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Defeat For Wildcats' GB Stars In Championships Warm Up
Five of the Swindon Wildcats personnel were on the sore end of a 3-0 defeat on Wednesday night, as the Great Britain U20 side fell to Milton Keynes Lightning.
The clash served as a final warm up for Tommy Watkins' side ahead of December's championships in Megeve, France.
Defensive line Callum Buglass and Harvey Stead, along with netminder Jordan Hedley, Michael Stratford and Toms Rutkis made up a Swindon ensemble in the GB line up, representing Wildcats on the national stage.
Great Britain fell behind just before the 17 minute mark when Frantisek Bakrlik was on hand to put the puck away.
Milton Keynes nicked their second of the evening just before the second period came to an end, as Bakrlik registered his second of the evening, smashing the puck with deadly accuracy from the blue line.
Putting the final nail in the GB coffin, Bakrlik added his third of the evening in as many periods, driving a shot in from the right circle to make it three for lightning.
The Czech's hat-trick sealed the time for MK, who left the ice 3-0 winners, casting last minute doubt upon the u20's credentials.
Following the full-time buzzer coach Tommy Watkins admitted he was pleased with his side's system, despite the overall score line.
"It was about the process we are trying to implement. It was good to see us playing in our d-zone against an organised and quicker side," Watkins said.
"For the most part I thought we did a good job. Our work ethic was good. We made a few mistakes but I think that is to be expected."
Looking ahead to the opponents awaiting GB in the championships, Watkins conceded his side need to both work on their pace on the ice, and reevaluate parts of their game.
"They will need to adjust to the speed.
"When we head to the tournament, teams are going to play with speed. We've got to mentally adapt about not seeing the puck on our stick as much.
"We have to get pucks to the net a little bit better than we did today. I think we have a good team and have a good mix.
"Yes, there are areas to work on but the guys pick things up pretty fast," Watkins added.
GB will face hosts France, along with Poland, Slovenia, Japan and Ukraine in December's tournament, following their promotion from division 2A last season.
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