SPEEDWAY WEEKLY NEWS AND FIXTURES - 18TH JULY
18 July 2006 - British Speedway Promoters Association

ELITE LEAGUE LATEST.

ARENA-ESSEX promoter Ronnie Russell admitted that his sides'' gating had not been acceptable as they were beaten by a heavy 36-point margin at Coventry.

Russell said: ''That wasn''t a good performance. We struggled all night with our gating and it showed.

''Those first thirty yards are so important in this league and if you don''t gate you are always going to struggle. The track was very heavy especially at the start and we just couldn''t handle it.''

BELLE VUE star Kenneth Bjerre wants to re-claim a heat-leader berth at Kirkmanshulme Lane when the Elite League re-commences after the World Cup.

Bjerre said: ''I''ve been struggling to make good starts but my mechanics have been working hard to put things right, and hopefully they will be better from now on.
''I would like to still be at No.1 if I can, but there are some hard races there and I have not been in my best form.''

COVENTRY reserve Martin Smolinski celebrated some set-up changes with a paid maximum as the Bees demolished Arena-Essex 65-29 at Brandon.

The young German said: ''I''m really happy to have had such a good meeting, we changed some small things with the engines and they made a big difference.

''The team is working very well together and we really want to make the top four again. Anything can happen and it''s so good that the supporters have really been staying behind us and helping us to win meetings.''

EASTBOURNE co-promoter Jon Cook has cautiously welcomed the Eagles'' Knockout Cup semi-final draw against Coventry - on the basis that they have avoided holders Belle Vue!

Cook said: ''Personally I wanted to meet Poole at this stage but Belle Vue were the team we wanted to avoid and we have done that.

''It''s a tough draw as our recent Coventry form has not been great, but with a team at full strength we should be able to build up a lead to defend.''

IPSWICH team manager Mike Smillie says that the Witches'' strong home form is keeping them in good shape for a tilt at the play-offs.

Smillie said: ''We are reasonably well placed for a top-four finish that would earn us a play-off place. Peterborough and Reading are looking good but anything can happen.
''I cannot see us losing at home again this year and we have a target of at least three more away victories.''

OXFORD owner Aaron Lanney has thanked the hundreds of people who have contacted the club with messages of support for critically ill Cheetahs man Ales Dryml.
Dryml suffered multiple injuries in a crash during Oxford''s home defeat at the hands of Wolverhampton.

Lanney said: ''All our thoughts are with Ales and his family at this very sad time. His father, Ales senior, and brother Lukas immediately travelled over to the UK to be by his side and they have taken some comfort from all the messaages of support.
''It''s left us all very flat. I feel very down about speedway at this moment and that''s got nothing to do with poor results or anything like that.

''I would personally like to express my gratitude to everyone who has sent get well messages to Ales via the various sources.''

PETERBOROUGH manager Trevor Swales says there must be no repeat of last hursday''s defeat at Swindon, where a depleted Panthers side went down by 24 points.

Swales said: ''It was probably the worst performance I have ever seen in my time with Panthers. I felt sorry for our fans who travelled because we were a disgrace.

''We''ll win nothing if we carry on like that, but our problems will be addressed by the time of our next match at Poole on July 26.''

POOLE star Krzysztof Kasprzak will finally get his British career back on-track following his multiple collarbone breaks when he rides in the club''s Young Guns event on Wednesday.

The Pole said: ''Matt Ford invited me to ride and I jumped at the chance. I think I must have run over a very big black cat to get this amount of bad luck.

''I have already ridden some motocross to see how my shoulder felt and I''m pleased to say that there was no pain at all. It felt fine, but I do need to strengthen the muscles.''
READING''s Sporting Director Sam Ermolenko says that the World Cup break has come at a good time for Andy Smith, who is still struggling with a groin injury.

Ermolenko said: ''Hopefully Andy will be back sooon. He''s recovering well, but has been told by the doctors to take it easy for while. His groin is really black and blue and to ride would just do more damage.

''So he''s having a bit of a rest at the moment, but hopefully he''ll be back for our next meeting.''

SWINDON promoter Alun Rossiter is on a high over on-track events with the Robins now third in the table, albeit concerned for the club''s future after the news of a possible re-development plan at Blunsdon.

Rossiter said: ''Eight points in four days was more than I could have expected, so it was a great week on-track. There are plenty more points to come, and hopefully we can keep it going.

''Unfortunately it has not been a great week off-track, I was gutted by the news and just hope something can be resolved.''

PETER Adams insists Wolverhampton''s season is still very much alive - despite a low league position.

The Monmore boss is refusing to give up hope of a top four finish and a place in the end of season play-offs.

''It''s my job to make the riders understand how vital the rest of the season is to us,'' said Adams. ''They''ll read a league table and think it''s all over, but it''s not.''

PREMIER LEAGUE LATEST.

BERWICK boss Peter Waite hopes that James Birkinshaw can quickly recover from his latest injury setback, an ankle problem which forced him out of the Bandits'' win over Stoke.

Waite said: ''It''s typical of our season. We had just got our side back to full strength and back to winning ways, and we lose another to injury. His ankle looked very sore and we''ll have to wait for medical reports.''

EDINBURGH star Henrik Moller says the Monarchs will be a stronger unit when they sign a replacement for the released Rusty Harrison and do not have to rely on the rider replacement facility.

Moller said: ''Having to take extra rides because we are a man down can place added pressure on you and I just hope we can find a new rider for Rusty quite soon.''
GLASGOW boss Stewart Dickson says the main reason for the Tigers'' charge up the Premier League table has been the fact that they have turned Ashfield into a fortress.
Dickson said: ''We are riding with a lot of confidence and for the first time since Alan Dick and myself took over in 2001, we look difficult to beat at home. In the past, our home form had invariably been our Achilles'' heel.''

THE Isle of Wight defeated King''s Lynn by ten points in a meeting reckoned by some to be the best-ever to be staged at the Smallbrook Stadium.

Chairman Martin Newnham said: ''It was an amazing match and our team were simply awesome throughout. King''s Lynn are a very good side indeed and to beat them in the manner that we did was absolutely superb.''

KING''S LYNN co-promoter Jonathan Chapman is promising maximum respect for local rivals Mildenhall ahead of their derby clash at the Norfolk Arena this week.

Chapman said: ''They have a team that can perform phenomenally well at ours, and they will be the best team to visit us this year. I hope the crowd can get behind our boys and get the atmosphere going.''

MILDENHALL administrator Steve Dolby has apologised to supporters for the lengthy delay to their double header on Sunday due to problems with medical cover.

Dolby said: ''I would just like to thank everyone for their support and patience and hope they could appreciate this was out of our hands. The medical staff that were in attendance were excellent in getting their colleagues to the stadium so we could run the meeting.''

NEWCASTLE boss George English was delighted to snatch the bonus point from local rivals Redcar in a tense finish at Brough Park on Sunday.

English said: ''It was a nail-biting finish for that bonus, and a few heats earlier it looked like we might even be in danger of losing the whole match. But the lads really pulled together to win well.''

NEWPORT promoter Tim Stone felt his team had under-performed in a 15-point defeat at home to King''s Lynn, coming just three days after an excellent win at Redcar.

Stone said: ''King''s Lynn are a good side, but we probably made them look a bit better than they are. We knew it would be tough, but in general we didn''t perform in the way we should have performed.''

REDCAR skipper Gary Havelock was relieved that the Bears took the bonus point from their trip to Edinburgh just 24 hours after a shock home defeat against Newport.

Havelock said: ''It was a bit of a surprise when we lost to Newport on Thursday and we knew it would be difficult to win at Armadale. But we tried hard, rode well and snapped up some vital points to save the bonus.''

RYE HOUSE have signed Adam Roynon on loan from Elite League Coventry to ride at reserve for the Rockets for the remainder of the season.

The Hoddesdon club have Luke Bowen and Jamie Courtney on the long-term injury list, and Roynon has previous Premier League experience with Glasgow.

SHEFFIELD are offering fans a double helping of speedway this Thursday.

The Pirtek Tigers face Workington in a mouthwatering Premier League clash - and at the same time Great Britain''s world cup race-off will be screened throughout the stadium.
SOMERSET boss Mick Bell paid tribute to his side after seeing them pull off a 53-41 win over reigning champions Rye House last week.

''It was just what I was looking for after the previous week''s disappointment,'' said Bell. ''Everyone did their job superbly and it was nice to see us scoring some points down at reserve, that''s very important as far as I''m concerned.''

STOKE boss John Adams felt that an early injury to skipper Paul Clews had cost the Potters a possible away win at Berwick last weekend.

Adams said: ''To go down to five riders so early in the meeting and still run them to within a few points speaks volumes for the character of the side. Under the circumstances it was a first-rate effort.''

WORKINGTON favourite Ritchie Hawkins will be out for a month after suffering bruising to the brain in a track crash during the home defeat by Glasgow.

Comets boss Graham Drury said: ''Ritchie was unconscious on the track and I would like to offer sincere thanks to all the medical staff who attended to him in such an efficient manner.''

FIXTURE PICTURE.

TUESDAY JULY 18:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Isle of Wight v Somerset 7.30

WEDNESDAY JULY 19:
PREMIER LEAGUE: King''s Lynn v Mildenhall 7.30
YOUNG GUNS INDIVIDUAL at Poole 7.30

THURSDAY JULY 20:
WORLD CUP RACE-OFF: Reading 7pm
PREMIER LEAGUE: Redcar v Stoke 7.30, Sheffield v Workington 7.45

FRIDAY JULY 21:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Berwick 7.30, Somerset v Glasgow 7.30
CONFERENCE LEAGUE: Boston v Plymouth 7.30
BRITISH UNDER-15 CHAMPIONSHIP: Plymouth 7.30

SATURDAY JULY 22:
WORLD CUP FINAL: Reading 7pm
PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Redcar 7pm, Mildenhall v Newport 6pm, Rye House v
Glasgow 7pm, Stoke v Newcastle 7.30, Workington v Sheffield 7pm
CONFERENCE LEAGUE: Mildenhall v Newport (follows PL fixture)

SUNDAY JULY 23:
SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Eastbourne v Oxford 3.30
PREMIER LEAGUE: Glasgow v Berwick 4pm, Newcastle v Workington 6.30, Newport
v Mildenhall 2.30,
CONFERENCE LEAGUE: Newport v Mildenhall (follows PL fixture)
CONFERENCE LEAGUE KO CUP: Scunthorpe v Stoke 3pm
TONY RICKARDSSON FAREWELL: Poole 4pm

MONDAY JULY 24:
SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Swindon 8pm, Belle Vue v Poole 7.30,
Wolverhampton v Reading 7.30

TUESDAY JULY 25:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Isle of Wight v Newport 7.30

WEDNESDAY JULY 26:
SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Arena-Essex v Coventry 7.45, Oxford v Eastbourne
7.30, Poole v Peterborough 7.30, Reading v Wolverhampton 7.30
PREMIER TROPHY SEMI FINAL: King''s Lynn v Workington 7.30
CONFERENCE LEAGUE KO CUP: Stoke v Scunthorpe 7.30

THURSDAY JULY 27:
SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Coventry v Belle Vue 8pm, Ipswich v Oxford 7.30,
Peterborough v Reading 7.30, Swindon v Arena-Essex 7.30
PREMIER LEAGUE: Redcar v Mildenhall 7.30
PREMIER TROPHY SEMI FINAL: Sheffield v Rye House 7.45

FRIDAY JULY 28:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Edinburgh v Somerset 7.30
CONFERENCE LEAGUE KO CUP: Plymouth v Newport 7.30
BRITISH SIDECAR CHAMPIONSHIP at Somerset

SATURDAY JULY 29:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Berwick v Somerset 7pm, Stoke v Glasgow 7.30,
PREMIER TROPHY SEMI FINAL: Rye House v Sheffield 7pm, Workington v King''s
Lynn 7pm

SUNDAY JULY 30:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Newcastle v Somerset 6.30, Newport v Rye House 2.30,
PREMIER LEAGUE KO CUP: Glasgow v King''s Lynn 4pm
CONFERENCE TROPHY: Buxton v Plymouth 3pm, Mildenhall v Scunthorpe 3.30

MONDAY JULY 31:
SKY SPORTS ELITE LEAGUE: Belle Vue v Coventry 7.45, Reading v Peterborough
7.30, Wolverhampton v Ipswich 7.30

TUESDAY AUGUST 1:
PREMIER LEAGUE: Isle of Wight v Edinburgh 7.30

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