BIG EVENT LATEST…
KYLE Newman will be hoping to make local knowledge count as he takes his place as one of the seeded riders in the British Under-21 Final later this month.Newman, who races for Somerset in the Premier League and doubles-up with Peterborough, enjoyed a successful spell with Dudley at National League level last season, with the Heathens’ adopted home of Monmore Green staging the first showpiece event of 2012 on April 24.And after a winter break in Australia to recuperate from a serious crash at the end of last season, Newman believes there is plenty of strength in the British youth ranks – with the Under-21 Final a stepping stone to the seven-round World series.He said: “Having taken a bit of a back-seat whilst out in Australia, it allowed me to look at things from the outside.“Looking at the lads who were in the Young Lions touring team I think we’ve got riders coming through the ranks who are every bit as good as their Aussie counterparts – after all, at the end of the day, the Brits won all three test matches.”Meanwhile Jason Garrity is another rider expected to challenge strongly for the domestic Under-21 title – and if he can win it, he would hold two junior crowns at the same time after his victory in the British Under-19 Final at Rye House last year.His form in that meeting, and in his NLRC victory later in 2011, prompted Rockets boss Len Silver to make a move to bring him to Hoddesdon for this year’s Premier League campaign, and an early-season haul of paid-12 in a draw at Plymouth met with Silver’s approval.He said “Jason was really in his element. He had got the bikes sorted, he was quick and he was doing what we all believe he can do this year as a Rocket.”The full line-up for the British Under-21 Final will now be decided on Saturday April 14 after last weekend’s scheduled semi-final at Stoke was postponed.Potters promoter Dave Tattum was forced to pull the plug on the meeting after heavy overnight rain, and the event was immediately re-arranged for one week later, where the final six qualifiers will be determined.*YOUNG Lions co-boss Phil Morris is predicting a close battle for British Youth Championship honours as the series swings into action this weekend.Leicester stage the first of six events on April 14 with 32 riders competing in the 500cc and 250cc Championships, with the 125cc event again running as a support class.Morris said: “The riders are always really keen at the start of the series, and even more so this year as out of the six rounds, there are four new tracks to visit from last year’s series, including Leicester. For many of the riders, this will be their first visit to Beaumont Park.“It looks as if it is going to be a really competitive series this year as in the 500cc class out of the twelve riders there are four National League riders competing, with the other eight all trying to impress and get themselves noticed by National League clubs.“This championship really does seem to be the breeding ground for the next generation of future stars.”
SPEEDWAYGB EVENTS SERIES:BRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: Dudley, Tuesday April 24PREMIER LEAGUE FOURS: Peterborough, Sunday July 15BRITISH FINAL: Wolverhampton, Monday July 30PREMIER LEAGUE PAIRS: Somerset, Friday August 24PREMIER LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield, Sunday September 23ELITE LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Swindon, Saturday October 20
NATIONAL LEAGUE MAJOR EVENT DATES:NATIONAL LEAGUE FOURS: Stoke, Sunday June 10NATIONAL LEAGUE PAIRS: Mildenhall, Sunday July 22NATIONAL LEAGUE RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Rye House, Saturday September 15
ELITE LEAGUE LATEST…
BELLE VUE chief David Gordon has pledged to hold an urgent inquest into the circumstances surrounding the abandonment of the Aces’ Elite League opener against Wolverhampton on Good Friday.Gordon said: “We will be holding an inquest at the earliest possible opportunity. The Track Curator will be asked to tell us how it happened.“We do feel that this was an avoidable situation and we apologise sincerely to everyone who came to the meeting. It was a disaster because we had attracted a big crowd for our opening home match of the season.”BIRMINGHAM boss Graham Drury says everyone at Perry Barr was left frustrated by a collapse in their Good Friday home meeting against Swindon, where the Robins finished with three 5-1s for a 53-37 win.Drury said: “We’ll be having a chat about things to try and establish where it all went wrong because what happened at the end was completely unacceptable.“We have given the riders the platform to perform on and it’s up to them to reward the owners, sponsors and supporters. They know what’s required and it was particularly disappointing on Friday after picking up a point in the away meeting the previous night.”COVENTRY skipper Chris Harris is backing his side to bounce back when they face King’s Lynn at Brandon on Friday, having suffered double defeat against Poole on Good Friday.Harris said: “My job now is to lift the team ahead of the next meeting. I do think a lot of it was down to bad luck on Friday night and if it hadn’t been for that we’d have been a lot closer, and maybe heads wouldn’t have dropped either.“So now we’ve got to re-group and get ready for King’s Lynn. They’ll want to put things right themselves after Good Friday, but I do think we can beat them at home. We’ve got a good team, and the boys will be really fired up after losing the first two meetings.”EASTBOURNE boss Trevor Geer admitted his side had been shell-shocked by Lakeside’s opening to the Good Friday encounter at Arlington.The Hammers reeled off four straight 5-1s to go 20-4 up before securing a 51-45 win to add to their victory at Purfleet earlier in the day.Geer said: “I have never seen anything like that at Eastbourne. I didn’t expect that at all. At least we did get back into the match a little bit, our tacticals worked but sadly it wasn’t enough.”LAKESIDE have made a flying start to the season with home-and-away Good Friday wins over Eastbourne taking them top of the early Elite League table with nine points.Co-promoter Jon Cook said: “Six League points in the bag on a day when other fancied teams won away was crucial. When Eastbourne came back at us in the away meeting, we had Davey Watt having problems with his back and we looked on the ropes, but the boys came back strong again.“I’d also like to give great credit to Neil Vatcher, out Team Manager, in his choice of Kyle Howarth to guest and to Kyle plus his pit crew who were a pleasure to have on board and I am sure he will have a huge future in the sport. He’s a great prospect for Britain.”KING’S LYNN promoter Jonathan Chapman believes his side have the potential to reverse their Good Friday double defeat against Peterborough next time the sides meet.Chapman said: “Filip (Sitera) had two terrible matches while Peterborough had (Michael Jepsen) Jensen at reserve. It was hard work against him, he must have scored nearly 25 per cent of their points.“I'm looking forward to meeting them again, when we meet, Jensen will be in the main body of the team which will put Lasse (Bjerre) or (Rene) Bach at reserve.”PETERBOROUGH skipper Kenneth Bjerre endured a Good Friday beset with mechanical problems but popped up with a vital Heat 15 win on borrowed machinery to secure his side’s double win over King’s Lynn.Bjerre said: “As captain I am delighted with the two wins. It was great that there were others in the team who could cover for me and it is very obvious that there is wonderful team spirit developing. “It shows how strong the team are that when I'm not at my best we still managed to win. Now we need to get back in the workshop and work intensely to get the motors back to full-speed.”POOLE skipper Chris Holder recovered from a disastrous start at Brandon to play a full part in the Pirates’ Easter double over Coventry, with the Australian unbeaten in the second meeting at Wimborne Road.Holder said: “The first two races in the morning weren’t the best and had me scratching my head a bit, thinking ‘what’s going on?’ But I worked it out in the end, changed bikes and turned my morning around.“I went to Poole hoping to start off where I left off at Coventry, and from Heat 1 I felt good. It was a great night for me and the team was awesome.”SWINDON skipper Hans Andersen has put the record straight over an apparent clash with team-mate Troy Batchelor during the Robins’ successful Easter programme against Birmingham.Andersen said: “Much has been made about Batch taking me on a ride to inspect the airfence during the Brum meeting!“Let me say here and now, these things happen in Speedway, especially so early in a new season and the most important thing is that I recovered and we gained an advantage for the team. I’d also like to put the record straight and say that I actually like riding with Batch and we have become good friends off the track.”WOLVERHAMPTON boss Peter Adams is relishing the prospect of the upcoming clashes with old rivals Eastbourne, with the sides meeting at Arlington on Saturday and then back at Monmore Green next Monday.Adams said: “There’s always something special about meetings between ourselves and the Eagles, they are almost like the old enemy.“We appear to have more strength at the top of our team in comparison to them, but they would argue they have more in-depth to call upon. We’re in for a couple of entertaining meetings.”
PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST…
BERWICK encountered mixed fortunes over the weekend, with all three points gained against Glasgow at home on Saturday before a less successful afternoon at Ashfield in the return fixture.Manager Ian Rae said: “We’re now sitting back waiting news on Ricky Ashworth again as he’s aggravated his back injury, but that aside our delight in signing Lubos Tomicek continued with him taking two good wins and eight good points, but all-in-all today (Sunday) was a one to forget.”EDINBURGH rode well at home to defeat Newcastle 42-33 in a meeting curtailed by the weather, although they were then unable to make an impact the following night at in-form Workington.Club chairman Alex Harkess said: “We are developing into a very solid team, and the three heat leaders are going to be very hard to beat on their home track.”GLASGOW skipper Joe Screen collected a paid maximum in the Tigers’ comfortable home win over Berwick on Sunday. The Ashfield club continue their League Cup campaign with a weekend double clash with Workington, starting at Derwent Park on Saturday.IPSWICH boss Pete Simmons says his side must avoid any slip-ups in their coming run of three home matches, with the Witches having no fixtures on the road until the final weekend of the month.Simmons said: “We need to maximise the advantage of riding just home matches over the next couple of weeks so we are in the best possible position when the away meetings come along.”LEICESTER skipper Kauko Nieminen broke his own Beaumont Park track record with a Heat 5 win in the Lions’ narrow home victory over Rye House.Nieminen said: “It’s good to set a new track record so early in the season and I’d like to think that will stay for something like ten years! It will go again for sure, though, but it’s nice to have it for the moment.”NEWCASTLE boss George English is pleased with the way his side are developing in the early stages of the season, with the Diamonds collecting a 57-35 win over Scunthorpe on Sunday.English said: “Christian Henry’s partnership with Lemo (Mark Lemon) is flourishing, and Christian is getting sharper all the time. There are no plans to change our riding order at the moment, and one of these nights both Claes (Nedermark) and Ludvig (Lindgren) are going to hit form together to give someone a shock.”PLYMOUTH have three matches in three days this week with trips to Ipswich and Somerset followed by a home clash with the Rebels on Saturday night.Promoter Mike Bowden said: “We are looking forward to the three meetings and the chance to get some competitive fixtures under our belts. I am sure the home and away matches against Somerset will prove highly entertaining for both sets of supporters.”REDCAR boss Jitendra Duffill says his side will face a big threat from in-form Workington reserve Kyle Howarth when the sides meet on Thursday.Duffill said: “We will certainly have to contain Kyle from the off but with Mark Jones having made an impressive debut for the Bears last week plus Max Dilger being a real battler then we have confidence in our reserves to carry the battle to the opposition.”RYE HOUSE promoter Len Silver was frustrated to miss out on an away win at Leicester thanks to a late comeback by the home side – as had also been the case at Plymouth last month.Silver said: “Up until the last few races we really thought we were on-course for the victory, only to be caught out at the gate. Yes, we took a consolation point, but we dropped a bigger opportunity in the same way that we did in the closing stages at Plymouth. We have to learn from that.”SCUNTHORPE promoter Rob Godfrey is looking for the Scorpions to keep pace with Workington in the battle to qualify for the final stages of the League Cup competition.Godfrey said: “This Northern section is shaping up nicely at the minute. It’s going to be very interesting because we don’t meet Workington. We’re targeting wins where they’ve won, which is Sheffield, to match them.”SHEFFIELD owner Neil Machin was far more satisfied with his side’s displays in their Easter clashes with Redcar, with a home win followed up by an away draw.Machin said: “There is a buoyancy in the camp now after two good results and the boys are working through their gremlins. We pulled together at Redcar and got a result. What I was particularly happy with was that it wasn't just the riders showing the urgency and commitment, it was the mechanics and the team around them.”SOMERSET star Claus Vissing picked up his first maximum for the club with a 15-point haul in the Rebels’ impressive 57-37 win over Rye House.Vissing said: “It was great to get my first maximum for Somerset so early on in the season, especially after having just missed out last week, but I was just one part of what was a great team performance. With Doyley (Jason Doyle) now finally in the line-up, we showed just what we are capable of, and hopefully this is a sign of things to come for us this year.”WORKINGTON face three crucial League Cup fixtures this weekend as they bid to continue their good start to the season, with the Comets travelling to Redcar and Glasgow as well as facing Glasgow at home on Saturday.Manager Tony Jackson said: “We have made a really positive start to our League Cup programme so far but we will have a much better idea how things are looking after this weekend’s fixtures, especially with Kenny Ingalls still being a fitness doubt owing to his shoulder injury. A visit to Redcar is always tough while our matches against Glasgow have been hard-fought contests down the years, and with the Tigers having a formidable top three again this season some cracking speedway is in prospect for the fans.”
FIXTURE PICTURE…
WEDNESDAY APRIL 11:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v Wolverhampton 7.30CHALLENGE: King’s Lynn v USA Tourists OFF
THURSDAY APRIL 12:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Swindon v King’s Lynn 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Ipswich v Plymouth 7.30, Redcar v Workington 7.30, Sheffield v Berwick 7.45
FRIDAY APRIL 13:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v King’s Lynn 8pm, Lakeside v Peterborough 8pmLEAGUE CUP: Edinburgh v Redcar 7.30, Scunthorpe v Sheffield 7.30, Somerset v Plymouth 7.30
SATURDAY APRIL 14:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Wolverhampton 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Berwick v Scunthorpe 7pm, Plymouth v Somerset 7.30, Workington v Glasgow 7pmCHALLENGE: Rye House v USA Tourists 7pmBRITISH UNDER-21 SEMI-FINAL: Stoke 7.30BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Round 1: Leicester 7.30
SUNDAY APRIL 15:LEAGUE CUP: Glasgow v Workington 4pm, Newcastle v Edinburgh 6.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP 1st leg: Midenhall v King’s Lynn 4.30CHALLENGE: Buxton v USA Touring Team 3pm
MONDAY APRIL 16:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Lakeside 7.30, Swindon v Coventry 7.30, Wolverhampton v Eastbourne 7.30
TUESDAY APRIL 17:NATIONAL SHIELD 2nd leg: Dudley v Mildenhall 7.30CHALLENGE 2nd leg: Isle of Wight v Stoke 7.30
WEDNESDAY APRIL 18:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Belle Vue 7.30, Poole v Swindon 7.30
THURSDAY APRIL 19:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Peterborough v Eastbourne 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Ipswich v Scunthorpe 7.30TOP GUN INDIVIDUAL: Sheffield 7.45
FRIDAY APRIL 20:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Swindon 8pm, Lakeside v Wolverhampton 8pmLEAGUE CUP: Edinburgh v Workington 7.30, Plymouth v Leicester 7.30, Scunthorpe v Glasgow 7.30
SATURDAY APRIL 21:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Peterborough 7.30LEAGUE CUP: Berwick v Sheffield 7pm, Leicester v Somerset 7.30, Rye House v Plymouth 7pm, Workington v Newcastle 7pmNATIONAL LEAGUE: Stoke v Isle of Wight 7.30
SUNDAY APRIL 22:LEAGUE CUP: Glasgow v Sheffield 4pm, Newcastle v Berwick 6.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v Mildenhall 3pm
MONDAY APRIL 23:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Eastbourne 7.30, Wolverhampton v King’s Lynn 7.30
TUESDAY APRIL 24:BRITISH UNDER-21 FINAL: Dudley 7.30
WEDNESDAY APRIL 25: SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Swindon 7.30, Poole v Wolverhampton 7.30
