SWINDON Wildcats’ play-off hopes took a minor setback as they lost 3-1 away to Basingstoke Bison.

The first period was a fiercely competitive one as both sides seemed more than aware of what was at stake if they were to lose.

Phil Hill made his presence felt early on as the Wildcats looked to grab the game by the horns at Planet Ice.

First blood went to the hosts as Derek Roehl punished the Cats in the seventh minute as he was allowed space before pulling the trigger to fire Bison in front.

However, they didn’t hold their lead for long as Bullas, who returned from injury this weekend, netted in the ninth minute to restore parity once again.

The second period began an ended in a similar fashion with both sides trying to assert themselves on proceedings at Planet Ice.

A solid if unspectacular performance from the Cats had seen them remain at 1-1 for a large chunk of the period.

But it wasn’t to last as Stevie Whitfield and Robin Kovar were both sent to the sin bin for separate incidents.

Whitfield was the first to be penalised as he was handed a two minute penalty for holding before he was joined by Kovar who was guilty of boarding, meaning the hosts had a two man numerical advantage.

With 29 minutes on the clock Lyle was beaten again, this time it was import Tomas Karpov who got the goal following good work from Rene Jarolin and Daniel Davies.

The final 10 minutes were nervous for both teams. The Cats were an occasional threat through a break out, but Bison look more than comfortable as the period came to a close.

When the final period arrived Swindon were looking to get back level once again. Jonas Hoog came close during a Swindon powerplay, but the Cats failed to capitalise.

In the last 10 minutes the game became extremely open as both sides realised the importance of the next goal.

Bison however were solid at the back and remained a constant threat through their fast transitional play.

With five seconds left Bison sealed the win when Ciaran Long was able to poke the puck past an outstretched Lyle who was left marooned on the ice.

Despite their best efforts, the final period ran away from the visitors as they head back to Swindon empty handed.