SWINDON Wildcats must come out and play harder if they are to win hockey games according to head coach Ryan Aldridge.

The Cats were on the wrong-end of a 7-2 rout as they lost their second game in less than a week to Peterborough Phantoms.

Aldridge, clearly smouldering after watching his side out-battled in all areas of the game, chose his words carefully after to speak but indicated that it was not a happy dressing room after the match.

“I just don’t think we worked hard enough from start to finish,” he said.

“I thought we were very sloppy in the D-zone, they wanted to win their one-on-one battles and be the first guy in the box and we didn’t do that and it has left a pretty bitter taste in my mouth.

There were some stern words after, and I don’t want to say too much because I don’t want to regret something I say tonight but we are going to meet very early in the morning as a team and go through some things.

“After I left the changing rooms the team stayed in a made a few comments themselves, that is between them and they have got to react tomorrow.

“I was very surprised, we have played well on the road lately and playing a team like that in our building I thought the boys would be completely up for it and they weren’t.

“I think they scored a few ugly goals tonight, in the second period they scored a nice goal where he dangled the stick in midfield but apart from that they were pretty ugly goals.”

In a scrappy game that was dominated by penalties from both sides, including two fights, it was two quick-fire goals in the second period from Milan Baranyk and Darius Pliskauskas that decided the game.

Swindon had taken an early lead in the first period through Aaron Nell, before Pliskauskas fired the visiting side back level.

Jason Buckman and Edgar Apelis scored either side of Nell’s second goal of the game in the third -period to put the visitors in control of the game.

Before Alan Lack added to Swindon’s woes as he fired home a quick double three minutes from the end to complete the one sided score-line.

Swindon now travel to Telford tomorrow night looking for an immediate response but, despite beating them at the Telford Ice Rink 4-0 just over a week ago, Aldridge knows his team face a stern test.

“We are going to be demanding a reaction tomorrow night, it is a tough place to play, they have just won again beating Guildford 7-1, they are a good hockey team, so we cannot go there tomorrow with the same attitude we had tonight,” he added.

“I was very surprised, we have played well on the road lately and playing a team like that in our building I thought the boys would be completely up for it and they weren’t.

“I think they scored a few ugly goals tonight, in the second period they scored a nice goal where he dangled the stick in midfield but apart from that they were pretty ugly goals.

“Tomorrow is obviously a tough task but we have got to re-group here and we have got to start playing harder, there is no doubt about it.”