OXFORD City Stars’ hopes of a memorable comeback win over Chelmsford Chieftains were dashed as the visitors rallied to triumph 4-2 at Oxpens.

The hosts trailed 2-0 after a fiercely energetic first period, where Jakub Klima was ejected for boarding early on.

Darren Brown and Michael Korenko were on the mark to put the away side in charge.

Stars did not let their heads drop and halved the deficit through Matt Lawday, before Dax Hedges restored parity early in the second period.

The momentum was with the home side, but third-place Chelmsford showed why they are flying high in NIHL Division 1 South.

The visitors struck twice in the final six minutes, James Ayling and James Pentecost on target as they took the points back to Essex.

Stars remain eighth in the table and go to Slough Jets on Saturday, with face-off at 6.30pm.