The Cardiff Devils are delighted to complete their roster for the 2010/11 season by announcing the signings of two home-grown players.

Speedy forward Ben Davies will line up alongside another Welshman, defenceman Alex Symonds. Gerad Adams competed his import signings last week with top-quality defenceman Kenton Smith, brother of Mark (already signed to the Devils for the coming year).

Adams has now gone home to Canada for a short visit before the season begins in earnest for him and his team. Before he left he had this to say about his two latest Devils:

“Ben has thoroughly earned his chance of regular ice time by constantly working on his game and doing a great job stepping in to the line up when required over the last 3 seasons. A true testament to Ben’s drive to succeed is that despite being a full time member of the Devils squad, he still trained every week with the U-18’s and ENL sides that he played for when the Devils didn’t have a game. He even travelled back after this years Playoff semi-final to take part in an ENL game that evening before travelling back for the Final."

Bench coach Neil Francis added:
“Ben has never let his lack of size hamper him and, surprisingly, one of his strengths is being in the corners in the offensive end. You can see the frustrations build in much larger defensemen as he twists and turns them inside-out often resulting in them resorting to take a penalty on him.
He now has a great opportunity to play alongside some excellent line mates and take his game to the next level. The challenge for Ben this year is to maintain his offensive threat whilst developing the defensive side of his game and mature into a much more rounded, consistent performer. If he achieves this we will have a star on our hands.”

On fellow blueliner Symonds, Adams said, “Alex is fast maturing into a dependable D man and we feel he is ready to step up and take on the role that Jason Stone has made his own over the past couple of decades. He was unfortunate that circumstance meant that his time with Peterborough last season was cut short but that turned into a blessing for us as it allowed us the opportunity to bring him back to his roots.

Alex more than held his own last season and we were really pleased with how he has developed. He is getting stronger all the time and is willing to do all the unselfish things that often go un-noticed, except by his team-mates and coaches."

“Alex has a fantastic defensive unit to work with this year" added Francis, continuing, "observing guys like Mark Smith make the right plays time after time will help build his confidence and bring him on even further. Alex has the potential and the desire to be part of a very strong 6 man D unit and we are looking forward to working with him to achieve his goals."

The Devils organisation now turns its attention to the beginning of the season, with the Season launch dinner at the Holland House hotel Cardiff the first big date in the diary. Over 100 tickets have already been sold and 300+ are expected on the night to see the brand new Devils players, jerseys and pre-game entertainment. For your chance to attend the launch call Kelly on 0844 801 2010 or email sales@cardiffdevils.com