(SPEEDWAY 1)
SWINDON secured leadership of the SGB Premiership going into the play-offs with a 52-40 win over Wolverhampton at the Abbey Stadium.
The Robins will now receive choice of opponents in the semi-finals after their 17th successive victory, coming against the one side who could have overhauled them.
Jason Doyle scored a four-ride paid maximum (11+1) with Nick Morris (12+1) and Tobiaz Musielak (10+1) also in double figures for a solid home team.
Fredrik Lindgren led the way for Wolves with 10+1 although he was overtaken by Morris when taking a tactical ride, whilst Sam Masters (8) picked up two race wins but also suffered two engine failures.
Swindon boss Alun Rossiter said: “We showed good strength and character tonight, but all the hard work really starts now. You can’t take anything for granted when it comes to the play-offs.
“Jason was sat in traffic for nearly four hours, and fair play to him because he got here at 7.30pm, got changed and went out and scored a paid maximum – and then he was out there signing autographs afterwards. It shows how much he’s matured as a rider and a person.
“Our top five really have been superb, and Adam Ellis has done a great job riding at No.2, which is a tough number in this league. He’s really come on strong in these last couple of months.”
Masters said: “I still scored eight points but it's really frustrating because my bike stopped twice while I was winning races too. So me and a few of the other boys had a bit of bad luck tonight but we just have to get past it and move on.
“There's no disgrace in losing to Swindon; they're in some real good form just lately and they're riding good.
“Okay they've finished top and they'll get the pick in the play-offs, but we showed last year that anything can happen in those few meetings.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
POOLE moved eight points clear of Rye House in the race for the fourth SGB Premiership play-off place with a vital 50-43 win at King’s Lynn.
The Rockets’ chance to respond in the second part of a double header was washed out by heavy rain, with that match to be re-staged on a date to be confirmed.
But with Poole scoring four league points, a win for the Pirates in their final fixture at Somerset will secure a play-off place.
Flying reserve Timo Lahti again starred for the Pirates with 17 points, including five race wins, whilst skipper Hans Andersen (9+1) joined forced with Brady Kurtz to keep Michael Palm Toft at the back of Heat 15 to make sure the Dorset side would take the maximum available.
Thomas Jorgensen scored 12 for the Stars, for whom team manager Dale Allitt made a welcome return despite his recent illness – but the hosts’ losing run continued.
Poole promoter Matt Ford said: “Knowing the win was in the bag helped a bit, but we really needed the full points and we couldn't afford to slip up in Heat 15.
“For Hans and Brady to hold on for that shared heat was a massive relief. We aren't
home and dry yet but if we can pick up a win at Somerset on Friday then that will be enough to put us into the play-offs for the eighth successive year.”
Allitt said: “We huffed and puffed but never quite got there. Lahti made a huge difference at reserve and it was always going to be difficult.
“Sometimes it can come down to luck. You race a team on one day and their riding order is different, Lahti is doing well in Sweden but he’s at reserve. That hurt us.
“It is disappointing and a little bit surreal for me. A few weeks ago we were looking at second place and now we are in a relegation battle which I never dreamt would be the case.”
(SPEEDWAY 3)
SHEFFIELD made it twelve successive SGB Championship wins by overcoming Glasgow 54-36 at Owlerton.
The Yorkshire side are now seven points clear at the top of the table after a big finish against their fellow Tigers, scoring 5-1s in each of the last three races to extend their lead from six to 18 points.
Captain Kyle Howarth and No.1 Josh Grajczonek both scored 14+1 paid maximums and teamed up for maximum advantages in Heats 13 and 15, and mid-season signing Jan Graversen contributed 9+1.
Glasgow remain third in the table, five points clear of fifth place and with a matches in hand on the teams below them. Guest Mason Campton scored 10+2 at Owlerton with Aaron Summers adding 10.
Howarth said: “We knew it was going to be a tough meeting, and in the first few heats they kept running us close.
“It took us a long time to get ahead, but we managed to kick on towards the end of the meeting and we got the job done, so it was a successful night.
“It was important to beat Glasgow, and I think it’s made another statement. We’re beating the big teams too, and by a pretty big margin so everyone knows we mean business.”
Glasgow reserve Jack Smith said: “It was always going to be a hard task, particularly without Dan Bewley and Nike Lunna.
“We kept them honest in the first few races, it seemed to be after Heat 10 or 11 that they changed something on their bikes and they were just uncatchable.
“Come Saturday at our place hopefully we'll do the same as what they've done to us. I'm looking forward to that meeting - hopefully it'll be a home win against them, I don't see why it can't be.”
Meanwhile Redcar have moved into fourth position with a 55-38 win over Ipswich at the Media Prima Arena.
The Bears overcame the absence of Jason Garrity to run out comfortable winners, led by Ben Barker who dropped just one point in scoring 16+1, whilst Charles Wright (10+2) and Tobias Busch (10+1) also scored double figures.
Rory Schlein won three races, including one for six points, on his way to 15 for the Witches, whilst Kyle Newman accumulated 11+1 – but guest Kevin Doolan failed to score from five rides.
The result means Redcar are now a point ahead of Edinburgh, although they only have one home match remaining, whilst the Monarchs have two fixtures in hand.
Ipswich boss Ritchie Hawkins said: “We were beaten by the better side tonight and we need to put that right on Saturday night, and I am sure we will.
“We didn’t score that many points from r/r and the guests, and that obviously affected our overall score. We cannot criticise anyone for their efforts, it was just one of those nights.
“Kevin had machinery problems in his first ride and struggled all night with his bikes. You know what you are getting with Kevin, he is a top bloke and he will give you everything but he has had a really bad night. He will be upset about it himself but Kev is experienced enough to go well in his next meeting.”
(SPEEDWAY 4)
EASTBOURNE consolidated their position in the National League with a 51-39 win at the Isle of Wight on Thursday.
The Eagles are six points clear of the clubs outside the play-off places, and also have matches in hand on most of the sides around them.
Jake Knight (12), Josh Bailey (12) and Ben Hopwood (10+1) headed the visitors’ scoring at the Smallbrook Stadium, whilst mid-season signing Scott Campos racked up 13 for the Warriors.
(SPEEDWAY 5)
SOMERSET host Poole at the Oaktree Arena tonight (Friday) in a match which could decide the final SGB Premiership play-off place.
A win for the Pirates will render them uncatchable in fourth spot, whilst a defeat opens the door again for Rye House who race at home to Swindon.
The Rebels hope to welcome back Patrick Hougaard after a twisted knee, but will operate rider-replacement for Cameron Heeps who remains on the sidelines. Jake Allen is also a doubt after crashing on his comeback at Swindon on Monday.
Poole go into the meeting without Jack Holder (World U21 Team Cup) and James Shanes (World Longtrack Championsip), with Georgie Wood stepping in at reserve.
Somerset boss Garry May said: “As I live in Poole, it would be great if we could end our season with a win over the Pirates to make it three wins out of four over them this season.
“It promises to be a cracker of a match with the no small matter of local bragging rights up for grabs.”
Meanwhile Rye House boss Peter Schroeck insists his side have to focus on their own job when they host the league leaders at Hoddesdon.
The Rockets suffered a heavy defeat at Belle Vue on Wednesday and their chance to keep pace with Poole at King’s Lynn last night was ended by rain.
It’s a crucial fixture for Schroeck’s side as they race the Robins, who are on a run of 17 successive victories – but are without three of their regular septet.
Bradley Wilson-Dean and Zach Wajtknecht remain on the sidelines, with Adam Ellis on World U21 Team Cup duty, and Tero Aarnio comes in to guest.
Schroeck said: “It’s an absolute must-win situation it’s as simple as that. We’ll worry about the Poole result afterwards. All we can do is focus on doing our own thing, and there is no doubt that all the boys are psyched up, as they were at Lynn.
“We’ll definitely be going for broke, and hopefully in front of a big crowd that adds an extra bite to the occasion the way it did on Monday against Poole.”
Swindon boss Alun Rossiter said: “Finding guests at the moment is a nightmare, everyone is trying to get their meetings in and all of the teams in the Premiership are riding on Friday.
“It’s just something we have to live with for the moment. Hopefully Bradley (Wilson-Dean) will be back sometime next week, fingers crossed, and we’ll see how things go from there.”
(SPEEDWAY 6)
LEICESTER have the chance to move off the bottom of the SGB Premiership when they host play-off qualifiers Wolverhampton at Beaumont Park tonight (Friday).
The Lions are mounting a strong bid to reel in and overhaul King’s Lynn, helped by the recent run of defeats for the Stars – who are also in action at second-placed Belle Vue.
Local man David Howe makes a guest appearance for Leicester with Josh Bates racing in the World Under-21 Team Cup, whilst Wolves are waiting on the fitness of Nathan Greaves after a crash at Swindon on Thursday but are expected to be at full strength.
Lions skipper Danny King said: “We know we can’t win anything, but it would be really nice to get off the bottom of the table.
“I don’t think we deserve to be there, we’ve had a really tough year with the team, injuries and all sorts, and I think it would be nice for the fans and the Bates family to get off the bottom.
“They don’t deserve to finish there either, because they’ve put absolutely everything into it this year.”
Wolves star Sam Masters said: “Leicester might be bottom of the league, but that doesn't mean it's going to be easy. They've picked up a bit of late and we know they'll want to end at home on a high too.
“But we want to be heading into the play-offs with some good results under our belt and we're looking to take the full four points at Leicester.
“We'd love to win the league again this year and I still think we're more than capable of doing that if we can get a bit of form going again.”
Meanwhile Belle Vue will be without Kenneth Bjerre due to Danish League commitments, whilst Richie Worrall and Jan Graversen guest for Max Fricke (injured) and Dan Bewley (World U21 Team Cup) at the National Speedway Stadium.
The Stars operate rider-replacement for Robert Lambert, who leads Great Britain in the World U21 Team Cup, whilst Simon Lambert again steps in for Nicklas Porsing at reserve.
King’s Lynn’s Josh Auty said: “All of these boys are warriors. We have had a gruelling schedule but will give absolutely everything at Belle Vue.
“No one here wants to finish bottom. The schedule is killing us and of course, we’d have a better chance if it was lighter. We can only give our all and hopefully, go there and get something.”
(SPEEDWAY 7)
PLYMOUTH look to maintain their good form when play-off chasing Lakeside visit the St Boniface Arena tonight (Friday).
Adam Roynon moves to No.1 for the Devils with Henry Atkins dropping to reserve, as they take on a Hammers side who include Ben Wilson and Tom Bacon as guests for Zach Watjknecht (injured) and Ben Morley (SGBP commitment).
The home club have dubbed the meeting ‘Military Appreciation Night’ with members of the armed forces and retired members being admitted free.
Promoter Mark Phillips said: “With a strong armed forces presence in Plymouth we are offering them a free night out at the speedway. Hopefully they will like what they see and continue to come along and support the Devils.”
Lakeside star Alfie Bowtell said: “At home we've been as solid as everyone thought we would be. Away from home it's been a different story though, and we need to change that pretty quickly ideally.
“We know our play-off place isn't guaranteed yet and we know we still need to add a few points to our total to give us a chance. We've got four meetings left to do that and we need to get at least a point at Plymouth - but preferably a win.”
Meanwhile Edinburgh make a third attempt to stage the Caledonian Riders’ Championship at Armadale.
Home men Max Clegg and Mitchell Davey head the line-up which also includes other riders with Championship experience as well as up-and-coming local prospects.
Event organiser Scott Frame said: “We have to make sure we are giving the young Scottish guys a chance to show what they can do. The guys don’t get the track time they need these days and we need to try and rectify that.
“To lose out to the weather for the second time (last week) was very disappointing but we have one last opportunity for this season on Friday.
“The enthusiasm for the meeting has been eye-opening for the club. I think the fans have appreciated the time and effort that's gone in to trying to put on a show that's different to what they are used to.”
(FIXTURES)
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 1:
SGB PREMIERSHIP: Belle Vue v King’s Lynn 7.30, Leicester v Wolverhampton 7.30, Rye House v Swindon 7.30, Somerset v Poole 7.30
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Plymouth v Lakeside 7.15
CALEDONIAN RIDERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP: Edinburgh 7.30
SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 2:
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Berwick v Newcastle 7pm, Glasgow v Sheffield 7pm, Ipswich v Redcar 7.30, Workington v Peterborough 7pm
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Isle of Wight 7.30
NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP REPLAY 2nd leg: Stoke v Mildenhall 7pm
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 3:
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP: Newcastle v Redcar 6.30, Peterborough v Glasgow 7.30
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE: Lakeside v Stoke 3pm, Mildenhall v Buxton 3pm
Results Thursday August 31, 2017
SGB PREMIERSHIP
King’s Lynn 43 (Thomas Jorgensen 12)
Poole 50 (Timo Lahti 17)
SGB Premiership points: King’s Lynn 0 Poole 4
King’s Lynn v Rye House - OFF
Track waterlogged
Swindon 52 (Nick Morris 12+1)
Wolverhampton 40 (Freddie Lindgren 10+1)
SGB Premiership Swindon 3 Wolverhampton 0
SGB CHAMPIONSHIP
Redcar 55 (Ben Barker 16+1)
Ipswich 38 (Rory Schlein 15)
SGB Championship points: Redcar 3 Ipswich 0
Sheffield 54 (Josh Grajczonek 14+1/Kyle Howarth 14+1)
Glasgow 36 (Mason Campton 10+2)
SGB Championship points: Sheffield 3 Glasgow 0
TRAVEL PLUS NATIONAL LEAGUE
Isle of Wight 39 (Scott Campos 13)
Eastbourne 51 (James Knight 12/Josh Bailey 12)
National League points: Isle of Wight 0 Eastbourne 4
