“Go win the game” – that was the dressing room instruction from Tigers chief Tom Watkins, as his side turned the tables to beat Manchester Phoenix 4-3 at Telford Ice Rink.
The county men were trailing 2-1 at the end of the second period on Saturday night, with the Phoenix having survived a 29-shot barrage from Telford’s forwards.
But in a breathless third session, The Tigers took advantage of a string of Manchester penalties to score three powerplay goals – sealing their second win of the weekend.
And Watkins hailed his side’s reaction to that period break call as a key reason behind their latest success.
He said: “I told the guys to go win the game. We were right there at 2-1 and had some good chances to score. There were a couple of lucky breaks and we made some bad decisions that gave them the chance to capitalise.
“They played pretty short with two lines for most of the night and our energy probably gave us some help with the official. We kept our feet moving, got held up and then had a couple of good calls.”
Telford took the lead after 16 minutes against Manchester, thanks to a goal from Max Birbraer, before the visitors equalised with a powerplay strike on 31 minutes.
The Phoenix snatched the lead just moments later, before Watkins’ men turned the tide of the game with those three powerplay goals after the break.
Captain Jason Silverthorn equalised on 48 minutes, before Peter Szabo handed his side the lead two minutes later.
Rick Plant scored Telford’s fourth goal with seven minutes remaining – but the game wasn’t without further drama, as Manchester struck for a third time in the closing stages.
Watkins added: “Our special teams are really important to us. Last night we won the game on two powerplay goals and we didn’t concede anything on our penalty kill.
“It was the same again tonight when we had three powerplay goals. Unfortunately we gave up one on the penalty kill, but I thought we were still excellent in that area.
“Three games in three days is tough, and I had to shorten the bench a bit tonight. The guys will be feeling it, but you know what? That’s what they’re here to do.
“They’re here to play and win, and I was really pleased we got the two points tonight. I was really pleased we got the points last night as well, but the weekend isn’t over.”
The Tigers travel to Berkshire tomorrow night, when they take on Bracknell Bees in their third game of the weekend.
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