a lot. It will be a popular decision as Chris is a great guy and everyone will want to do well for him.”

For once, I can probably speak for the majority of the fanbase in saying thanks for what you have delivered over the last two seasons here Tom and we all wish you well wherever you end up. We will definitely give you merciless stick when you return but I’m pretty sure we’ll do it with a smile and with a lot of respect !

“Again, I’d like to just say that I’ve really enjoyed my time in Peterborough and it was a very difficult decision to leave but I have to do what is right for me. As I’ve said, I love the players I’ve played alongside and I’ve loved the fans I’ve played in front of. I know fans will probably think I was just jumping at the best money deal and that I don’t care about Peterborough but that is certainly not the case. There were just too many off ice issues in my two years there that I think have stopped us, as a team, playing to our full potential – we all give a lot of loyalty to the organisation and I don’t think it’s always returned. I’m certainly going to miss being a Phantom and I fully expect the Phantoms barmy army to give me a lot of abuse but I hope they know I appreciate the support they have given me !”

Thanks Tom.