(SPEEDWAY 1)
KENT have confirmed the new date for the British Under-19 Championship is Monday September 15 with the start-time set for 7pm.The club have been granted special dispensation by Swale Council members on the local authority’s Planning Committee to start later than the Kings’ regular start-time and also extend the curfew to 9.30pm.Kent co-promoter Roger Cearns said: “I am delighted at our local councillors’ decision to allow this meeting to go ahead and my thanks go to them. This is the very first major championship to be granted to our venue which I am sure is worthy of the event. “I am expecting the people of Kent, who have already shown their keen interest in Speedway, to turn out in big numbers to enjoy what promises to be a great evening's entertainment.”
(SPEEDWAY 2 – FRIDAY REVIEW)
SOMERSET extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to ten points with a resounding 59-25 home win over Peterborough.The meeting at the Oaktree Arena was cut short by one race due to rain but the Rebels had already done more than enough on a night where second-placed Edinburgh were frustrated by the weather as they were unable to face Glasgow.Swedish star Pontus Aspgren scored a five-ride paid maximum for Somerset, an achievement matched by Nick Morris from four outings, whilst Ulrich Ostergaard was the top Panthers’ scorer on six.Rebels boss Garry May said: “This was another fantastic all-round team performance. All the boys rode superbly and never gave Peterborough a look-in all night. Our boys were really up for this, they wanted to ‘do it’ for Brady (Kurtz) and they certainly did that in style with some awesome riding.“Peterborough said that they were coming to Somerset to ‘settle a score’ for us winning at their place on Sunday, but in truth there was only ever one team in it right from the off.”Plymouth’s home match against Workington was also abandoned after fourteen races, with the home side taking all three points from a 47-37 victory.It was the Devils’ sixth successive home victory as they recovered from the Comets taking an opening-race 5-1 with the meeting turning on back-to-back 5-1s in Heats 8 and 9. Guest Stuart Robson top-scored with eight points whilst Josh Grajczonek scored 8+2 for the visitors.Plymouth co-promoter Ashley Taylor said: “We allowed Workington to take the early lead and that left us with a bit of an uphill struggle.“But we came through with a good all-round team effort. It is always easier to turn a meeting around when you have seven riders who are all making a contribution.”In the National League, Coventry have moved back into second place by winning both matches in their double-header at Brandon.The Storm defeated Buxton 65-27 with Luke Priest, James Sarjeant and Oliver Greenwood all unbeaten, and they then got the better of Devon 41-22 in a meeting abandoned after ten races due to the curfew.Manager Laurence Rogers said: “That was job done, the boys got stuck in and did well in tricky conditions in the second match.“The aim was to get six points from the meetings and cement our place in the play-offs, and I’m pleased with all of the riders.”
(SPEEDWAY 3 – SATURDAY PREVIEW)
EASTBOURNE host Lakeside in a massive Elite League clash at Arlington on Saturday with both clubs looking to boost their play-off aspirations.The Eagles and the Hammers are both on 41 points and are fourth and fifth in the table respectively, with Eastbourne having four matches in hand although this is their penultimate home fixture.Eagles boss Trevor Geer said: “We can severely damage Lakeside’s hopes on Saturday night by scoring an emphatic win. It won’t knock them out of the play-off race completely but it will certainly hit their hopes.“Equally, if we lose, our chances will be hanging by a thread. We need three points on Saturday and another three the following the week at home to King’s Lynn. It is clear, however, that we will need to win away during September to make the play offs.”In the Premier League, Berwick are in fourth place as they head into their home clash with Redcar, whose play-off hopes were hit by double defeat by Scunthorpe earlier in the week.The Bandits go into the meeting without French youngster David Bellego due to a European commitment, with James Sarjeant stepping in to replace him.Berwick co-promoter Dennis McCleary said: “In an ideal world the club and David would wish he was riding on Saturday against Redcar.“However, it is just not feasible. David needs to be signed in for the lunch time practice mid-morning on Sunday and although we tried to see if there was an early-morning flight to a Polish airport near enough to the circuit, this has proved impossible.”Ipswich can move into second place in the table if they complete the double over Sheffield when the sides meet at Foxhall, the Witches having won 51-42 at Owlerton on Thursday. Marc Owen guests for the unavailable Adam Ellis for the home side.Workington stage a double-header against Rye House and Scunthorpe as they look to stage a late run towards the play-offs after a tough run of recent results.The Rockets have been hit by a further double blow in their bid to move away from the lower reaches of the table, with Luke Bowen ruled out for a fortnight with a fractured elbow and Jason Bunyan also on the sidelines with possible knee ligament damage when practicing on his moto-cross bike.Rye boss John Sampford said: “Derwent Park has not often been the happiest of hunting grounds for us, but then again, who would have thought that Glasgow would go there and win 54-40 last week?“Anything is possible in speedway, so we’ll go there in a positive frame of mind after Sunday’s big win over Berwick and try to do the same.”Meanwhile Scunthorpe boss Rob Godfrey insists his team’s play-off place is not secure yet as they face back-to-back matches this weekend, with the Comets set to visit the Eddie Wright Raceway on Sunday in the return fixture.Godfrey said: “The win at Redcar was a huge boost to our play-off hopes and it’s hard to see either Newcastle or Redcar finishing ahead of us now.“However, both Workington and Peterborough have plenty of meetings in hand, so we’re not quite safe yet. We’ve got both those chasing teams home and away in the next week and the very least we require is to win the two home meetings.”In the National League, Mildenhall are forced into several changes for their trip to Stoke as their top three all have higher-league commitments and reserve Jack Kingston is not due back until Sunday.The Fen Tigers have recruited Tom Perry and Nathan Greaves to guest at Loomer Road and will strengthen their position in the top four if they can take victory.
(SPEEDWAY 4)
ELITE League leaders King’s Lynn have brought in club asset Simon Lambert on an initial 28-day deal to replace the injured Lewis Rose.Stars boss Rob Lyon has made the move after Rose suffered knee ligament damage in a recent crash at Glasgow, although Lambert’s temporary signing means Rose can return if he regains fitness.Lyon said: “Lewis has been unlucky by picking up an injury late in the season, hopefully he can make a recovery and complete the season with us. “He has had a great year and it would be a shame for him to end it on the sidelines.”
(SPEEDWAY 5)
SCUNTHORPE have made a switch at reserve with Tom Perry joining the Scorpions in place of Matt Williamson.The duo are ironically team-mates at National League club Cradley, with the decision taken after Williamson suffered a broken bone in his hand when racing for the Heathens earlier in the week.Scunthorpe promoter Rob Godfrey said: “I wanted to stick by Matt the whole season, I really did; that was the plan. He was really starting to turn his potential into points a couple of months back. He’s had a more difficult spell since then and the injury was the deciding factor, because it’s too much asking him to go out there and score points when he’s not fully fit.“Tom gives us a bit more firepower at reserve. We’re not looking for huge scores from him, just for him to score a handful of points which could make a big different to the result of a meeting.”
(FIXTURES)
SATURDAY AUGUST 30:ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Lakeside 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Redcar 7pm, Ipswich v Sheffield 7.30, Workington v Rye House 6.30, Workington v Scunthorpe (follows previous fixture)NATIONAL LEAGUE: Stoke v Mildenhall 7pm
SUNDAY AUGUST 31:ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Leicester 2.30, Leicester v Coventry 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Rye House 3pm, Scunthorpe v Workington 3pmNATIONAL LEAGUE: Buxton v King’s Lynn 3pm, Scunthorpe v Stoke (follows PL fixture)NATIONAL TROPHY: Mildenhall v Leicester 3.30BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Round 5: Rye House 2pm
MONDAY SEPTEMBER 1:ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Coventry 7.30, Lakeside v Poole 7.30, Wolverhampton v Leicester 7.30
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 2:PREMIER LEAGUE: Peterborough v Scunthorpe 7pm, Peterborough v Plymouth (follows previous fixture)NATIONAL LEAGUE: Cradley v Devon 7.30
WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 3:ELITE LEAGUE: Poole v Wolverhampton 7.30PREMIER LEAGUE: Rye House v Peterborough 7.30NATIONAL LEAGUE: King’s Lynn v Cradley 7.30
