(SPEEDWAY 1)
POOLE moved into the Elite League’s top four with a 35-28 win at Belle Vue in a meeting abandoned after ten races due to track conditions.The match went ahead following heavy rain during the day and the experience of Greg Hancock proved vital for the Pirates, as he was unbeaten from three rides and took victory in the final race which ultimately secured all four league points for his team.Both sides were in agreement over the abandonment, and Aces stand-in skipper Magnus Zetterstrom said: “Luckily everyone came out of the meeting safe and in one piece, it's just a shame we couldn't carry on to the end. But when a world class rider like Niels (Kristian-Iversen) is coming off it's time to stop because otherwise things could get even worse, so I think it was the right decision.“I would have liked the season at home to have finished on a much better note because it has been a difficult year for us, but for me it was more important to see all of the riders safe and nobody get seriously injured out there.”
(SPEEDWAY 2)
PETERBOROUGH co-boss Ryan Sullivan says he is proud of his riders’ efforts in the second half of the season - after their play-off dreams came to an end.The Panthers defeated Wolverhampton 55-38 with Polish star Krzystzof Buczkowski scoring his third successive home maximum, but results elsewhere on Monday meant they cannot now reach the Elite League’s top four.Sullivan said: “We’re disappointed obviously, but we’ve fought hard after making hard work of it with a slow start to the season. We can look back and rue a lot of lost points, but nevertheless we can hold our heads up high.“The team have done well. They’ve got off the bottom and proved themselves to be a great team. The riders have been outstanding in the second half of the year. It’s disappointing at the moment but next week we’ll want to go out with a bang.”
(SPEEDWAY 3)BEN Barker is set to make a remarkable return from injury this week – having initially been ruled out for the rest of the season.Barker was reported to be undergoing an operation on a crushed vertebra after a crash at Birmingham a fortnight ago, but it has now been found to be an old injury and he will resume racing for the Brummies and Ipswich – starting at Edinburgh tonight.Barker said: “It's been a really hard two weeks since my crash. I was 20 minutes away from a major back operation before we found out it was an old injury which has partially healed over the last year.“After much discussion and advice I have decided not to have an operation but I will be having extensive physio for the remainder of the season.”
(SPEEDWAY 4)
POOLE asset Krzysztof Kasprzak celebrates ten years in British Speedway with a Testimonial meeting at Wimborne Road on Wednesday.Kasprzak, a member of the Pirates’ KO Cup winning side of last season, will lead a Select team featuring the likes of Martin Vaculik and Przemyslaw Pawlicki against a Poole team captained by Darcy Ward.Kasprzak said: “I am very happy to have ridden for Poole. I have spent many years there and the club, and its sponsors, has always helped me throughout my career. “The Poole supporters are just great, they really are the best, and I am looking forward to meeting up with them on Wednesday. I hope we all enjoy a great night.”
(SPEEDWAY 5)
BRITISH youngster James Shanes came within two laps of winning the FIM 250cc Longtrack Youth Gold Trophy before suffering heartache in Germany at the weekend.Shanes was leading the winner-takes-all Final at Vechta by a decisive margin but then came to grief in fast-deteriorating conditions which forced a five-hour delay before the re-run could take place.Shanes, who had scored nine points from his qualifying heats was the only ACU representative in the Final as pre-meeting favourite Zach Wajtknecht crashed out in his first ride.Shanes’ crash resulted in some hospital treatment after he had been hit by two other competitors, but thankfully he was fit to travel home with his parents.(FIXTURES)
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 10:PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Ipswich 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 1st leg: Dudley v King’s Lynn 7.30
WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 11:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Birmingham v King’s Lynn 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE KO CUP S/F 2nd leg: King’s Lynn v Dudley 7.30KRZYSZTOF KASPRZAK TESTIMONIAL: Poole 7.30
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 12:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Swindon v Lakeside 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Ipswich v Edinburgh 7.30, Sheffield v Somerset 7.45
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 13:SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Belle Vue 7.45, King’s Lynn v Birmingham 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Somerset v Ipswich 7.30DEREK SNEDDON TESTIMONIAL: Edinburgh 7.30TONY SANDFORD MEMORIAL TROPHY: Plymouth 7.15
