SWINDON Wildcats player-coach Aaron Nell is hoping his side can tee themselves up nicely for a play-off push in their final weekend of the regular season.

The Cats face Basingstoke Bison, the side that put an end to their Premier League Cup quest earlier this campaign, in a double-header, starting at the Link Centre tomorrow.

While Nell admits their challenge this weekend is not an easy one, he sees it as the perfect preparation for the end-of-season showdown, which starts away from home next Wednesday.

“It’s a big weekend,” he said.

“I think if Basingstoke win twice, they will move to third place and we’ll play them in the play-offs.

“We’ve got to be ready. Basingstoke come extremely hard and they are always good games and it’s going to be a good test for us before the play-offs begin.

“It is better playing big games like that before the play-offs because if you slack off a little bit, that first game of the play-offs is tough.

“It’s good for us that we have got Basingstoke twice going into the play-offs and it will hopefully put us in good stead.”

With Swindon securing at least sixth spot last weekend with their win over Hull Pirates, Nell’s side go head-to-head this weekend with Guildford Flames for fifth, with both sides locked on 47 points.

However, with Guildford, who will enter the Elite League next season, playing Sheffield Steeldogs at home before a Sunday trip to Peterborough Phantoms, Nell is of the opinion that the Flames have the advantage.

“It just happens,” he replied, when asked if he will be keeping one eye on the league table this weekend.

“I think the end of Guildford’s schedule is pretty good so it will be tough for us to get to fifth.

“We’re not really bothered about who we play because it’s all about us.

“If we don’t turn up, we’re not going to beat anyone.

“We need to make sure we turn up first and as game-by-game comes, we’ll be ready for each team coming forward.

“We don’t have any preferences. We know if we play well, we’ll have a good chance.”

The Cats should welcome back influential forward Tomasz Malasinski this weekend and Nell knows it is the point in the season when his biggest stars must prove their worth.

“This is the crunch time," he said. “We have got one more weekend and then it really starts.

“We’re all looking forward to it and we want to make sure we put on a good show.

“The top players, the imports, Stevie (Lyle) and the other experienced players are a big, big part of that.

“They have got to lead us and if we can play to our best, then we’ll have a good chance.”