Flames form not a shock to Telford Tigers skipper
Tigers captain Jason Silverthorn isn’t surprised by the form shown by Guildford Flames in this season’s English Premier League play-offs.
Telford make the trip south on Wednesday night for their return encounter with the Flames following last week’s 3-0 loss in Shropshire.
The EPL champions remain in contention for a top-two spot in their group, however, following weekend wins over Peterborough and Sheffield.
And Silverthorn is expecting another testing night at the Guildford Spectrum.
He said: “Guildford have had a disappointing season, by their own standards, but when it comes to the play-offs, it is anyone’s game. You show up for six games, play the right way and anything can happen.
“They came in here last week, played a good game and turned us over, but that didn’t surprise us. We knew they were a good team coming through and when you have that extra incentive in the play-offs, it’s all to play for.
“It is more of a sprint. If teams catch fire and play the right way over a shorter time, they can get into the final four-weekend and anything can happen.
“Guildford came out and played the way we thought they would all year long, so we’re prepared for that and we’ll be ready to go.”
Silverthorn has been one of the club’s top scorers in winning the EPL title this season, bagging 71 points on a line with Milan Kolena and Rick Plant.
The former Cardiff Devils star believes the strength in depth of Telford’s squad has been a key part of that championship success.
He added: “Whenever you go into a season, you never want to be loaded on just one line. The depth we’ve had this year has given us the chance to play three strong lines
“In years past, we’ve maybe only had one line going, but now we’ve got three good lines and it is hard for teams to match against that. It helps to make us an even more dangerous opponent.
“It is good to know you’ve always got guys chipping in, up and down the line-up, and that is what championship teams have. You don’t have to rely on a few guys, you can rely on the bench.”
Victory for Telford would see them move closer to a place at next month’s play-off finals, with the top team and runners-up from each four-team group qualifying.
The Tigers go on to play Peterborough away on Saturday night, before Sunday’s final home game of the season against Sheffield Steeldogs (6pm).
Go to www.tigershockeyuk.com for tickets.
