Focussed Bremner proud to join 100 club

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In our youth sports days, we all bear dreams of what we’d like to achieve as we trawl through highlight reels of our favourite players and our favourite sports, but one young Australian had a sole focus on ice hockey right from the very beginning.
 
A young Jonathon Bremner spent some time in his youth searching up highlights of the Australian Ice Hockey League, which was at that time purely based on the east coast, and started to set his sights on one goal.
 
“I remember as a kid watching highlights of this eastern states league and wondering if one day I’d be good enough to play in it,” Bremner said, reflecting on his five-year AIHL career after notching his 100^th game in the league. “Just being a part of the league is an achievement for me.”
 
Last Sunday, Bremner became the fourth Thunder player to pass 100 AIHL games, having come from an inline hockey background, representing Australia at the Inline World Championships, and he expressed his pride in being a foundation player for the AIHL’s new western frontier.
 
“The club has come so far, it’s been good to be a part of the whole process,” Bremner said. “Each year we get more organised, more professional in the way that things are done behind the scenes and also on the ice.”
 
 “Having the Thunder enter the league and being able to play 100 games and play from the start, and to put up 50 points and be able to contribute has been cool for me. I’m proud of what’s happened here for the group and for myself as well.”
 
Having been involved in two previous AIHL finals campaigns with the Thunder and looking at the possibility of a third in 2016, Bremner said the success of the club has exceeded what many thought possible when the club first started competing nationally in 2012.
 
“I think we’ve probably exceeded expectations in the first five years,” Bremner said. “Some were a bit tentative about having a club out in the west, but I think we’ve brought a lot to the competition in terms of building a competitive team and getting good results.”
 
“We seem to be in the finals race every year; that’s what we want to continue to do, and it’s just a really fun time to be down at the rink these days, winning a lot of games.”
 
Bremner spoke highly of the Perth Thunder organisation and the progression that has been made off-ice in the five years the Thunder have been involved with the AIHL.
 
“As players, all you want for the time that you put in is to be looked after well by the club,” Bremner said. “Speaking with imports and locals alike, I think it’s lifted and we feel like we’re valued by the club and the commitment that we have has been rewarded.”
 
 
However, it’s not only the success and management of the club that drives Bremner to return year after year to compete in a mostly amateur league, saying the playing group and his enjoyment of the game drive his desire to keep playing.
 
“It’s the guys (that keep you coming back), being able to come to the rink four times a week and hang out with a group of players, a lot of whom I’ve been friends with for a long time playing hockey, playing in front of crowds around the country and the camaraderie that we have is really cool,” Bremner said.
 
“You have your working life, your friends from school and your hockey family. I rarely don’t have a smile on my face down at the rink because it’s such a laugh being around these guys.”
 
Bremner also lauded the Thunder’s junior system, saying each new batch of rookies always look to leave their mark on the team.
 
“You get new kids coming in every year who add certain things, and it’s never really the same from year to year.” Bremner said. “I hope it stays that way and I’ll keep playing so long as there’s that smile on my face when I’m down at the rink.”
 
Bremner didn’t want to focus on individual achievements when he was interviewed, but he did remember fondly the hat trick he scored against the Sydney Bears in 2013.
 
“I don’t have a whole lot of individual accolades to speak of, but scoring a hat trick in the league was pretty cool,” Bremner said.
 
You can get your tickets to watch Jonathon live in action against the CBR Brave on July 9-10 by clicking here.