StormCast Episode 12 | There’s no place like home for Mikey

The journey back to the AO Arena has been a long time coming, with Manchester Storm set to return after 24 years away.

But no-one, it can be argued, has felt it more than Mike Morin.  A player during the club’s last stay there in late 90’s/early 2000’s, it’s a moment that really mean the world to him when Storm take on Sheffield Steelers in front of a record crowd on Sunday.

Now that the boards and glass are in, it’s feeling like a real hockey rink again,

Mike Morin, in the latest episode of StormCast, the club’s official podcast

I actually went and sat on the bench last week.  I looked up and thought ‘yeah, I remember this’ and looked over at the penalty box and remembered that too.

I also remember scoring some goals at one end then the other and fights in one of the corners.  It was nice just to sit there myself and remember a long time ago, but it all came back to me vividly.

The move from the Storm Shelter in Altrincham was announced at the end of April, giving fans and everyone involved at the club something to really look forward to in the new season.

But Mike admits when the idea was first put to him, he wasn’t convinced it would happen.

It was disbelief when it was first put to me... I actually didn’t think it was going to happen, mainly because of the infrastructure there had been long gone.

I kept thinking the job it would take would be immense, but in true Ryan and Emma Finnerty fashion, they set their mind to something and made it happen.

Work has been extensive in getting the AO Arena ready for Storm’s homecoming this weekend as some of the familiar sights Mike remembers from his old days reappear.

And while he has allowed himself some quiet moments of reflection in remembering some of the special times when he wore the Storm logo with pride, he’s enjoyed seeing it all come together again.

It’s no secret I’ve been talking about the old days since I started back with the Storm 11 years ago.  Dallas (Ehrhardt) and Ryan are probably sick to death of me talking about how things used to be and how loud it used to be.

I’ve been down at the arena more or less every day for the last month, watching it take shape, going back to the way it used to be.

It’s very different to what it was like a few weeks ago when there was nothing in there.  Now, the transformation is profound.

I walked into that building quite a few months ago with the idea that we were going to come back.  You look at it different than when you go to a concert.  It’s all hands to the pump, it’s all very exciting.

For me, to go back to where it all started, is a really special thing.

Hear more from club legend, Mike Morin, in the latest episode of StormCast which is available now wherever you get your podcasts. Download, subscribe and listen now!👇

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