WHENEVER Great Britain competes in the top tier of the World Championships, they usually target one, maybe two games for the win that can keep them among the elite the following year.

One of those games arrives on Tuesday.

Having fell to expected defeats at the weekend against Austria (5-2) and the USA (5-1), it could be argued GB’s chances of remaining alongside those two teams - as well as the likes of Finland, Switzerland, Latvia and Germany who they face later this week in Zurich - rests on the outcome of the encounter against Hungary.

Today’s opponents kept their place for Switzerland thanks to a solitary 4-2 win against Kazakhstan last year in Herning Denmark.

GB - who returned to the top tier for the first time in 25 years back in 2018 at Hungary’s expense - did the same themselves when beating France 4-3 in overtime the following year in Kosice.

Everything is at stake for both teams.

For Dowd, now at his 17th worlds with GB - and his fifth in the top tier - always enjoys his time away with the national team following the long, hard grind of an Elite League campaign with Sheffield Steelers.

Having seen his team put in two committed performances at the weekend, the GB captain will be hoping it will have proved ideal preparation for their showdown with Hungary.

BIG NIGHT: Sheffield Steelers' and GB captain, Robert Dowd - pictured in action against Austria on Saturday in Zurich. Picture: James Assinder/Ice Hockey UK Medai.

placeholder image — BIG NIGHT: Sheffield Steelers' and GB captain, Robert Dowd - pictured in action against Austria on Saturday in Zurich. Picture: James Assinder/Ice Hockey UK Medai.

“You've just got to try and stay on an even keel,” said Dowd. “We target one or two games in the whole tournament where you try and build towards and obviously try and peak at the right time performance-wise for,” he said. “When you're playing the teams that are kind of in your realm.

“We just try and sneak a win or two to obviously stay in with the top boys.

“Back when we first played at this level, it was very daunting playing against some of those players and some of those big names.

“And we were a bit in awe of some of those players we came up against but, now, we've been there a few times, we feel like we belong there. And it's time to prove to the rest of the world that we belong there.”

Dowd’s team-mate Brett Perlini – a regular opponent whenever the Steelers faced off against the Cardiff Devils these past two EIHL campaigns – is aware of the importance attached to Tuesday evening’s showdown against Hungary.

The USA game got away from us at the end, but I think it was a good building game for us,” he said.

"(The Hungary game) is going to be kind of our gold medal game right now. That's the focus. We'll regroup here and put everything into that one.”