(SPEEDWAY 1)
IPSWICH moved into second place in the SGB Championship with a 53-39 win over Newcastle at Foxhall.
The Witches made a perfect start to the meeting with two successive 5-1s and produced a solid display headed by captain Danny King on 11 points – whilst Rory Schlein won his first three rides despite suffering from a knee injury.
Manager Ritchie Hawkins said: “A big thanks to Rory and it was a great effort from him after putting his knee out in the first race.
“He struggled through and showed his class with another two wins and a very important one over the black and white helmet, special praise to him tonight for his determination.
“When we got going in the last third of the meeting we were really good and it was a good victory over a strong side.”
Robert Lambert (12+1) and Steve Worrall (11) both hit double figures for the Diamonds but boss George English was left frustrated at another missed opportunity on the road.
He said: “This was another disappointment in a match we could have run closer had it not been for the falls and too many last places.
“This is getting frustrating now and it's an away rout we have to stop as soon as possible. Away points make the world of difference to the end of a team's season so we have to start pulling them in now. We're better than this.”
The fixture between Redcar and Glasgow at the Media Prima Arena was abandoned after nine races due to the curfew – following an horrific crash in the attempted running of Heat 10.
The Tigers led 32-24 when home rider Coty Garcia came together with the visitors’ Richard Lawson, causing an extensive delay for circuit repairs and treatment for Garcia.
The visitors would have been set for a 5-0 in the re-run with Jason Garrity already disqualified, but it was not possible to stage the race within the time, and the match will now be re-staged.
Glasgow boss Stewart Dickson said: “We can't argue with the paramedics. I can understand if a rider is taken not well.
“The only thing I would add is the timing of it - the fact that it took 40 minutes to repair the air fence and the rider in question was fine up until then, but the minute the air fence was repaired, he suddenly took not well.
“The timing seemed a bit odd. But we wish the rider well. It was obviously very serious for the Redcar promotion to abandon the meeting.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
SHEFFIELD successfully overturned a four-point first leg deficit to dump Edinburgh out of the Knockout Cup at Owlerton on Thursday.
The Tigers progressed with a 96-84 aggregate triumph after sealing an impressive 53-37 home win in the second leg.
Josh Grajczonek kept up his stunning run of form with a 14-point haul, beaten only by Sam Masters in Heat 13 before taking revenge in the final race – whilst Lasse Bjerre added 11+2 and reserve Rob Branford impressed with three race wins on his way to 11.
Masters collected 11 for the Monarchs, who were left on the back foot by conceding two 5-1s in the first three races to eradicate their four-point first leg lead.
Sheffield boss Simon Stead said: “I'm absolutely delighted with the boys once again because beating Edinburgh over two legs is no easy task.
“It was always going to be important to hit them hard early and thankfully we managed to do just that.
“For me, the key difference was probably Rob at reserve. He rode his heart out tonight and his contribution was very welcome - we'd just like to see that on a more consistent basis now.”
Masters said: “It’s a tough place to come and the home guys are pretty dialled in, I stopped Josh’s max and that’s pretty tough to do.
“I had some good races, I’m spewing about Heat 15 but at this track you really have to stay on top of the set-up and I didn’t quite have the speed in the last one.
“It’s a shame that it’s not the cup second leg tomorrow (Friday) as I think we would beat them, but it is what it is and we now focus on the rest of the season and the league is the main goal.”
(SPEEDWAY 3)
SOMERSET have been hit by the news that Patrick Hougaard has suffered a suspected broken shoulder from a midweek crash in Denmark.
Hougaard has been ruled out of tonight’s (Friday) home SGB Championship clash with Belle Vue, with the rider-replacement facility to operate for the Rebels.
Boss Garry May said: “Patrick was due to have a scan on the shoulder and we will have a better idea of the full extent of the injury and how long he will be out for after that.
“It could well be that we sign a short-term injury replacement for Patrick, rather than rely on the rider replacement facility until he is fit to return - though on the bright side, we only have a few fixtures between now and mid-July, by which time Patrick will hopefully be back in the team.
“Our win against Rye House really lifted everyone at the Oaktree Arena, from the riders right through to the fans who got right behind the new boys in the team, so we will be looking to carry that new-found confidence into Friday’s match as we look to start climbing up that league table.”
Belle Vue bring in former Somerset rider Zach Wajtknecht to guest for Dan Bewley, who is away on GB Under-21 World Cup duty.
Aces boss Mark Lemon said: “I think there’s a little bit of payback on the cards in this meeting. We haven't forgotten what happened when they came to the National Speedway Stadium and turned us over.
“It was frustrating to have such a lean spell in May but looking ahead it means the upcoming weeks will be very busy, and the boys are so fired up they don't need any more encouragement from me.
“Our away form has been pretty good so far this season. We want to maintain that pressure on Somerset because we've got a team that’s more than capable of picking up points on the road.”
(SPEEDWAY 4)
EDINBURGH and Sheffield return to SGB Championship action tonight (Friday) as the teams meet at Armadale.
The Tigers got the better of the league leaders on Thursday to put them out of the KO Cup, but the Monarchs can extend their advantage at the top to six points with a win on their own circuit.
The home side operate the rider-replacement facility for Josh Pickering (Australian U21 duty) whilst Sheffield have two guests in action as Aaron Summers and James Sarjeant step in for Josh Grajczonek (SGBP commitment) and Josh Bates (GB U21 duty).
Edinburgh co-promoter John Campbell said: “We would have been entitled to a guest for Josh but his average has dropped to just over four, so locating a suitable replacement is not easy.
“We’ll need to be on our toes tonight to repel the challenge of Sheffield who did so well just over a month ago.”
Sheffield owner Damien Bates said: “Thursday was a bit of a personal sigh of relief for me. Since I took over, we've never been able to beat Edinburgh over two legs so that felt good from a personal point of view!
“That shows how strong we are this year though because as their league position shows, they're still one of the dominant forces in this league. They've got some real good riders and they are a hard side to beat.
“But we're riding well ourselves right now so we should be feeling positive about heading there and walking away with something.”
(SPEEDWAY 5)
PLYMOUTH have secured their place in the National Trophy Final with a 49-41 win at the Isle of Wight on Thursday.
The Devils, who stage a hastily-arranged Challenge match against an NL Select side tonight (Friday), moved four points clear at the top of the section, with only three more now available to second-placed Swindon.
Reserve Henry Atkins piled up 12+2 at the Smallbrook Stadium in his best-ever score, with No.1 Steve Boxall securing a maximum haul of points for the Devils in Heat 15 on his way to a 12-point total.
The Warriors’ scoring was dominated by their heat-leaders, with guest Liam Carr (12+1), Ben Wilson (12) and James Cockle (10+1) all in double figures.
Plymouth boss Laurence Rogers said: “The boys did their jobs tonight and every point counted. Steve knew what he had to do in heat 15 to secure our place in the final and did just that!”
The Devils management also plan to make an announcement prior to Friday’s fixture, where the visiting riders include the Isle of Wight’s Wilson and three riders who have recently lost their places in their NL teams – David Mason, Connor Coles and George Hunter.
The hosts operate rider-replacement for Callum Walker, who is in France representing GB at the Under-21 Grasstrack Championship.
(SPEEDWAY 6)
EASTBOURNE have announced the signings of Jake Knight and Alex Spooner in a double change at Arlington.
Knight captained the Eagles to the KO Cup and National League Grand Final last year before initially planning to sit out racing in 2017.
The duo replace Connor Coles and Kelsey Dugard, the latter having suffered an injury in last week’s clash with Plymouth.
Manager Connor Dugard said: “I do feel sorry for both riders, especially Colesy. He hasn't put a foot wrong and he gives 110% effort wherever he goes.
“Unfortunately it's a numbers game and it's fair to say that Kelsey hasn't been performing particularly well. He shows glimmers of hope like when he beat Steve Boxall last week, then he crashes again and again and this time he's actually injured himself and is awaiting a scan later next week to see the full extent of the damage.
“With average and line-up changes it could mean that I would have to use development league equivalent riders at reserve for Kelsey.”
(SPEEDWAY 7)
MILDENHALL have moved to sign Lewis Whitmore as a replacement for injury victim Sam Woods, who suffered a wrist injury last weekend.
Whitmore was available to come in for the Fen Tigers after the withdrawal of King’s Lynn from the National League, and he will make his debut in Sunday’s home clash with Plymouth.
Co-promoter Kevin Jolly said: “When we heard that Sam’s injury could keep him out for a while I moved quickly to secure Lewis.
“He was very keen to come to us and this situation gives us the chance to have a good look at each other over the coming weeks, and hopefully we can help Lewis realise his potential.
“He showed when he rode at Mildenhall for the Young Lions U21 side that he knows the way around our track, and we will be working with him to get his season on track after a difficult start that saw his current average based on four hard away meetings with the Young Stars.
“Many of our supporters will remember Lewis from when he was our club mascot and I am sure they will give him a warm welcome on Sunday.”
(FIXTURES)
FRIDAY JUNE 2:
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Somerset v Belle Vue 7.30
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh v Sheffield 7.30
CHALLENGE: Plymouth v National League Select 7.15
SATURDAY JUNE 3:
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Leicester v Poole 7.30
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick v Workington 7pm
NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP 2nd leg: Eastbourne v Kent 7.30, Stoke v Buxton 7pm
SUNDAY JUNE 4:
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Glasgow v Berwick 6pm, Newcastle v Sheffield 6.30
CHAMPIONSHIP KO CUP 1st leg: Scunthorpe v Peterborough 5.30
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Plymouth 3pm
Results Thursday June 1, 2017;
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP
Ipswich 53 (Danny King 11)
Newcastle 39 (Robert Lambert 12+1)
SGB Championship points: Ipswich 3 Newcastle 0
Redcar 24 – Charles Wright 9
Glasgow 32 – Aaron Summers 9
Abandoned after Heat 9 (curfew) – Result does not stand
Redcar
Glasgow
Result to follow
CHAMPIONSHIP KO CUP, 2nd leg
Sheffield 53 (Josh Grajczonek 14)
Edinburgh 37 (Sam Masters 11)
Sheffield win 96-84 on aggregate
NATIONAL TROPHY
Isle of Wight 41 (Liam Carr 12+1)
Plymouth 49 (Henry Atkins 12+2)
National Trophy points: Isle of Wight 0 Plymouth 4
