FLOYD Taylor admits Swindon Wildcats experienced a moment of panic during Sunday's National Cup Final second leg against Sheffield Steeldogs, despite lifting the trophy after winning by two goals on aggregate.

Wildcats made the best possible start when player-coach Aaron Nell, Jan Kostal, Chris Jones and Taylor himself catapulted the Link Centre men into a huge four-goal lead on aggregate after the first leg at IceSheffield ended 2-2.

But the Steeldogs hit back when Liam Charnock and James Spurr halved Cats’ lead before the end of the second period, creating a tense ending to the game.

While the two goals rattled the Wildcats bench, Taylor added the team stuck together and worked hard to get the job done.

He said: “When they scored their two goals we knew we had to pull our finger out because the game could end up not where we wanted it to be. But everyone stuck together.

“Sheffield are a good hockey team, they’re going to score goals. We panicked a little bit, but we got out of that and soon settled.

“They’re not going to go the 120 minutes without scoring goals, they’re a good team and won their division.

“We had to make sure we kept pushing forward.”

The 23-year-old forward, who last week signed a deal to remain at the Link Centre next season, spoke highly of the Steeldogs and referred to netminder Dmitri Zimozdra as a key player in their side.

Taylor was also quick to sing the praises of Cats' supporters that travelled to games both at home and on the road throughout the season.

He said: “They’re not a weak side, their keeper was good and blocked a lot of shots over the two legs.

“It’s not often you see Aaron (Nell) get a breakaway and miss it. That says a lot about their goalie.

“They battled hard and put their bodies on the line just like we did.

“It’s nice to see a lot of people come out to watch a game, they’ve supported us so well throughout the season and it’s nice to see them all happy at the end of the game. .

“They’ve paid a bill so it’s nice to give them something back.”

After helping Cats lift their second major title in less than a month, Taylor is looking forward to some well-earned rest.

But he’s planning on returning to the Link Centre fitter than ever come September for the start of the 2018/19 season.

He said: “We’ve played a lot of games this year. But I can’t rest too much. I will work on my fitness. I’ve got a few holidays booked which will be nice to go away and forget about hockey and work.”