Tigers fight hard but come up short
"Let's hope we sent them home with a message" - that's the rallying cry from TRS Telford Tigers boss Tom Watkins after his side salvaged a hefty dose of pride against Guildford Flames.
The county men suffered a 9-0 drubbing at the hands of Milton Keynes Lightning on Saturday night, as their miserly reputation suffered a blow.
But Sunday's visit of a big-spending Flames outfit was a chance for Telford to redeem themselves against one of the EPL's title favourites.
A 4-1 defeat condemned the Tigers to their second reverse of the weekend, but Watkins was happy to put the previous night's result to one side.
He said: "It was hard to take against Milton Keynes, but the Guildford game was a gutsy performance against a side that has a lot of talent.
"We pushed them to the wire and in the third period their goals came from our mistakes. That can be positive by looking at how solid out defence was. We didn't give away much and the goals came from breakdowns.
"It has been a tough few weeks for the team and it doesn't help when people get on our backs."
Tim Burrows was the scorer for Telford on Sunday, as the hosts rattled Guildford during a frenetic second period.
Those three late goals snuffed out any hopes of a surprise win, but Watkins is already looking forward to an early chance for revenge.
A quirk of the EPL fixture list has pencilled in a second visit from the Flames on Wednesday evening (7.30pm).
"Our guys are doing all they can for the team and they really appreciate the support from the stands," Watkins added.
"We had another loss, but we have to take all the positives we can out of everything we do. It won't be any easier when they come again on Wednesday. But let's hope we sent them home with a message that they'll have to come and play well."
Admission for Wednesday's game will be just £5.
Video courtesy of Howling Monkey Media
