Telford Tigers’ boss Tom Watkins was happy to give his young stars a chance to shine in Tuesday’s 10-1 drubbing of Manchester Phoenix.

Watkins took advantage of an early 5-0 lead to hand youngsters Corey Goodison, Joe Aston and Brodie Jesson extended ice time in Blackpool.

There was also a chance for 17-year-old Ted Thompson to take over from netminder Sam Gospel late in the final session.

Watkins said: “The guys enjoyed the game and it was nice to get the two points on the road, as that is always important.

“It was also good to see that we could give some extended ice time to some of our young lads.

“It was good for Brodie to get out there and learn. That always breeds confidence, and makes him feel part of the group.

“Corey was excellent for us and had some great stats in defence – that is important to see as a coach. It was great to see him get on the scoresheet as well – he made some smart plays and scored with a superb toe pick.”

The victory left the Tigers eight points clear of MK Lightning at the top of the EPL table, although Watkins’ team have played two games more.

With the two teams set to face each other on January 7th in Milton Keynes, Watkins admitted he was happy to see his players get into some good habits in preparation for the big clash.

“It’s easy to start overplaying and I don’t think we did that,” added Watkins. “Coming out injury free was good and we have another week off now, which is a good opportunity for the guys.

“It was nice to see everybody together, happy and looking fresh and keen to play.

“We have a good group, good spirit, so they’ll have a few more days then start preparing for the Lightning game.”

(Image permission: Hollie Godber)