(SPEEDWAY 1)
SOMERSET edged a dramatic 45-44 SGB Premiership win over Wolverhampton to climb to the fringe of the play-off places.
Skipper Josh Grajczonek secured the vital second place in a sensational Heat 15 battle behind Wolves No.1 Fredrik Lindgren to leave the visitors one point short.
The reigning champions had taken the lead on three occasions, but the match turned on Heat 12 when the Rebels collected a 5-0 after both Rory Schlein and Ellis Perks were disqualified.
The advantage went up to five points and the hosts looked set to secure victory in Heat 14 only for Jake Allen to fall when challenging for the lead.
That set up a nervous finale but Grajczonek got the better of Jacob Thorssell on the last lap in the battle for second, to move Somerset to within three points of fourth-placed Poole.
Grajczonek, with 8+1, top-scored for a solid home side, whilst Wolves provided nine of the 15 heat winners led by Lindgren on 14, Thorssell on 12 and Kyle Howarth on 10+2 with the consolation league point moving them up to second in the table.
Rebels boss Garry May said: “It had just about everything you could ever wish from a meeting. I think I went through every emotion possible over the course of the match and those last four heats were really something else!
“But the boys were determined that they were not going to be denied and they deserve massive praise for the way they kept on at Wolves in order to secure the win.”
Schlein said: “We were going down the back straight in Heat 12 and Charles (Wright) left a big gap, but it closed pretty quickly and the referee saw it as my fault.
“I felt it was a 50/50 call, but sometimes they don’t go your way and we’re just not having much luck at the minute.
“We’ve come here before and got a good result, so we wanted to do the same again and it’s a pity we just came up short. Everyone got stuck in, but sometimes you’ve just got to take it on the chin and accept it wasn’t quite your night.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
BELLE Vue are back on top of the National League thanks to a 57-33 win over Plymouth in Manchester.
The Colts maintained their perfect form at the National Speedway Stadium thanks to powerful displays from their top-order despite the absence of Lee Payne and Rob Shuttleworth.
Dan Bewley scored 15, Jack Smith 13 and Kyle Bickley 12+3, although the efforts of the Devils’ Adam Roynon (12) prevented home riders from going through the card unbeaten.
Bewley said: “Adam was the best I’ve ever seen him ride. I can remember watching him around Workington. He’s an experienced guy and it was brilliant to be able to race him again.
“On the whole Plymouth put up a good fight and there were a few moments where their guys gave us plenty to think about, and towards the end they had really started to get to grips with the track.
“But it came a little bit late and we’re delighted to maintain our unbeaten home record.”
Meanwhile Richard Hall scored a debut maximum as Cradley moved back into the top four with an emphatic 61-29 win over the Isle of Wight.
Hall won each of his four rides whilst Danny Ayres collected the full 15 from five outings, and skipper Tom Perry scored 12+2, beaten only by Ben Wilson in Heat 1.
The Warriors were limited to just two heat wins with Wilson and James Cockle both scoring eight points. Tyler Govier crashed out in Heat 2 for the Heathens against his former club.
Hall said: “I didn’t think it would go that well, it’s gone better than I was expecting and it’s nice to get a maximum in my first meeting.
“It’s also nice to get a warm welcome from the fans as well. I wanted to come and score points to help the team win, and that’s what we’ve done tonight.
“Obviously we’ve got two good heat-leaders here and now we’ve got a third so hopefully we can keep it going.”
(SPEEDWAY 3)
POOLE welcome back Brady Kurtz tonight (Thursday) as they go up against their former No.1 Krzysztof Kasprzak at Wimborne Road.
Kurtz returns from rib injuries which resulted in a 28-day spell out of the Pirates’ side as the hosts bid to end a shock run of four successive home defeats.
Kasprzak, meanwhile, finally makes his Rye House debut and could have a major say in the contest especially as he starts his Rockets career at reserve – having lost his place at Poole last month after a poor run of form.
The visitors also face a rider they axed earlier in the campaign, with former Rockets skipper Edward Kennett lining up for the Pirates who are currently clinging onto the fourth play-off place.
Rye House co-promoter Steve Jenson said: “We will be heading down to Poole at what we believe is just the right time.
“With no disrespect to the Pirates, Poole is a bit of an open canvas at the moment: five home defeats show what can be achieved by visiting teams at Wimborne Road when they go there with the right approach.
“We will be arriving in Dorset with a positive attitude, to put our heads down and keep going.”
(SPEEDWAY 4)
SHEFFIELD co-promoter Marc Bates is keen to see his side extend their lead at the top of the SGB Championship - starting with a home win over Workington at Owlerton tonight (Thursday).
The Tigers pulled off a terrific 51-39 victory at Edinburgh last week to send them top of the standings - and with a trip to Redcar on Friday also on the calendar, they have a great chance of sending out another message to their rivals.
The hosts will again be without Danish ace Lasse Bjerre who has been advised to rest his knee injury in order to protect it from further damage - rider replacement will operate.
Bates said: “Of course we want to win the league, but first we want to finish first top and get that spot in the play-offs. We've still got a lot of hard work to do, but we really do believe this year.
“The team have worked hard this season; they're a real determined bunch and the team atmosphere is unbelievable. They say that always plays a big part in successful teams - and I definitely think that's why we are where we are right now.
“We really want to keep our unbeaten home run intact, but we also want to throw a few more away wins into the mix as well.”
(SPEEDWAY 5)
SPEEDWAY Riders’ Benevolent Fund secretary Paul Ackroyd has reported a positive collection total from last Sunday’s SGB Championship Fours at Peterborough.
Riders and Ben Fund staff were involved in collections at the gate and during the meeting itself, which raised a total of £1,391.25.
Ackroyd said: “I’d like to thank everyone, that is a big help to the fund. We had our collectors at the gates, and during the meeting when teams were eliminated their riders were going out amongst the crowd.
“Rob Branford was a big help, he is injured himself at the moment but he was geeing up the other riders to get out into the crowd.
“The collections at the individual tracks have started now so it all helps us to keep funds available for the riders who need help.”
(SPEEDWAY 6)
PETERBOROUGH have received mixed news on the injury front ahead of their return to SGB Championship action.
The Panthers face three away tests in as many days - starting at Edinburgh on Friday, then visiting Berwick on Saturday and Newcastle on Sunday.
New Zealand champion Bradley Wilson-Dean will miss the busy run with a hand injury, but reserve Tom Bacon will be fit for the triple-header on the road after suffering a partial dislocation of the shoulder while racing for his National League side, Birmingham, last weekend.
Panthers boss Carl Johnson said: “It's a blow to be without Bradley. He performed very well at Edinburgh earlier in the season and Berwick is another that I think would suit him.
“We've had better news about Tom and he should be fine for the three away meetings and hopefully he can continue the sort of form he has showed lately.”
(FIXTURES)
THURSDAY AUGUST 10:
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Poole v Rye House 7.30
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield v Workington 7.30
FRIDAY AUGUST 11:
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Belle Vue v King’s Lynn 7.30
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh v Peterborough 7.30, Redcar v Sheffield 7.30
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Plymouth v Birmingham 7.15
SATURDAY AUGUST 12:
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Leicester v Rye House 7.30
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick v Peterborough 7pm, Glasgow v Edinburgh 7pm, Workington v Redcar 7pm
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Kent 7.30
Results Wednesday August 9, 2017
SGB PREMIERSHIP
Rye House v King’s Lynn - OFF
Somerset 45 (Josh Grajczonek 8+1)
Wolverhampton 44 (Freddie Lindgren 14)
SGB Premiership points: Somerset 3 Wolverhampton 1
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE
Belle Vue 57 (Dan Bewley 15)
Plymouth 33 (Adam Roynon 12)
National League points: Belle Vue 3 Plymouth 0
Cradley 61 (Danny Ayres 15)
Isle of Wight 29 (Ben Wilson 8/James Cockle 8)
