(SPEEDWAY 1) KENNETH Bjerre scored a full maximum in King’s Lynn’s 50-40 win over Coventry – as a bumper crowd turned out to witness the Elite League debut of Emil Sayfutdinov. Bjerre was unstoppable for the Stars who overcame a mid-meeting injury to Niels-Kristian Iversen, whilst Sayfutdinov top-scored for the Bees with 12 points, although their manager Alun Rossiter was a frustrated man after the meeting. He said: “In fairness to King’s Lynn, they raised their game when Niels was injured, and we should have raised it a bit more, but we didn’t. “Nobody goes out not to score and certainly it’s not a case of people not trying, but we do need more. Twelve points from Emil was great for his debut, we couldn’t ask for any more than that, but I do feel we should have been taking at least one league point back.” (SPEEDWAY 2) MARK Lemon and Jason King have both declared themselves fit to return for Newcastle. Lemon’s return from a broken collarbone and King’s first appearance of the season will provide a morale-boost for the Diamonds as they race for the first time since the tragic death of Matej Ferjan. Promoter George English said: “Speedway goes on, and it’s hard to get your head around that at times like this but we have one space to fill that was so sadly vacated last weekend. “Jason King, our skipper, has recently passed his fitness tests and will return to our side tonight, although we have had many requests from other teams to take him on loan once he was fit. Thankfully we turned down all those offers.” (SPEEDWAY 3) STOKE promoter Dave Tattum has faced with a major repair bill after a break-in at the Loomer Road Stadium. Staffordshire Police are investigating the incident with required the replacement of the dressing rooms’ copper pipework and two hot water cylinders. Tattum said: “It’s been a devastating blow for the club financially as it is something that you cannot budget for. It has cost around two and a half thousand pounds to replace the pipework and the hot water cylinders which feed hot water into the dressing room area and it is money we can ill afford to keep spending. “We have to provide showers etc for the riders so therefore obviously everything has to be replaced and done straight away and ready for the next meeting.” (SPEEDWAY 4)
THE draw has been confirmed for the British Final at Wolverhampton on June 6 – and home star Tai Woffinden will be straight into the action as he takes the No.1 race-jacket.Reigning champion Chris Harris will have to wait until Heat 4 for his first outing as he has been drawn at No.14, whilst five-times winner Scott Nicholls goes at No.5.The highest-placed rider aside from Grand Prix regular Harris will gain the Wild Card position for the British GP at the Millennium Stadium on June 25.DRAW: Tai Woffinden, Lewis Bridger, Daniel King, David Howe, Scott Nicholls, Ben Wilson, Jordan Frampton, Stuart Robson, Richard Hall, Edward Kennett, Ben Barker, Josh Auty, Leigh Lanham, Chris Harris, Lee Richardson, Ricky Ashworth.
(SPEEDWAY 5)
BELLE Vue raced to their first away Elite League win of the season with a 49-41 triumph at Swindon - after taking maximum points from the last three races.Captain Chris Harris, who scored 14, and Rory Schlein, who finished on 11, beat home star Scott Nicholls in the final heat to take the winning margin past seven, which meant the Aces banked four priceless league points.Team manager Jim Lynch said: “It was fantastic to take the full four points against a good team like Swindon and I was very proud of them. Our heads went down a bit when Swindon got a 5-1 advantage in Heat 10 but Harris and Schlein really lifted the boys in the run-in.“I was pleased with them all but Patrick Hougaard deserves special mention. He injured an eye in a fall and thought he might have to pull out but he responded when I asked him to take his last two rides and he scored crucial points.”
(SPEEDWAY 6)
PETERBOROUGH star Troy Batchelor has rallied his side ahead of a big local derby against King’s Lynn on Monday.Batchelor hit double-figures in the Panthers’ 50-37 win over Birmingham at the Showground, although both sides suffered injuries. The home side lost Dakota North with a broken finger, whilst the Brummies’ Ales Dryml suffered shoulder damage and concussion in an horrific Heat 14 pile-up.Batchelor said: “It’s a real shame to lose Dak but we have to pick ourselves up and get the job done on Monday.“It was a tough meeting because of what the weather had done to the track, but we got on with it and pulled it out again. We need to keep plugging away.”
(SPEEDWAY 7)
SCUNTHORPE/SHEFFIELD went top of the National League table with victories over Buxton and Stoke in a double-header at Owlerton.Scunthorpe promoter Rob Godfrey paid tribute to the improvement of the Worrall brothers, Steve and Richie, who scored a combined total of 48 points across the two meetings.Their side, which is a combined entry promoted by the two Premier League clubs, first defeated Buxton 50-43 and then added a 50-39 win over Stoke in the second meeting of the evening.Godfrey said: “It just continues to amaze me how far the Worrall boys have come on in the last year. They were exceptional, as was Gary Irving who taken his game to a whole new level this season.”
(FIXTURES)
FRIDAY MAY 27: PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Rye House 7.30, Plymouth v Scunthorpe 7.30, Somerset v Leicester 7.30 NATIONAL LEAGUE: Hackney v Dudley (at Lakeside) 8pm
SATURDAY MAY 28:PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Glasgow 7pm, Newport v Plymouth 7pm, Workington v Rye House 7pm NATIONAL LEAGUE: Stoke v Sheffield 7.30CHALLENGE: Leicester v Birmingham 7.30
SUNDAY MAY 29:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Sheffield 4pm, Newcastle v Redcar 7pm NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Isle of Wight 4.30CHALLENGE: Birmingham v Leicester 6.30
MONDAY MAY 30:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Poole 7.30, Peterborough v King’s Lynn 4.30, Wolverhampton v Belle Vue 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Rye House v Workington 2pm, Scunthorpe v Plymouth 3pm NATIONAL LEAGUE: Newport v Mildenhall 2.30, Scunthorpe v Dudley (follows PL fixture)
