New era in Fife continues with Russell behind bench

Photo: Rittner Baum

Fife Flyers confirmed on Wednesday evening the appointment of Jamie Russell as their new head coach.

With a new management team in place in Kirkcaldy, Russell is the next in what's expected to be a list of new names at the team. 

The 58-year-old Canadian joins the Flyers after spending a season with Ritten in the Alps League, and in Slovakia with Zvolen the year before. Prior to that he had coaches exclusively in North American with six years in the ECHL, and worked in the NCAA from 1994 to 2024. 

Commenting on his appointment, Russell said, "I am very excited to begin this new journey with the Fife Flyers! The new ownership group has been outstanding in developing a vision to return the Flyers to a level of pride and excellence. Max Birbraer is a legend in the EIHL, and his leadership will guide us to new heights.

"We are building a roster that will reflect the values you will find in the community of Kirkcaldy. We will attack games with an unyielding work ethic and passion. You will see players that have pride in pulling the Flyers sweater over their head. We intend to make the Fife Ice Arena one of the most challenging places to play in the league, with the home team known for its speed, grit and relentless style of hockey.

"I can't wait to meet the Flyers fans and work with them in a partnership to rebuild the pride in the oldest team in the UK."

GM Max Birbraer added: "I am extremely excited to be able to secure Jamie as our Head Coach & Associate GM. From the first conversation, I immediately felt we were exactly on the same page, not only about how hockey should be played, but the type of team we would like to build here in Fife.

"We both felt that this is a tremendous opportunity of having a blank canvas where we can put our own stamp on. The fact that Jamie has successfully undergone a full re-build process several times in his extensive career holds huge value as that’s exactly what is happening here in the Kingdom of Fife.

“As an Associate GM, Coach Russell has the creative power of putting together a team which reflects the identity of what truly is a hockey town. Hard work, passion, fearlessness, are just some of the building blocks of our new identity. We are planning to balance this with skill and entertainment which we think is a winning formula in terms of giving our diehard supporters the match night experience they deserve."