44 Mark Thomas

• Position: D
• Height: 6.00
• Weight: 189
• Born: Jul. 23, 1983
• Birthplace: Manchester,
• Home: Stockport,

Bio:
"Tomo" returns to the Steelers for his 7th season and alongside Jason Hewitt is the clubs longest serving player. The Steelers benefited from the London Knights folding mid way through the 05-06 season picking up both Hewitt and Thomas following the arrival of new player coach Dennis Maxwell. Thomas was the British defenseman that the Steelers didn't have and he quickly became an irreplaceable asset to the team. In fact it was the arrival of the two Manchurians that began the Steelers influx of quality home grown talent which in turn led to the recent run of great success the club has had "The most underrated player we have, maybe the league has" says head coach Ryan Finnerty "ever reliable, ever present, top lad on the ice great team guy and character off it. A lot of people look to the top end imports and the big name stars, but look what we have achieved with Tomo over the years. He is as big a reason why this club does well as anyone. His humour off the ice keeps guys in place, his double act with Hewey is priceless to this club "He has shown us and the rest of the league that he can play in all situations. David Matsos and Ben Simon trusted him in all situations. I will as well, he is one of the guys I look to for leadership. He is no longer a young kid on the team filling a place. Tomo is here to help us develop and to help us win" Thomas was another later starter to the game and had a short spell in Haringey before joining his home town club Manchester as they played their first year in the Elite League back in 2003. Maxwell spotted the potential and 2 seasons (77 games) with London followed. With Maxwell's transfer to Sheffield confirmed it wasn't long before Thomas arrived at the Arena to begin the start of a fantastic career with the Steelers "I might come from Manchester but I'm a Steeler through and through. I couldn't have joined a better club and I couldn't have joined them at a better time. It was at the start of a great period, a period we are still in and wanting to continue. Sheffield gave me a great platform, I'm now a National team player, I have a silver and Bronze medal from the World Championships, I have played my part in a team that has won two league championships and two play off finals. Who would have thought that when I started the game. I love the game of hockey and I love being a Steeler.