SWINDON Wildcats player-coach Aaron Nell saluted his side after their 4-2 win over Sheffield Steeldogs at the Link Centre tonight.

After celebrating a late 4-3 win in the away Autumn Trophy fixture a day earlier, the Wildcats returned to the Link in triumphant mood.

Nell got the hosts off the mark when he combined well with Sam Bullas and Edgars Bebris before slotting the puck past Sheffield stopper Brandon Stones in the fourth minute.

Almost 10 minutes later, the player-coach doubled the Cats' advantage with his second of the game as he made the most of a smart assist from Bullas to notch.

The home side were in superb form and were able to increase their dominance late in the first period as skipper Jan Kostal signed off a sweeping move with a fine finish to make it 3-0 at the break.

For the final two sessions, the Cats’ progress slowed as they conceded in both the second and third periods.

However, a third goal from Nell in the second period meant the hosts were already out of sight and able to record a second consecutive win over the Yorkshire side.

Cats coach Nell said: “It’s been a very good weekend. With the week we have had and the suspension to Renny Marr, we were nervous going into the weekend.

“Tyler Perre was great in goal. He should be very proud of himself and for the main part, we played well in front of him.

“Sunday was a disciplined performance and we played well for 50 minutes before we let them come onto us in the final 10.

“At the start of the week, we were just worried about getting as many points as we possibly could.

“So to get four is fantastic and it has put us in a pretty good spot. When you have weekends like this one, it makes you excited for the next game.

“The last 10 minutes I’d put down to our mental side, which is something we need to smarten up on.

“We got through it. We had Neil Liddiard blocking shots, we had Luc Johnson blocking shots, so those things were great.

“It’s been a great weekend. There is nothing negative and we look forward to next weekend.”

After storming to a 3-0 lead in the first period, Nell paid tribute to the clinical finishing on display from his side early on.

He said: “I think we were very good in the first period.

“In the second, we had some long stretches of possession and we just couldn't put the puck in the back of the net.

“Then in the third, we let them back in the game, but at the end of the day, we are happy because we came away with the win.

"As far as I’m concerned, we are happy with the performance.”