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EVERY Elite League club will be represented in the hugely popular Elite League Pairs Championship at Ipswich on Saturday, September 4.It's the first time Foxhall Stadium has staged a Super 7even event and fans from all over the country are expected to make the trip.The event is also reward for the investment and work which went in to reshaping the track during the winter which has improved the entertainment spectacle.The prospect of a meeting including Grand Prix stars Kenneth Bjerre, Chris Holder, Hans Andersen, Freddie Lindgren and British duo Chris Harris and Tai Woffinden is a mouth-watering one - and when you add big names like Ipswich hero Scott Nicholls and Swindon's Leigh Adams it looks even more impressive.Ipswich Speedway Director Chris Louis said: "To see top class meetings back at Foxhall makes me feel very proud after all the hard work we put in on the track."With the Foxhall faithful seeing exciting, close racing and the riders enjoying the safer, wide open spaces of the re-modelled track, I can't wait to see what the best riders in the League have in store for us! "I for one always thoroughly enjoyed the pairs events with the 4,3,2,1 points scoring system meaning tactics and team riding become a vital ingredient for those with their sights set on victory. It should be quite a night of racing."The Pairs event is the first of two major meetings that weekend with the Rye House staging of the World Under-21 Team Final the following afternoon (2pm).Great Britain will be represented by former Rye House man Tai Woffinden as skipper of the side, current Rye youngster Kyle Hughes, in-form Sheffield and Coventry man Josh Auty, British Under-21 champion Joe Haines and Coventry's Lewis Bridger.The other competing nations are Sweden, Denmark and Poland - which means the meeting features the same countries as the senior World Cup Final in Vojens earlier this month.

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BELLE VUE star Peter Karlsson recovered from a nightmare two-point display at Eastbourne to lead the Aces to a 48-44 win over title favourites Poole.Karlsson, who scored 14, said: "I had my worst meeting ever at Eastbourne and don't know why. But I was glad to help the side have a fine win over a very strong Poole side, especially with Hans (Andersen) being out injured."Aces boss Chris Morton added: "There were three points up for grabs if we won by more than seven but also three points for us to lose so it was not disappointing to come away with two."COVENTRY boss Alun Rossiter knows his side face two big matches this week against Swindon (away) and Peterborough (home) as they look to maintain their positive recent run.The Bees won 49-41 at Ipswich last Thursday and Rossiter said: "I'm very happy with that, we've been pushing the riders on and we've certainly turned the corner because the last few weeks have been a lot better. Four points is all you can ask for."In a way it's still frustrating because of what could have been this season, but we're still hanging in there and we're not giving up completely on the play-offs. It's going to take a big push but we'll battle on."EASTBOURNE promoter Mike Bellerby is eyeing the possibility of a repeat of the 2008 Knockout Cup Final when the Eagles lifted the silverware against South coast rivals Poole.The Eagles go into quarter-final action against Lakeside on Thursday and Bellerby said: "We must look to make up for what must be classed a disappointing Elite League campaign by chasing Knockout Cup glory. If we can make our way past Lakeside and book a place in the semi-final, who knows just what might happen."With Poole in the other half of the draw, it would certainly prove the perfect end to our season if we were fortunate enough to face the Pirates once again in the Final, just think we could yet have a repeat of 2008 on our hands."IPSWICH gave their flagging season a boost with an impressive 56-37 win over Swindon at Foxhall - maintaining a remarkable record around their home circuit this season.The Witches bounced back from their home defeat against Coventry last Thursday, meaning that their home form in all competitions from the start of the season reads win-lose-win-lose throughout the campaign!LAKESIDE boss Jon Cook has explained the decision-making process which led to Daniel Davidsson being replaced in the Hammers team by Peter Ljung.He told Speedway Star: "We had been looking at all the options open to us for a while because it was clear that we needed to alter the team after losing our form. We spoke to Paul (Hurry), Daniel and Kake Nieminen after our second away defeat at Coventry and they were told that we would be looking for an improvement in their form."To be fair Kake responded well. By his own admission Daniel didn't know why he had lost his form and he was very honest about that, so we made the move to replace him. It certainly wasn't a case of him being dropped but more a case of us mutually agreeing that, at this moment in time, he wasn't in any shape to be riding in England."PETERBOROUGH skipper Niels-Kristian Iversen believes his side are gaining in strength at just the right time of the season.The Panthers are likely play-off qualifiers, and Iversen said: "The team is getting stronger all the time and I definitely think our best days are in front of us. Our reserves are settling in and everyone in the main body of the team is starting to show their best form.""I feel we can beat any team on aggregate over two legs which we will need to do if we reach the play-offs."POOLE'S long-serving star Bjarne Pedersen insists he has no thoughts of walking away from British speedway or the Wimborne Road club.Pedersen said: "Last year I had a low average so I could fit into this year's team. Right now my average is much higher."I feel I can live up to my current average next year. At the end of the day it's down to Matt Ford to pick the team. If he does pick me, I'll go for it." SWINDON are assessing their options for replacing Thomas H Jonasson, who has incurred a 28-day ban after missing the Robins' televised defeat at Ipswich on Monday.Manager Ronnie Russell said: "Thomas remains an integral part of Swindon Speedway's future and I fully expect him to feature heavily in our 2011 team building plans. It's disappointing for Thomas that his 2010 campaign has concluded in this manner. Having spoken to him I know he feels desperately sorry about letting the Swindon fans down.""However, the club will ensure that the necessary changes are made to THJ's off-track set-up to ensure future campaigns at Blunsdon aren't hindered by organisational issues."WOLVERHAMPTON youngster Ludvig Lindgren says he is pleased with his form in his first full Elite League season - and he's hoping to help his side to retain their title.Lindgren said: "I know I've still got a long way to go, but I do feel this has been my breakthrough season in England and it underlines the fact that I did the right thing in moving to the Elite League."I'm feeling good about things and so are the team. There are some very important meetings ahead of us and it would be an unbelievable achievement if the team could win the league again."

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BERWICK are hopeful that skipper Paul Clews' knee injury sustained in the Premier League Fours proves not to be serious ahead of the weekend clash with Newcastle.Manager Ian Rae said: "The crash for Paul didn't exactly help our cause, and the skipper seems to have hurt his knee, but we're hoping not too badly as we approach the weekend against Newcastle. It's a trophy that has not come our way, but we weren't that far off the pace to be fair to the lads, but we weren't good enough on the day to make the final."BIRMINGHAM promoter Graham Drury described the club's Premier League Fours triumph at Peterborough as one of the best moments of his managerial career.Drury said: "This means more than the other wins, with all due respect to our friends at Long Eaton and Workington. Birmingham is a big city club where success is almost expected and whatever happens this season we know we have delivered a national title to the city. It was a wonderful all-round effort by everyone involved and the fans were fantastic."EDINBURGH skipper Matthew Wethers says the Monarchs need to keep their focus- after just securing all three points from an uncomfortable meeting against Berwick.Wethers said: "I think a few of our guys need to take a look at themselves and pick up their performances. We are top of the league and I don't want to lose that, so I'm going to have a word with them and make sure they lift their game."GLASGOW have matches in hand as they look to secure a Young Shield place, with their hopes boosted by their draw at Somerset last week.Co-promoter Stewart Dickson told Speedway Star: "This result will give us a huge lift and hopefully will allow us a greater opportunity to cement our place. As I have said before, I cannot believe with this team that we might be struggling to qualify for it, but this does ease the problems a little."KING'S LYNN will hand 17-year-old Young Stars' rider Jake Knight a Premier League debut in their home clash with Somerset on Wednesday.Team manager Rob Lyon said: "We got a real buzz from last week's match, and part of that came from watching someone as young as Lasse (Bjerre) go out and mixing it with the more experienced riders, therefore I feel we have nothing to lose but everything to gain by giving Jake this opportunity."NEWCASTLE were left to rue a freak engine failure for Rene Bach which cost them the chance of progression to the final stages of the Premier League Fours.Manager George English said: "Kenni Larsen's engine sucked in the air filter in the Pairs at Somerset ruining our chances there, and now the self-same bizarre thing happened to Rene when he'd shot from last to first in his last ride only for the mechanical anomaly to stop his engine too and send him to the back, and again stop us reaching a final. It's frustrating in the extreme as they rode well and deserved a lot more."NEWPORT face Glasgow on Friday (7.45pm) in the first floodlit speedway in Newport since the sport closed at the former Somerton Park stadium in 1977.There will be a Happy Hour in the bar between 6pm and 7pm, a firework display at the conclusion of the match and a karaoke in the bar afterward.Also, Kids for a Quid as part of an historic evening for the club. Commented club owner Steve Mallett: "The floodlights will allow us more options to consider about our race days and allow us to attract more events to the stadium, all of which helps the continuity of the sport in the city."REDCAR staff have paid tribute to office manager Julie Lewis, who passed away on Saturday evening.Club co-founder Chris Van Straaten said: "Julie's local knowledge and history of previous Bears promotions made her invaluable particularly in the initial years of Redcar Speedway. She was fiercely loyal and committed to anything to do with her beloved Bears with an energy that belied her years.Julie epitomised the qualities of many fine people I met while establishing Redcar - loyal, hardworking and outspoken. She will be sorely missed."RYE HOUSE are desperate to get back into action this week to prevent them going cold in the run-in to the Premier League season. Manager John Sampford said: "We really need to get the matches in again.Five match points from the Northern Tour gave us a real high, albeit with the loss of Jordan Frampton, but we've not ridden since apart from a disappointing eight races in the Fours. We need to get back into the groove again this week. We've got Birmingham away coming up on Wednesday, and Scunthorpe at home on Saturday, for what will be our first fixture at Rye House in five weeks. They'll both be difficult without Jordan, although we can spread the load as the rest of the team will be eligible for Rider-Replacement rides. We'll give both matches our best shots."  SCUNTHORPE were out of luck in the Premier League Fours as they went out at the semi-final stage on a countback having tied on points with Edinburgh.Manager Richard Hollingsworth said: "The eight-race format is such a short one that anything can happen and nobody wants to come to a meeting and only get two rides. David (Howe) was winning his second race when he was wiped out and only got a second in the re-run. It's disappointing but we have to take the positives out of the meeting and carry them forward to next week.We've got three meetings in three days and in the league and if we avoid any last places we'll be winning matches." SHEFFIELD take a break from Premier League action this week to stage the Northern Riders' Championship at Owlerton with several riders with successful records at the track included.Co-promoter David Hoggart said: "This is a very exciting meeting for the fans to look forward to and there's a bit of rivalry between some of the riders. The Championship has a rich heritage and tradition, and I feel confident this meeting will live up to the prestige of the occasion. It should be a cracker."SOMERSET celebrate ten years of racing at the Oak Tree Arena with a special anniversary meeting on Friday - which was postponed earlier in the season.The line-up includes Elite League stars Chris Holder, Darcy Ward and Mads Korneliussen as well as recent major event winners Jason Lyons and Ricky Ashworth.Rebels promoter Debbie Hancock said: "We did say at the time that if we couldn't get a line-up comparable to that we had for the original staging then we wouldn't run the meeting, but I have had so many fans come up to me to say that they still wanted to have a celebration meeting. The riders we have booked have all had excellent meetings here on their visits to the Oak Tree Arena."STOKE promoter Dave Tattum has confirmed that Claus Vissing has been banned by the Danish Federation until the end of the season.Tattum said: "Claus informed us on Saturday and it is a bombshell for the club and supporters as he is a favourite here at Stoke. We are currently looking at all the options available to us."WORKINGTON reserve Richard Lawson is set for an x-ray on his shoulder after crashing when taking a guest appearance for Sheffield at Berwick on Saturday.Comets boss Ian Thomas told getnoticedonline.co.uk: "I certainly won't be pushing him into riding again if he's not right because I know how he had problems with the shoulder last year. He's flying at the moment so this will be a big set-back to him if he can't continue in the form he's been showing and has to miss-out."

NATIONAL LEAGUE action continues and you can find all relevant news, reports and other information in the NL section on speedwaygb.com

FIXTURE PICTURE...

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 18:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Poole v Wolverhampton 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Birmingham v Rye House 7.30, King's Lynn v Somerset 7.30

THURSDAY AUGUST 19:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Swindon v Coventry 7.30 ELITE LEAGUE KO CUP: Eastbourne v Lakeside 7.45 PREMIER LEAGUE: Redcar v Scunthorpe 7.30 NORTHERN RIDERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Sheffield 7.45

FRIDAY AUGUST 20:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Peterborough 8pm, Lakeside v Wolverhampton 8pm PREMIER LEAGUE: Newport v Glasgow 7.45, Scunthorpe v Redcar 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP Q/F 2nd leg: Edinburgh v King's Lynn 7.30 NATIONAL TROPHY: Plymouth v Weymouth 7.30 10th ANNIVERSARY MEETING: Somerset 7.15

SATURDAY AUGUST 21:PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Newcastle 7pm, Rye House v Scunthorpe 7pm, Stoke v Newport 7.30, Workington v Edinburgh 7pm NATIONAL TROPHY: Weymouth v Plymouth 7.15

SUNDAY AUGUST 22:PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Berwick 4pm, Newcastle v Sheffield 6.30 NATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v Scunthorpe 3pm, Bournemouth v King's Lynn 2.30, Bournemouth v Rye House (follows previous fixture) NATIONAL TROPHY: Newport v Isle of Wight 2.30

MONDAY AUGUST 23:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Swindon 7.30, Peterborough v Coventry 7.30, Wolverhampton v Poole 7.30TUESDAY AUGUST 24:NATIONAL TROPHY: Isle of Wight v Plymouth 7.30

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 25:ELITE LEAGUE KO CUP 2nd leg: Coventry v Wolverhampton 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: King's Lynn v Birmingham 7.30, Somerset v Edinburgh 7.30 NATIONAL LEAGUE: Dudley v Weymouth (at Birmingham) 7.30CHALLENGE: Poole v Australia 7.30

THURSDAY AUGUST 26:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Wolverhampton 7.45, Ipswich v Peterborough 7.30, Swindon v Lakeside 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Sheffield v Redcar 7.45

FRIDAY AUGUST 27:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Lakeside v Ipswich 8pm, Peterborough v Swindon 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Somerset 7.30 NATIONAL LEAGUE: Weymouth v Newport 7.15 NATIONAL TROPHY: Plymouth v Buxton 7.30

SATURDAY AUGUST 28:PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Workington 7pm, Stoke v Rye House 7.30 NATIONAL LEAGUE: Rye House v Scunthorpe 7pm

SUNDAY AUGUST 29:PREMIER LEAGUE: Birmingham v King's Lynn 6.30, Glasgow v Newcastle 4pm, Newport v Sheffield 2.30 NATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v Weymouth 3pm, King's Lynn v Plymouth 6pm

MONDAY AUGUST 30:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Belle Vue 8pm, Peterborough v Eastbourne 7.30, Swindon v Ipswich 7.30, Wolverhampton v Lakeside 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Newcastle v Glasgow 6.30, Rye House v Stoke 2pm, Scunthorpe v Sheffield 5pm, Workington v Berwick 7pm NATIONAL LEAGUE: Rye House v Isle of Wight (follows PL fixture)

TUESDAY AUGUST 31:NATIONAL LEAGUE: Dudley v Newport (at Wolverhampton) 7.30 NATIONAL TROPHY: Isle of Wight v Weymouth 7.30

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 1:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Poole v Peterborough 7.30 PREMIER LEAGUE: Birmingham v Newport 7.30, King's Lynn v Edinburgh 7.30


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