THE Swindon Wildcats fell agonisingly short of a top-four finish after losing to Manchester in their final game of the EPL regular season.

Ryan Aldridge’s side will take on the Peterborough Phantoms in the play-off quarter finals over two legs this weekend. A place at finals weekend in Coventry is at stake.

The Cats had a good look at their play-off opponents as they breezed to a 6-2 win against the Phantoms on Saturday in Swindon.

The home side were a formidable force in the first period, racking up three unanswered goals courtesy of Tomasz Malasinski, Jan Kostal and Jonas Hoog.

Marc Levers did all he could for Peterborough, bagging two goals himself, but his side never looked in the game.

Further goals from Hoog and Aaron Nell (2) capped the complete performance.

It is set to be an entertaining and close quarter final tie, as the two sides have met six times this season, each winning on three occasions.

The tough 6-5 loss in Manchester on Sunday meant that the Wildcats slipped to fifth place, allowing Peterborough to choose which leg of the quarter final they wanted to play at home. They opted to travel to Swindon on Saturday and play the second leg at home 24 hours later.

With Peterborough’s rink being arguably the toughest to play in, it won’t be an easy tie for the Cats but one they can definitely win.

The Cats will have the extra motivation to go out and win the play-offs as Aldridge, their long serving coach, is set to move on to take charge of the club’s academy next season after six years with the first team.

Players will also be looking to impress new coach Stevie Lyle as they bid to secure a 2015/16 contract.

Pound for pound I’d take Swindon’s team over Peterborough’s any day of the week. The home leg on Saturday will be crucial for the Wiltshire side. I feel they need at least a two-goal cushion to take to Peterborough on Sunday.

With the offensive players firing on all cylinders at the moment there is no doubt that goals will be scored. However, with a few injuries in defence, it is crucial Swindon remain as tight as possible at the back and play a smart game on the road.