MATCH REACTION: Season was not a failure insists Koulikov

The city team were beaten 4-1 by Telford at the semi-final stage of the NIHL Final Four weekend - the finale to the second-tier campaign in Coventry.

It provided the latest in a long line of close shaves with silverware for Phantoms. They missed out on the NIHL Division One South title on goal difference to Basingstoke, were pipped to the play-off crown by a controversial odd goal against the same opponents and suffered elimination from the NIHL Autumn Cup following a semi-final penalty shoot-out.

Koulikov said: “I’m not going to hide the fact that I feel disappointed to have ended the season without a trophy.

“We felt we had the roster to do it and we have come so close in three or four competitions, but we haven’t managed to win them.

“I take the full responsibility for us not picking up silverware, but there is no way I’m going to say the season is a failure.

“We have to review the season over the coming days and ensure we continue our long-term plan of having stability, challenging for success and producing our own players.”

Koulikov feels circumstances went against Phantoms in the closing weeks of the campaign.

They were stung by a late goal from Basingstoke in a crucial clash which left the Hampshire side in pole position to claim the title.

Phantoms were then hit by illness ahead of their final game of the regular season before losing key forwards Darius Pliskauskas and Owen Griffiths to injuries.

Griffiths returned yesterday despite being short of full fitness, but Lithauanian international Pliskauskas missed the entire post-season.

Koulikov added: “The final league game against Basingstoke was definitely a turning point.

“We had done so well up to then and were on fire for a lot of the season, but that late goal from Basingstoke was a big moment.

“That was followed by illness ahead of our final game against Streatham and meant we couldn’t get the sort of scoreline we needed.

“We then lost Darius to injury at the end of that game which hurt us in the play-offs and by then we knew fortunes were going against us.

“Picking up another injury to Owen in the first shift of the first leg of the semi-final left us without two of our top four forwards.

“We got a bit of luck - maybe that’s not the right way to say it - by getting to the final and we then played pretty decent hockey in both games against Basingstoke.

“But even when we dominated the possession and had moments of dangerous play, we just couldn’t get the puck in the net.

“It took us so long to get a goal in the first leg and we could only get one again in the second leg.

“I look back at the season when we won the play-offs. We hit a lot of injuries around December and January of that season, but we got the guys back and peaked at the right time.

“This season it went the other way. We chased the league title, missed it and then hit problems at the crucial time.

“There are many things we can control in sport, but others are out of our control.”