Telford Tigers’ boss Tom Watkins had mixed emotions despite seeing his team secure their third four-point weekend of the season to move three points clear at the top of the EPL.

Tigers won 5-4 after a shoot-out at Sheffield Steeldogs on Saturday and added a 3-2 victory over MK Lightning the following day, but Watkins believes his team can still improve.

“I think we were very close to losing at Sheffield – you’d like to think we would outwork and outperform a team that is short-benched,” said Watkins.

“They were gritty, they battled real hard, they showed more desire to win and Sheffield were really very unlucky.

“We took a dumb penalty at the end, with guys jumping on too early for changes, and that is the player’s responsibility.

“That put us on the back foot, they got another late goal and I think we were desperately lucky to get anything out of the game, let alone two points.

“It was nice to see us be physical against Lightning, as we didn’t really do that at all at Sheffield.

“It’s all about keeping a simple process and giving some keys for the guys to follow. Being physical and blocking shots is an absolute must for us.

“It was exciting, fun to watch and quite similar to the game we played against them in Milton Keynes a couple of weeks ago.

“There was lots of intensity from both sides, not much ice for guys to play in and I’m sure it was good to watch.”

(Image permission: Steve Brodie)