BIG EVENT LATEST...BRITISH Youth bosses have named the team that will do battle in the UEM European Under-19 Team semi-final in Sweden next month.The event takes place in Eskilstuna on Saturday August 6 where the young Brits will be up against the hosts, Denmark and Germany.The Young Lions Management Team of Phil Morris and Neil Vatcher have selected Dudley star Ashley Morris as their skipper and will be joined by fellow Heathens Tom Perry and Brendan Johnson. Mildenhall’s Joe Jacobs completes the four-man team with Richard Franklin named as reserve.Youth boss Neil Vatcher is happy with the team selected and is confident they can do their nation proud. He said: “From an initial squad of twelve riders the final five have been selected. “A couple of the squad members were unavailable due to various reasons, but we are very happy with the five that have been selected and to be honest were always in contention for a team spot from the start.“The semi-final will be a very hard meeting though as it consists of three very strong teams from Sweden, Denmark and Germany, but this will be great experience for these Young Lions. “We are sure that they will benefit from this, become better riders from riding in the event and hopefully go on and have full international careers.”It promises to be a demanding few days for the team as they face a 2000-mile round-trip to Eskilstuna. If anyone is able to help towards the cost or perhaps sponsor with a tyre, then please contact the management team at younglions@speedwaygb.coOther big event news involving British participation sees Sheffield’s Josh Auty and Ipswich’s Jerran Hart named as the Wild Cards for the World Under-21 Final, round 1, at Poole on Sunday July 24 (4.00pm). Joe Haines and Steve Worrall have also been listed as meeting reserves.The event at Wimborne Road is the first of the four meetings which will decide the 2011 World Under-21 Individual Champion, with Poole’s talented Australian Darcy Ward defending the title he won in both 2009 and 2010.FULL LINE-UP: Martin Vaculik (Slovakia), Dennis Andersson (Sweden), Jerran Hart (Great Britain), Patryk Dudek (Poland), Piotr Pawlicki (Poland), Simon Gustafsson (Sweden), Josh Auty (Great Britain), Vadim Tarasenko (Russia), Bartosz Zmarzlik (Poland), Aleksandr Loktaev (Ukraine), Darcy Ward (Australia), Maciej Janowski (Poland), Michael Jepsen Jensen (Denmark), Przemyslaw Pawlicki (Poland), Dino Kovacic (Croatia), Oskar Fajfer (Poland). Reserves: Joe Haines (Great Britain), Steve Worrall (Great Britain).SUPER7EVEN SERIES SPEEDWAY GB EVENTSBRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: TAI WOFFINDENELITE LEAGUE PAIRS: POOLEBRITISH FINAL: SCOTT NICHOLLSPREMIER LEAGUE PAIRS: GLASGOWPREMIER LEAGUE FOURS: Leicester, August 7PREMIER LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield, September 25ELITE LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Swindon, October 15ELITE LEAGUE LATEST…BELLE VUE manager Jim Lynch says that Danish rider Charlie Gjedde, who is back this year from long-term injury problems, is a key rider in the Aces’ play-off challenge.Lynch said: “He has scored consistently this season wherever I have put him in the team. “Charlie has struck up a powerful partnership with Rory Schlein, and he did the same at the start of the season when he was riding at No.2 with Chris Harris. That was a tasty pairing which brought in a lot of points for us.”
BIRMINGHAM boss Graham Drury says if No.1 rider Krzysztof Kasprzak can build on his much-improved recent showing at Wolverhampton, the Brummies can be a big threat during the Elite League run-in.Drury said: “Hopefully KK can come back and show his true form because if we have a proper number one backed up by strength in depth we will be a tough team to beat in the second part of the season.“I’ve enjoyed much of the Elite League so far, it’s very competitive and our fans are seeing some of the best riders in the world.”
COVENTRY skipper Edward Kennett has warned that the Bees need to eliminate their recent problems if they are to make the most of a hectic run of fixtures following the World Cup.Kennett said: “We’ve got to sort everything out quickly and start working as a team again. Most of all we’ve got to learn how to get out of the traps because if you don’t do that, you don’t win races, and that was shown against Peterborough (in the KO Cup).“We had so many engine failures as well, and that was something that happened to me at the start of last season when I just kept breaking down. It’s not what you need to happen especially when you’re in points-scoring positions and quite often it seems to be stupid little things going wrong.”
EASTBOURNE co-promoter Mike Bellerby insists the club will stick with Finnish rider Timo Lahti for the time being, despite a disappointing run of scores since an encouraging start to his Eagles’ career.Bellerby said: “We are going to help Timo as much as we can. He has shown in some races what he can do and the best option is for us to persevere with him. “However, fans can be assured that if we need to make any changes at any stage, we will not shirk from the task.”
KING’S LYNN boss Rob Lyon has paid tribute to the Stars’ Mads Korneliussen, who has enjoyed a fine season at the Norfolk Arena and transferred that form into the first round of the World Cup for Denmark at Vojens last weekend.Lyon said: “It’s nice to see Mads getting the recognition he deserves. He has had a great season and not just for us, but look at his results abroad in Poland albeit in the second division.“He has been knocking in big, big scores everywhere and I believe he has been going well in Denmark as well. Good luck to him, I’m pleased he got a call-up.”
LAKESIDE boss Jon Cook says Finnish star Kauko Nieminen will benefit from the extra meetings he gains in the Premier League with Leicester, with the Hammers’ squad possibly set to undergo further modifications in the near future.Cook said: “We both felt that Kakke and the Club would benefit from this and he will now share a position with Kevin Doolan, which gives us a ‘horses for courses’ choice for matches. Kev will, therefore, ride for us at Peterborough in our match on the 18th July. “However, I would like to tell our fans that this is probably the start of changes and it’s likely we won’t stop here although this will be our declared team heading into the first week’s fixtures after the Speedway World Cup.”
PETERBOROUGH star Troy Batchelor scored an impressive maximum in the Panthers’ 50-42 KO Cup win at Coventry – and then insisted the tie is far from over.Batchelor said: “Obviously it's pleasing to get the advantage in the first-leg but Coventry go really well at our place so we're not taking anything for granted. They will want to pull it back and they're capable of coming to the Showground and winning, so we're not going to get complacent."But we've shown what we are capable of and I think it's looking pretty good for us if we can continue this form.”
POOLE skipper Davey Watt says the Pirates’ success this season is down to an all-round team effort, despite the stunning form of Chris Holder and Darcy Ward who are both on a run of three straight maximums at Wimborne Road.Watt said: “Of course Chris and Darcy are important. They are two of the best riders in the world and we are lucky enough to have them at Poole.“But at the same time, Dennis Andersson, Jason Doyle, Renat Gafurov and our reserves are all scoring points every week, and without them our efforts would be wasted. It is a team sport and I really don’t want anybody to focus on any individuals in the team.”
SWINDON co-owner Gary Patchett is confident that the Robins’ new team manager Jan Staechmann will be able to make progress in turning fortunes around at the Abbey Stadium.Patchett said: “He is extremely well respected and knows what it takes to win having been manager of the Danish national team. He has excellent contacts and is fully in touch with the situation with developing riders in Europe. I now feel that there is no rider that we couldn't attract to the club.“I thought I'd be handcuffing him if I didn't let him put his own stamp on the team but he is confident that he can get the best out of the current squad. Having him involved now will give us the opportunity to plan for next year in good time whilst still doing our utmost to turn this season around.”
WOLVERHAMPTON promoter Chris Van Straaten says the club will be spending the World Cup week looking at options with a view to having a new face in the team for the resumption of Elite League business.Van Straaten said: “Any changes have to be on a like for like basis. But if we can improve by changing one or even two riders, then we will.“We will see what we can do over the next ten days. We owe it to the Wolverhampton supporters, who have been tremendously loyal.”PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST…BERWICK boss Ian Rae said both sides deserved credit from the Bandits’ 48-44 win over Somerset which was raced in less than ideal conditions.Rae said: “With all the rain prior to the meeting, all I can say is well done to all of the riders in both teams for getting on with the job in hand and making it a pretty good meeting for the fans, with a special thanks to guest Claes Nedermark who got right stuck in and was a pleasure to have in our pits.”
EDINBURGH director Mike Hunter admitted the Monarchs had been below-par in their defeat at injury-hit Newcastle on Sunday.Hunter said: “We should have done better and we only had two race winners over the course of the meeting. Our gating was just awful, we had to come from the back quite a lot of the time and left ourselves with too much to do.”
GLASGOW can further enhance their position at the top of the Premier League table if they can build on a hugely impressive away record in this weekend’s trips to Somerset and Rye House.Co-promoter Stewart Dickson said: “It is great to hit the top of the table but we are well aware that we are not even at the halfway stage so there is a long way to go and nobody here is taking anything for granted. We do need to keep up the momentum so this coming week should be very interesting with three meetings in four days. I can't wait!”
IPSWICH boss Pete Simmons was thankful for the air fence at Leicester as Lasse Bjerre remarkably avoided serious injuries in his match-stopping Heat 15 crash with Kauko Nieminen – with initial fears of a broken thigh thankfully proving premature.Simmons said: “It was one of those crashes you don’t want to run over and see what the result of it is. I’m convinced the air fence saved Lasse’s life. Both he and Nieminen were flat out as they headed towards it.”
LEICESTER promoter David Hemsley says the arrival of Kauko Nieminen as the Lions’ new No.1 gives the Beaumont Park side something they have been lacking for several weeks.Hemsley said: “It seems that we’ve unearthed a proper No.1 again, someone who can go out and win heats for fun for us. Sergey (Darkin) started the season how I thought he would, but he has lost all his form, and lost his confidence on the track.”
NEWCASTLE were well-served by guests Jason Lyons and Aaron Summers as they overcame injury problems to defeat an Edinburgh side who have a good recent record on Tyneside.Diamonds boss Darryl Illingworth said: “We thought we’d have trouble with Edinburgh, but our lads were keen to redress the balance after the disaster at Redcar on Thursday and they did it in style by showing the Monarchs who are the kings round Brough Park.”
NEWPORT chief Steve Mallett reflected on a highly positive weekend as the Wasps picked up a maximum haul of seven points courtesy of an away win at Plymouth and a home victory over Redcar.Mallett said: “Our boys really were on form. It is the best side we have tracked since we took over in 2009, and the team spirit is fantastic. The team are a pleasure to work alongside. We must build on this now for next weekend when we visit Scunthorpe on Friday before hosting Newcastle on Saturday evening.”
PLYMOUTH promoter Mike Bowden is hoping the potential return of Lee Smart this weekend can help the Devils inject some consistency into their season.Bowden said: “It was a very disappointing performance against Newport apart from two members of the side who scored 27 of our 40 points. It just shows that we have a lot to learn in the Premier League and some of our riders are not doing the job they are paid to do.”
REDCAR promoter Brian Havelock is expecting lower-order strength to be in his team’s favour when they face title-challenging Somerset on Thursday.Havelock said: “Robert Branford is starting to pick up points and even heat wins so forming a reasonable reserve partnership with Peter Juul. The battle of the lesser lights will be crucial on Thursday and with Robert and Peter making progress then that should be in our favour.”
RYE HOUSE have rapidly agreed a re-staging date with Scunthorpe for last Saturday’s postponed fixture at Hoddesdon. The two sides will try again on Saturday August 20 after the initial attempt was washed out due to heavy rain shortly before the meeting.
SCUNTHORPE manager Richard Hollingsworth was delighted to see Danish youngster Thomas Jorgensen fully justify his nomination for Heat 15 in the Scorpions’ win over Leicester.Hollingsworth said: “Experience counts for quite a bit when it comes to Heat 15 but Thomas had nearly passed (Sergey) Darkin in Heat 14. He’d cut back too soon and we just told him that if he stuck to the outside line he would pass riders. Thankfully that’s exactly what he did and he won his first Heat 15.”
SHEFFIELD promoter Neil Machin says maximum points from the Tigers’ fixtures this week could prove to be vital in the race for the Premier League title.
Machin said: “We need three points from Thursday’s meeting (against Scunthorpe) and then we need to go to Leicester and win by more than six which would give us four league points. If we can do that it would increase the pressure at the top of the table and we have to keep doing that whenever possible.”
SOMERSET newcomer Anders Mellgren has given the thumbs-up to his recent move to the Oak Tree Arena, having already impressed on his new home circuit against Plymouth.Mellgren said: “I felt really fast, and that was good. I showed that I could pass people as well, that was fun. I think it’s a really great club, they have been so great to me so far.”
WORKINGTON skipper Tomas Topinka believes he is finally over the injury which saw him spend a month on the sidelines recently. The Czech was concussed at Rye House at the end of May, and worsened the problem shortly after in a bizarre parade-lap accident at Edinburgh, but scored paid-13 at home to Newcastle earlier this month.Topinka said: “Now that I have got over my injury I feel it is a fresh start and I can do a lot better than I have been doing. I feel a lot better than before I got injured and hopefully it will not be long before I start scoring these points every week.”FIXTURE PICTURE…WEDNESDAY JULY 13:NATIONAL LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Dudley 8pm, King’s Lynn v Isle of Wight 7.30THURSDAY JULY 14:PREMIER LEAGUE: Ipswich v Leicester 7.30, Redcar v Somerset 7.30, Sheffield v Scunthorpe 7.45FRIDAY JULY 15:PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Plymouth 7.30, Scunthorpe v Newport 7.30, Somerset v Glasgow 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Hackney v Buxton (at Lakeside) 8pmSATURDAY JULY 16:PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Workington 7pm, Leicester v Sheffield 7.30, Newport v Newcastle 7pm, Plymouth v Edinburgh 7.30, Rye House v Glasgow 7pmSUNDAY JULY 17:PREMIER LEAGUE: Newcastle v Berwick 6.30, Workington v Ipswich 7pmNATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 1st leg: Mildenhall v Isle of Wight 4.30MONDAY JULY 18:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Coventry 7.30, Peterborough v Lakeside 7.30, Wolverhampton v Belle Vue 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Ipswich 7.15TUESDAY JULY 19:NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 2nd leg: Isle of Wight v Mildenhall 7.30WEDNESDAY JULY 20:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Wolverhampton 8pm, King’s Lynn v Peterborough 7.30THURSDAY JULY 21:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Lakeside 7.30, Swindon v Eastbourne 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Redcar v Plymouth 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP: Ipswich v Newport 7.30, Sheffield v Workington 7.45FRIDAY JULY 22:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Swindon 8pm, Lakeside v Poole 8pm, Peterborough v Belle Vue 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Rye House 7.30, Plymouth v Redcar 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F: Somerset v Newcastle 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Scunthorpe v Newport 7.30SATURDAY JULY 23:BRITISH UNDER-19 CHAMPIONSHIP: Rye House 7pmPREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F: Berwick v Glasgow 7pm, Newport v Ipswich 7pm, Workington v Sheffield 7pmSUNDAY JULY 24:WORLD UNDER-21 FINAL ROUND 1: Poole 4pmPREMIER LEAGUE: Leicester v Workington 7pmPREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F: Glasgow v Berwick 4pm, Newcastle v Somerset 6.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Hackney 4.30, Stoke v Belle Vue 3pmMONDAY JULY 25:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Peterborough 7.30, Coventry v Poole 7.30ELITE LEAGUE KO CUP 2nd leg: Wolverhampton v Eastbourne 7.30TUESDAY JULY 26:NATIONAL LEAGUE: Isle of Wight v Stoke 7.30GOLDEN HAMMER: Dudley 7.30WEDNESDAY JULY 27:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Eastbourne 7.30, Poole v Lakeside 7.30
