THE BESPOKE Guardians Swindon Wildcats head coach Aaron Nell says his team must take one game at a time as they hope to maintain their title challenge this season.

Nell wants his players to keep their eyes focused on Peterborough Phantoms this Saturday before turning attentions to a top-of-the-table clash against Sheffield Steeldogs on Sunday in a bid to continue their hot streak.

The second-place Wildcats should be in for a particularly tough weekend with a home clash against an in-form Phantoms side preceding an away trip to table-toppers, Sheffield.

Swindon are in sparkling form themselves, however, and can feel confident of sitting on top of the tree come Sunday night if they perform to their best, according to Nell.

The player-coach believes his team have really hit their stride at this point – having claimed a four-point weekend in the previous round of games – and that has come about by sticking to the team process.

Nell said: “Sunday is going to be a big one against the team that has been the standout side so far this season, in Sheffield.

“But we’ve got to think about Peterborough first. They started the season poorly, but I think they’ve won five of their last six games so they’re a form team coming in.

“We’re expecting a really tough test against them. It’s about taking it one game at a time and focusing on the next one.

“If we do that, and we play hard, then we’ve always got a chance to beat anyone in this league.”

Following a slow start to the campaign, the Wildcats have now won eight of their last nine fixtures – and Nell’s men still managed to take a losing bonus point from a tight defeat to The Raiders.

The head coach said the reason he thinks his team has turned a corner is down to their unflinching work rate and dedication to the cause on the defensive side of the puck.

Nell said: “There is a confidence within the group right now, but the reason I’m so happy with the players is because they’re not cheating.

“They know we’ve got to play a certain way to be successful, and that’s by playing well on the defensive side of the puck.

“We’ve played a lot of games recently, which has been tough, so to go through the last two weeks where we’ve taken seven out of eight points and progressed to the Autumn Cup final – I couldn’t have asked for more from the team.”