Leeds Knights 5 Telford Tigers 2: Character win proves Knights have depth to cope with key absences

An upper-body injury was all head coach Ryan Aldridge would say after the game but, cometh the hour, cometh the man when, under such trying circumstances, others have to step up.

That man proved to be Jordan Buesa, who grabbed the Knights by the scruff of the neck to lead a stunning fightback from two goals down at the end of the first period to secure a 5-2 triumph in front of another raucous Elland Road crowd.

Aldridge was equally mysterious when it came to revealing how long the talismanic Brown would be out, saying it could be anything from one-two weeks but, with a busy festive schedule fast approaching, having Brown back for then is probably the priority, particularly with the Knights only having the one game next weekend, when they pay a first visit of the season to Swindon Wildcats.

When you’re running low on numbers, it is often about just getting the job done, something Aldridge acknowledged in his post-match interview.

“It was a case of digging ourselves out of a hole,” said Aldridge. “We had some guys missing, some with GB Under-20s, Kieran was obviously out too and Matty Barron has been fighting illness for the past couple of days, but he found a way to play.

“So when you’re short-benched and things are going against you like that, it’s obviously not always going to be pretty.

“Sometimes it’s just a case of getting over the line. I think we were great in the third period. We weren’t good enough in the first two but we found a way to cling on and good teams find a way to win.”

The Knights actually started quite brightly against a Tigers team who seem to have found their groove again this season, having only just clawed their way into the play-offs last time out.

Tom Watkins teams are rarely easy to get the better of, as the 4-3 hard-fought win for the Knights down in Shropshire in early November will testify.

Both goalies were kept busy, but it was Gospel who was beaten first when Vladimir Luka tapped home on the power play at the back post at 10.57, the lead being doubled when Finlay Howells struck at 15.37.

Given the missing bodies, there will have been a number of fans left fearing the worst during the first intermission.

But the Knights dug in and kept themselves in contention, getting their reward when Buesa swung in from the right boards to fire past Brad Day through traffic from the top of the right circle at 28.14.

It was enough of a boost to take into the third period, one that started perfectly when Mac Howlett won possession in the neutral zone and fired a short-handed rocket past Day less than two minutes in.

Momentum had clearly shifted and although Gospel was still kept entertained, there was a sense Leeds fancied their chances, something made clear when Buesa - not long out of the penalty box after being handed a slashing penalty he was not pleased with - was found by Baldwin’s fine pass to enable him to beat Day to make it 3-2 at 51.46.

Just over four minutes later, Buesa made it a night to remember when making it 4-2 following good work by stand-in skipper Matt Haywood, Bailey Conger adding some gloss to the scoreline when he beat Day one-on-one with 17 seconds remaining to make it 5-2.