Manchester Phoenix Managing Director Neil Morris is upbeat and confident that the club will be playing ice hockey in Manchester from the start of the 2005-06 season.

In an interview on the club's website, Morris outlined the plans that are in place for the development of a new ice rink at the Sportcity site in East Manchester, although he pointed out that the club are still exploring opportunities with two other local authorities.

Morris told interviewer Richard Allan that 60 per cent of the players who were contracted for this season have now been placed with other clubs. Captain George Awada has gone to Belfast, netminder Jayme Platt, regarded by many as the best in the Elite League last season, has gone to arch-rivals Sheffield, and British hard man Mark Thomas will play for London Racers. Other players, he said, have opted to play locally at a lower level.

Morris also confirmed that, unfortunately, Phoenix will no longer have first claims on these players when the team re-forms. He was also unable to confirm that coach Paul Heavey, who joined Phoenix towards the end of last season and who has now been appointed coach at Paisley Pirates, would return to the new team.

He was non-committal on the subject of a possible merger between the Elite Lerague and the British National League, but said that negotiations were at an advanced stage to appoint a Public Relations company to act on behalf of the league, while a couple of Phoenix's British players who had stayed in the area were active in schools roadshows and hockey training clinics.

Morris said that he still remained 100 per cent committed to the cause of top-flight ice hockey in Manchester, but admitted that setting up the club and steering it through the last twelve months was the hardest thing he's ever done.

The full interview can be seen on www.manchesterphoenix.co.uk.