Great Britain forward Ashley Tait has hailed his side’s intensity and bottle as they beat hosts Croatia in their first game at the 2016 World Championship (Division 1B) in Zagreb.
Goals from Robert Dowd, Jonathan Weaver, Craig Peacock and Colin Shields saw GB skate to a 4-1 victory on opening day in the Dom Sportova Arena.
GB now come up against Estonia this afternoon at 4:30pm (3:30pm UK time), who were beaten by Lithuania.
Coventry forward Tait, who won his 106th cap, said: “There were many good things about this performance.
“We played at a good tempo throughout the game, which was very pleasing.
“Croatia came at us hard early on but we managed to quickly get a foothold in the game.
“We fought for every puck and played intense. We also did not back down from any confrontation.
“The guys enjoyed it out there and it was a great game to be a part of.”
Tait, who assisted on GB’s third goal which was scored by Peacock, says GB must not take Estonia lightly later today.
“We need to remain focused and not get ahead of ourselves,” he added.
“A lot can happen in these tournaments, so we must make sure we turn up every night.”