SWINDON Stars came close to pulling off one of the biggest shocks of the season in the third round of the BISHA South West Senior League at Dorcan Leisure Centre.

Stars were up against the early pace-setters Cardiff Voodoo and pushed the league leaders all the way with a superb display, as they matched the Welsh side throughout.

When the hooter sounded for the final two minutes the Stars were only 3-2 down but, as they desperately pushed forward in search of the equaliser, they were hit on the break and conceded two more goals to lose 5-2.

The scoreline did not reveal how hard Voodoo had to work for their victory, while the Stars netminder Duncan Morton gave a fantastic display throughout to keep his side in the contest until the last couple of minutes.

In the opening game of the day, Swindon Spartans met Oxford Blues, and the two sides fought out a keenly contested 3-3 draw.

Next up were host side Swindon Flames, who produced a stunning comeback to beat Sprint Raiders 7-6.

The Raiders stormed into a 4-0 lead in the opening period, which became 5-1 during the second, but the Flames pulled three back to eventually trail 6-4 going into the final period.

A further three goals followed as the home side finally found their range, and a shutout at the other end saw them claim an impressive 7-6 victory.

Voodoo pulled off a comfortable 8-0 victory over Swindon Spartans in their opening game, before the Raiders bounced back from their defeat to the Flames with a well deserved 7-4 win over Oxford Blues.

Flames took confidence from their impressive display against Voodoo to hammer the Blues 13-0 in their next game, before the final game of the day saw Swindon sides Stars and Spartans produce a game full of quality, with the Stars eventually edging it 6-5.