Edinburgh Monarchs v Workington Comets

Before the first leg of the Knockout Cup quarter final we would surely have settled for a 22-point lead to take down to Derwent Park.

We built the advantage steadily after a strong start, and managed to avoid conceding any race advantages. We also restricted Comets with their heralded heat leader trio to just 5 race wins, and had ourselves a mere two last places.

So that is what you call efficiency and it gives us the upper hand for the second leg, without killing the tie off completely.

Fisher and Summers were away smartly in heat 1, but Doolan got the better of a tussle for second with Aaron. Heat 2 was a comfortable 5-1 with Summers set to sit in second spot keep an eye on Sean, under very little pressure from Graversen, who in fact was picking up his only point.

Rajkowski and Tully then dealt firmly with Rymel on the opening bend of heat 3 and at 14-4 things could hardly be going any better.

We knew Kevin Doolan would be a race winner so it was no shock when he took heat 5. Tully was through for a chase but there was no catching the Comets? no. 1.

Heat 6 was a good one. Ryan Fisher was away well from gate 1 but made a mess of the first turn to let Compton go ahead. Wethers came into second and both Monarchs were pressing hard. Ryan made another error and dropped back, but Matthew kept pressing, using a wide entry to the turn and a cutback.

He was close by the final turn and with a perfect execution of the move, he swept over the line in front.

Twelve up now, and another Wethers win plus Summers point added two more in heat 7.

We left Sean Stoddart (paid 5 so far in heat 8) but this time he made a poor start and even worse pits corner to drop way back. Fisher as r/r inevitably won the heat but we lost a chance to take more points.

Comets used their tactical gate option for heat 9, switching Compton to gate 3, and he made it count with another win.

Fisher and Tully took advantage of Rymel who was proving to be the weak link for Workington, and now we led by 18 points. Thoughts were turning towards heats 13 and 15 whene we might have been hard pressed to prevent Comets cutting our lead.

Doolan won heat 12 but we shared it, then we saw how handy Craig Cook can be in spite of his inexperience when he split Summers and Rajkowski with Rymel at the back.

And so into heat 13, Doolan taking the tactical option of moving to gate 2. This had the right effect again as he won the heat but Fisher and Wethers kept Compton quiet, well at the back.

Again we saw Cook prominent in heat 14, leading the way until Andrew Tully wore him down and passed stylishly.

Another chance maybe for Comets in the last race, and they did try to push Fisher out, but the American went for the big sweep to win the heat and maintain our 22-point lead.

HERMISTON MONARCH OF THE MATCH: Andrew Tully.

Edinburgh Monarchs v Workington Comets

It?s KO Cup time again this weekend as the Scotwaste Monarchs and the Workington Comets go head to head in quarter final action on Friday and Saturday.

Rye House Rockets lie in waiting in the semi final, which will ensure another stern test for the eventual winners of this tie. Indeed, if either side manages to go all the way, they?ll definitely have earned it!

The Comets stopped the Monarchs in their tracks at the semi final stage last year in what was the one ?disappointment? in an otherwise perfect season. That two legged affair went all the way down to the 30th heat and there?s nothing to suggest this clash will be anything different.

Our Cumbrian rivals currently sit at the top of the Premier League table, which will please owner Keith Denham no end. He came into Derwent Park with a clear aim of bringing success to the area and, having also recently qualified for the latter stages of the Premier Trophy, it looks as though he could well be on course to fulfil his ambitions.

Remember folks, the ?tactical gates? will be in operation again this week, so you can all leave your calculators at home! That?s right, there are no big numbers to add for a change, which will no doubt please my dad who always struggles with his maths (just don?t tell him I said that!). Typically, it?s not all good news as you?ll probably need an extra pen. Yes, once again, both sides will be operating rider replacement facility. Thomas H Jonasson is, of course, our absentee while the Comets are missing the unfortunate John Branney. Each and every one of Jonasson?s team mates are eligible for an extra outing but Workington?s cover is restricted to just Richard Lawson and both reserves.

Branney is not the only rider missing from the Comets? regular line up. Star reserve Charles Wright has also, yet again, been in the wars and is replaced by Kings Lynn?s Jan Graversen on Friday and Somerset?s Justin Sedgmen (yes, I did spell that correctly!) on Saturday. Both appear, on paper at least, to be very shrewd picks and I would imagine their contribution will be vital.

Regardless of how well they do, Workington will undoubtedly be hoping to put up a better show than on their last visit in April. The end result, a 60-34 defeat, was a true reflection of that evening?s fare although they can at least take heart from the fact the Monarchs have been less dominant at the Scotwaste Arena in recent weeks. Gone are the days when we used to rack up big scores against all and sundry and we now seem to have hit something of a difficult patch.

Continually using rider replacement doesn?t do man or machine any favours although, somewhat bizarrely, the points earned have much outweighed what we would expect from the original team member so there must be another reason for the struggle...

Comets? skipper Kevin Doolan has been rather disappointing on his last two trips to sunny Armadale but we shouldn?t forget he?s a class performer who can post a maximum at will. In theory, he should be ably backed up by fellow top men Andre Compton and Adrian Rymel. However, it?s fair to say Rymel?s biggest contribution to the Premier Trophy clash was probably accidentally fencing THJ in heat 3! He was also away at the time of the Derwent Park tie, when Tomas Topinka guested in his place.

The remainder of the Comets? side isn?t exactly packed with experience but that doesn?t mean we can take them lightly. Indeed, if we are to have any chance of progressing further, it?s vital the ?bottom end? is kept as quiet as possible.

In the home camp, there has been no luck as yet in finding a new rider to replace our much travelled young Swede. The continued absence of a ?number 2? puts more pressure on the others although, thankfully, Ryan Fisher and Matthew Wethers have helped pull the team through by posting paid 18 maximums in the last two weeks!

Whatever happens, let?s all hope the speedway?s a joy to watch and we can all revel in the excitement of 30 close races over consecutive nights.

As always, may the best team win...

Line-ups (as far as I?m aware!):

Monarchs: Ryan Fisher, r/r for Thomas H Jonasson, Michal Rajkowski, Andrew Tully, Matthew Wethers, Aaron Summers, Sean Stoddart.

Comets: Kevin Doolan, r/r for John Branney, Adrian Rymel, Richard Lawson, Andre Compton, Craig Cook, Jan Graversen (Friday) / Justin Sedgmen (Saturday).