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REIGNING champions Poole face Elite League leaders Belle Vue on Thursday – with promoter Matt Ford desperate to bounce back from their disastrous Bank Holiday.The Pirates were beaten both in Manchester and at Leicester on Monday, and also lost captain Hans Andersen to a broken finger and head injury. Former Poole star Krzysztof Kasprzak makes a guest appearance against the Aces as the club look to secure their play-off place.Ford said: “Monday was probably one of the worst days in my term as promoter as far as results were concerned. I had set a target and we didn't get anywhere near it. “We could argue that there were mitigating circumstances but that is part and parcel of speedway and I am not going to dwell on it.“It has happened now and we can only move on from it and whilst there would be no better confidence filip than to beat the league leaders, the presence of Belle Vue here on Thursday makes it a real stern test.”Aces star Max Fricke said: “Poole are a strong outfit and they gave us a good run on Monday. It’s not beyond us to go to their place and win though, as we’ve already proved earlier this year.“But it’s a new day and things have changed since the last time. Obviously now that we’ve made the play-offs we want to finish in top spot so we’ve really got to knuckle down on Thursday.”Swindon can take a major step towards the play-offs with a home win over bottom club Leicester at the Abbey Stadium.But boss Alun Rossiter is calling for no slip-ups from his side, recalling memories of the Lions’ shock win in Wiltshire in June.The Robins will be at full strength, with the visitors calling on Michael Palm Toft at reserve to guest for the unavailable Ludvig Lindgren.Rossiter said: “We aren’t quite in the play-offs yet, but Lakeside getting hammered at Coventry helped us, and we’ll be looking out for their score at King’s Lynn.“But first and foremost we need to concentrate on our own job of beating Leicester. It won’t necessarily be easy, as we found out to our cost earlier in the season, and they had a good win over Poole on Monday. You always have to expect the unexpected, and we certainly won’t be taking them lightly.”Leicester boss Norrie Allan said: “Swindon will be going all-out for a win which they need to remain in the play-off zone whereas unfortunately we don’t have that pressure to contend with. “We have nothing to lose and if each of my riders does their job like they did against Poole on Monday then there is every possibility of another close match.”Swindon’s most likely rivals for a top four finish are Lakeside, who urgently need points from their away trip to King’s Lynn.The Stars hand a seasonal debut to Nicklas Porsing, who has replaced Rory Schlein, and bring in James Sarjeant as a guest at reserve.Danny King steps in for the unavailable Kim Nilsson for the Hammers, with Danny Halsey guesting at reserve.King’s Lynn boss Rob Lyon said: “We’ve got to be as positive as possible and try to finish the season on as much of a high as we can, and look towards 2017, whatever that may be in terms of league structure.“These last six meetings are a chance for the current riders, if they’re interested in racing for King’s Lynn next year, to show us what they’re made of.”Lakeside coach Kelvin Tatum said: “We need to come away with a result. We’ve been given a bit of an opportunity with Swindon not picking up any points at Wolverhampton on Monday, and we need to take advantage. “We’re getting close to the last throw of the dice, and King’s Lynn weren’t particularly impressive on Monday either so we’ll be hoping to make the most of that. “We must get something, but a win would be terrific and with the home meeting on Friday plus the showdown with Swindon in a couple of weeks it would give us a good chance.”
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SHEFFIELD will go in search of a third successive home win as they host Rye House at Owlerton on Thursday.The Tigers have kept their Premier League play-off bid on track with wins over Somerset and Edinburgh in their last two home meetings and will now look to claim another crucial three points as they return to the track after a two-week break.Rye House currently lie 12th in the table after a tough season – but Tigers’ ace Kyle Howarth insists they can take nothing for granted as they eye a big win.He said: “It’s going to be tough. There are no easy meetings in the Premier League and Rye House aren’t going to just lie down. “We’ve had a week off because of last Thursday being called off, so we need to bring our A-game and be on it from the get go.”Meanwhile in the Travel Plus National League third-placed Eastbourne will look to take another step towards the play-offs as they visit the Isle of Wight.
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DANYON Hume secured his first ever league maximum as he inspired Birmingham to a convincing 58-31 win over the Isle of Wight.The Surestop Brummies wrapped up their regular National League home fixtures with another dominant display as they sealed a 13th straight victory.Hume reeled off five straight wins with skipper Tom Perry also unbeaten by an opponent from five outings, whilst guest Mitchell Davey added a paid maximum from four rides.Hume said: “I'm over the moon and I think this will take a bit of time to sink in if I'm being honest.“I've been working so hard all year and I've come so close to getting a full max but always just missed out. To finally get one feels great and I couldn't have timed it much better really.“It was another big win for the team and we go into an important September full of confidence.Warriors skipper James Cockle said: “Birmingham are an outstanding team this year and it was always going to be tough against them.“Things have improved on the whole - mainly since signing the two reserves (Nathan Stoneman and Layne Cupitt) who have been going really well.“Win, lose or draw though there's a real good vibe around the Isle of Wight this year and we're looking forward to taking on another of the big guns in Eastbourne.”
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BERWICK have parted company with Dawid Stachyra and replaced him with British rider Tom Perry.The former Peterborough man, who captains Birmingham in the National League, will make his Bandits debut in their home clash with Premier League leaders Somerset on Monday.Manager Scott Courtney said: “Tom's a really talented young British rider with a good attitude. He moved his average up by over two points for most of the season, but still fell victim to sweeping late season changes at Peterborough.“We can no longer progress in the league or cup this year, and I'd like to make improvements where possible with a view to giving us options for next season.“It is obviously impossible to predict what the future will bring, but I urge everyone to get behind us for the remaining matches. It is part of my job to keep getting on with the job in hand - which, right now, is to secure a couple of home wins, while keeping one eye on where we'll be going next season.”
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NEWCASTLE have announced the signing of Ashley Morris with Lewis Rose’s season over due to injury.Rose has had a successful operation on the collarbone he broke in three places in a crash during last Sunday’s home win over Edinburgh, but will be unable to ride again in 2016.Morris joins the Diamonds shortly after his release by Premier League rivals Peterborough, and will make his debut this Sunday in their showdown with top-of-the-table Somerset.
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PETERBOROUGH have carried out extensive work on the East of England Showground track ahead of the biggest day of their season.The Panthers entertain Rye House (2.30pm) and Workington (5pm) in a must-win double-header on Sunday, which will see Kenneth Bjerre and Richard Hall make their returns to the club.Promoter Ged Rathbone said: “So much new shale has gone onto (the track) in recent weeks that a lot of layers and big ruts have appeared as a result.“It has become very unpredictable for the riders and we've now tried to make it as smooth as possible for Sunday.“Work will continue throughout the week with a lot of water going onto the base of the track to make sure it is in the best condition we can get it for 30 massive heats of speedway.”
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CRADLEY have announced their move to bring Tyler Govier back to the club has fallen through.The club were intending to bring Govier into their side as a replacement for James Purchase, who has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury.Govier’s average for the month of August is above that of Purchase and therefore he was due to be introduced to the side on September 1 when his average dropped – but the cut-off for rider signings is August 31, and the move has therefore been rejected in accordance with the rules.A Cradley statement said: “This proposed signing was in the best interests of Tyler Govier, a young British rider, and in the best interests of the club, naturally. Primarily, however, we believe it was in the best interests of the sport for us to track a seven-man team. “Despite being denied the chance to restore a full side, we accept the ruling and will revert to using rider replacement for the remainder of the campaign but will explore the possibility of handing rides to a stand-by no.8 rider.”
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THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 1:ELITE LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Lakeside 7.30, Poole v Belle Vue 7.30, Swindon v Leicester 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Sheffield v Rye House 7.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Isle of Wight v Eastbourne 7pm
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 2:ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Coventry 7.30, Lakeside v King’s Lynn 8pmPREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Redcar 7pm, Edinburgh v Plymouth (follows previous fixture)
SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 3:PREMIER LEAGUE: Rye House v Scunthorpe 7pm, Workington v Somerset 7pmTRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Coventry 7.30, Stoke v Kent 7pm
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 4:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Sheffield 3pm, Newcastle v Somerset 6.30, Peterborough v Rye House 2.30, Peterborough v Workington 5pm, Scunthorpe v Redcar 6.30TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v King’s Lynn 3pm, Mildenhall v Eastbourne 3.30
