Leeds Knights hurting now but intent on being contenders for years to come, says Ryan Aldridge

It is often said that more can be learned from defeat than winning, something the Knights’ head coach believes will eventually be the case with his team after they were denied in their quest for a back-to-back NIHL National league and play-off double.

The agony of the shoot-out was how Leeds found themselves second-best against Peterborough Phantoms at a packed SkyDome Arena on Sunday night, edged out 4-3.

There will have been tears and frustration in plentiful supply no doubt, both in the stands and in the locker room after such a dramatic conclusion to another promising season for all concerned with the UK second tier.

Regardless of losing out on Sunday, the Knights should and will consider their 2023-24 campaign another successful one.

In the space of three years, the Knights have achieved more than most of their division rivals have over a much longer period - and it hasn’t been a case of owner Steve Nell simply throwing money at the organisation.

Aldridge is already committed to the Knights until the summer of 2027 having signed an extended deal in March - his intention is to keep his young group of players together for as long as possible, not to be content with what they have achieved already.

There is a desire and a determination within the organisation to be in contention for trophies every single year, to be a permanent contender.

The 45-year-old head coach believes he already has a group of players in his locker room to help him and Nell achieve their vision.

There will be changes along the way, as there always is, but the core group is one Aldridge is keen to retain.

“It’s a really strange thing to say, but for this group and the age of this group, it’s probably a positive in a really messed up way to have lost on Sunday,” said Aldridge.

“I think we need to learn how to play in those situations. I think we looked tired (in Sunday’s final) and I think we were tired because our emotions were high across the whole weekend.

“Anxiety, stress, whatever it might be - I think it drained us and I think it did the same last year, but we just found a way to get through it that time.

“I just don’t think we had any jump and that was just down to the emotions of the situation.

“And we talked about how we want to be the kind of team that is fighting for titles every year and, for us to do that, we need to learn from this.”

With an average age of just over 23, the Knights - as they did last season - possess one of the youngest rosters in NIHL National.

Naturally, Aldridge expects there to be setbacks and disappointments along the way, this year’s NIHL National Cup semi-final defeat to Hull Seahawks and last season’s Cup Final loss to Peterborough - both over two legs - being the obvious examples.

But he believes the full potential of the Knights has not yet been realised - something that excites him.

“We could be a team that’s together for three, four, five, six years - we are that young,” he added. “We know where we want to get to as an organisation and we’re in the very early stages of it and we’ve just got to learn from this kind of defeat.

“In that locker room, is a very special group, a group of unbelievable young men and if we can keep them together for a few more years, more good things will happen.

“It excites me that I’ve got this young bunch of players to work with going forward. I don’t think I’ve coached or been part of a team as tight as this in my whole career.

“So we want to keep them together as much as we can and keep adding to it and making more and more positive changes.”