THE Basingstoke Bison have a proud home record to defend when local rivals the Guildford Flames pay them a visit tomorrow night.

The Herd have won all five of their home games so far this season and head coach Doug Sheppard is determined to ensure that the Basingstoke Arena remains a fortress.

“We don’t want to change anything at home,” he said. “With the league being as tight at it is, it is a big advantage being at home.

“We want to make our rink a tough place to come and get points from, which is what we have done so far this season and want to continue doing.”

The Bison, who sit third in the English Premier League, are currently in the midst of a series of top-of-the-table clashes.

They beat league leaders Milton Keynes Lightning 3-1 last Saturday, before losing on penalty shots at the second-placed Peterborough Phantoms the following evening, being denied victory by a last-gasp goal.

This weekend they host the fourth-placed Guildford Flames tomorrow night (7.30pm), before travelling to face Milton Keynes again on Saturday.

Sheppard said: “We are playing all of the top teams at the moment and we will get a good indication where we are going to be.

“Our guys find it easy to get up for these games and hopefully we can pick up another four points this weekend.”

Tomorrow’s game against the Flames looks set to be another tight affair. The Bison have won three of their last four and recorded a 3-2 victory when the sides met on the opening day of the season, while Guildford won four games in a row before suffering a surprise defeat at Bracknell on Sunday.

Sheppard added: “It’s going to be tough. They have got some very skilful players that we must contain, while their goaltending is excellent.

“That is why they are right up at the top of the table. The game will probably come down to mistakes. We need to make less than Guildford and capitalise when opportunities come our way.”

Milton Keynes may top the table, but their form is mixed, with two wins and two defeats in their last four games. The Bison may have a psychological edge, having won 3-1 when the sides met last week, but it was a close game and Sheppard is expecting another hard-fought encounter.

“Both teams are good defensively and there were not a lot of chances last week,” he said. “It will be tough to create offence again and it’s in their rink, so I’m expecting a real test.”

The Herd are hopeful that defenceman Declan Balmer will be fit to return to the line-up this weekend, having failed a pre-match fitness test last week, but Grant Rounding remains sidelined.