Telford blank Wildcats, 5-0

The Tigers regained crucial momentum at the top of the English Premier League with a 5-0 demolition of Swindon Wildcats.

But those celebrations – as well as the game itself – were cut short when Scott McKenzie was taken to hospital with an injury in the third period.tigswin2

The 28-year-old did, however, return home on Sunday evening following treatment.

Sunday night’s win leaves Telford 15 points clear at the top of the league, despite their loss to Peterborough Phantoms on Saturday.

The Tigers now need to win just seven of their remaining 12 league games, to be mathematically certain of their first title in 27 years.

Tigers General Manager, Paul Thomason, said the main concern was for McKenzie’s condition.

He said: “It is too early to say how he is, but he was rushed straight to hospital and we all want to make sure he is okay.

“The third period was quite scrappy, but nobody is to blame for that.

“I have never seen it happen before, but fair play to the referee and Swindon. They made the call to end the game, we agreed and it was the right decision.

“It was done to make sure Scott was okay. I think he was partially unconscious on the bench, so it was right that we ran the clock down while he was treated.”

A five-minute spell in the first period saw Telford build a three-goal lead, thanks to Jason Silverthorn, Peter Szabo and Rick Plant.tigswin1

The hosts extended that advantage in the second session, with strikes from Blaho Novak and Martin Ondrej.

On Saturday night, meanwhile, a three-goal burst in the first eight minutes looked to have won the game for Peterborough, as they blocked Telford’s efforts to gain a foothold.

It wasn’t until the 54th minute that Rick Plant gave his side hope of staging a comeback, with Scott McKenzie adding a second in the closing stages.

A dramatic end to the game saw Watkins pull netminder Tom Murdy, but it wasn’t enough to stop The Tigers from falling to their fifth defeat of the season.

“Peterborough is always a tough place to go and it was like playing on a ploughed field,” he added.

“We were on the ropes in the first period and killed a lot of penalties. That made it very difficult to come back.”

The Tigers return to action on Wednesday night, when they travel to face Guildford Flames in the semi-final of the British Challenge Cup.

Next Saturday, they are also on the road with a trip to Milton Keynes, before hosting the Lightning at Telford Ice Rink on Sunday (5.30pm).

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