RYAN FINNERTY'S early Christmas wish was granted on Saturday as Braehead Clan finally stopped the rot.

Their winless run was continued to three games on Friday - their worst sequence yet this season - with their 2-0 loss to Sheffield Steelers, a result which also brought to an end their unbeaten record at home.

It left the Clan head coach searching for answers as his team's early prosperity this campaign that only a couple of weeks ago had them top of the EIHL, threatened to dwindle.

He told SportTimes: "Our powerplay has disappeared over the last three games and it is no coincidence we've dropped three games.

"I think it's become an issue already. I'm upset at how fragile we are after just a couple of losses. I thought we had a bit more swagger and a bit more confidence.

"It's frustrating, but if you stay negative it's harder to climb that mountain. It's the first bit of adversity for this group and we need to push back tomorrow."

And push back they did.

In a high-scoring affair on Saturday night, both teams went head-to-head again in the Braehead Arena with Clan coming out on top in a 5-3 win.

With reigning champions Belfast Giants on Continental Cup duty, it means Finnerty's side are now clear in second place and Steelers are now top after beating Coventry in overtime last night.

Goals from Matt Keith, Stefan Meyer, Neil Trimm, Derek Roehl and Matt Haywood did the damage and their boss was rightly delighted that their losing streak had been brought to a halt.

He said: "Getting a win was massively important for our confidence, especially after what went on in the last couple of games.

"We had a lot more energy in the third period and once we got that lead, we were able to defend.

"It was one of the better games I've seen while I've been coach here. Plenty of action and it went end to end."