Newport Wasps v Edinburgh Monarchs

Recent changes have strengthened the Newport lineup, but not enough to withstand another excellent performance by the Scotwaste Monarchs.

Even though two of our riders didn?t score, we still came from 6 down at heat 6 to move smoothly into the lead over the second half of the match. We were two up going into the last race and clinched victory with another advantage.

We had eleven race wins from five different riders, with Andrew Tully in particularly brilliant form (he won four including the last heat decider, and set a new track record!)

Thomas Jonasson continued his excellent return to the team, recovering from a third place to reel off three thrilling wins by large distances, and Ryan Fisher had another fine Newport meeting.

In the first heat, restarted, Leigh Lanham went ahead, but Ryan Fisher wore him down and slipped by on the outside entering the third bend of lap two. Michal Rajkowski trailed in this one.

Wasps then took the lead with a win for the impressive James Holder from Aaron Summers. Byron Bekker kept up a strong challenge on Marek Mroz but finished pointless.

Heat 3 was disappointing as the home pair led all the way. Thomas was just behind but Matthew trailed after an untidy first turn.

Then Tully exploded on the scene. He simply blasted past everyone on the first turn and put in four flying laps, winning by a mile. His time was introduced by the announcer saying: ?Listen to this!?

He then announced 57.74 seconds, 0.3 below the previous best.

However we were six down so there was work to do. Frampton won nheat 5 with Fisher and Rajkowski sharing, then we were delighted to see Aaron Summers make a good start to win heat 6. It did look as though the track record holder would finish at the back after a bad start, but he got a gift point when Kerr fell on the last lap.

Thomas gated in heat 7 only for Matthew Wethers to lose control badly and fall awkwardly. He needed treatment but walked back to the pits. Thomas did it again in the rerun, winning easily.

Heat 8 was a hard-fought race won by Rajkowski in good style. Kerr fell again and we took 4-2 to cut the deficit to just two points.

Tully was sensational again in heat 9, beating the formidable Frampton by a long way, but Aaron suffered an engine failure at the start and we missed a chance to at least level the scores.

Matthew came out to ride in heat 10 but trailed at the back while Thomas Jonasson flew to another win. He was looking in great nick now.

Paul Fry gated in heat 11 but lost it on the first turn, which allowed Fisher and Rajkowski to race clear and put us two points clear.

Thomas was impressive again in heat 12, but Aaron could not pick up anything even though he had Andersson under strong pressure.

We clearly needed a good result in heat 13, and even though Lanham gated, both Tully and Fisher flew past round the outside in brilliant moves to take the 5-1.

That was nullified in heat 14 when Frampton and Holder took 5 in spite of Aaron?s great effort to pass his fellow Aussie. So we were two up going in to the last heat, Lanham and Frampton v Fisher and Tully (how hard must it have been to leave out Thomas?)

The visitors were better away initially but Fisher squeezed between them Tully flew round the outside and passed Lanham but Frampton hit the fence and fell.

It was all four back, a sensible decision. At the second attempt, It was Tully swopping to the front from gate 4 again for his most important win yet, with Fisher battling for the point which made it a four-point success.

Newport Wasps v Edinburgh Monarchs

The Scotwaste Monarchs complete their busy weekend with a trip to Wales when they go head to head with the Newport Wasps this afternoon.

An excellent victory at Scunthorpe last night means Monarchs have one foot in the final of the Premier Trophy and, while it would be nice to successfully defend that particular piece of silverware, away wins in the Premier League are probably looked upon as being even more important in the grand scheme of things.

This will be our first visit to the Hayley Stadium since 2007. We did actually win that meeting, with a team including the likes of Ronnie Correy (remember him?!) and one of our best ever guests, Lee Complin. Sadly, Newport were temporarily lost to the sport after the early weeks of the 2008 campaign following the sad passing of long time Promoter Tim Stone. Thankfully, the Wasps have returned under new management and they appear to be doing their very best to make the place a success.

Not surprisingly, with any new team, there have been teething problems and they certainly haven?t had their troubles to seek. The list of riders used is still growing (the latest signing having been announced just a few days ago!) as they strive to find the key to a winning side. And, if low crowds are a worry, the new ?trial? start time of 5pm is yet another experiment which may or may not work.

Leading the side is the vastly experienced Leigh Lanham, who seems to have been around since the invention of the microwave! Last seen in the Premier League wearing the colours of the Arena Essex (now Lakeside of course) Hammers, Lanham spent a few years in the top flight. He is undoubtedly a force at this level and anything other than a maximum from him would be a surprise.

Elsewhere, the side is packed with potential. The likes of Jordan Frampton, Chris Kerr, Jonas Andersson and James Holder all have talent in abundance and could go anywhere in the sport. Frampton especially is one I rate very highly so good luck to him from me!

The remaining two members of the Wasps? outfit are virtual OAP Paul Fry and erratic Pole Marek Mroz. Despite his years, Fry is somehow still racing speedway in the Elite League with Poole (and winning races from time to time!) while Mroz seems to be one of those guys who turns up at a club, scores a few points, gets dropped during the ?strengthening up process? and moves on, completely unfased, to his next port of call... probably the speedway equivalent of the Littlest Hobo!

As for the Monarchs, the win at Scunthorpe was the second time in as many days in which we?d scored 46 points. It would be nice to think, if we were to hit that mark again, it would be enough to win another meeting (I?m saying nothing about TR?s!).

Leading the way is, as always, Ryan Fisher who will be making a swift return to the scene of his second place finish at the Welsh Open. Having won all his heats in the qualifiers, he eventually lost out to Australian Legend Kevin Doolan in the final. Not only that but he also dropped his trophy afterwards!

One possible secret weapon in our ranks is former Wasp Michal Rajkowski. As everyone knows, the popular Pole started his UK career at Queensway Meadows before representing both Belle Vue and Mildenhall last season. His time in Wales was a huge success and it would be nice to think the home punters will remember this when his name is announced.

The Wasps have suffered a few home defeats this season but this one certainly won?t be easy. The new signings have made them so much stronger (I guess that?s always the general idea!) and they even managed to defeat Rye House last Sunday! One thing?s for sure, if we are to gain anything from this fixture, much will depend on how Thomas H Jonasson performs on his debut at the small Welsh circuit. His contribution will most probably prove crucial, so let?s hope it?s a good one!

Here?s hoping for a dust free occasion and, as always, may the best team win...

Likely line-ups:

Wasps: Leigh Lanham, Chris Kerr, Jonas Andersson, Jordan Frampton, Paul Fry, Marek Mroz, James Holder.

Monarchs: Ryan Fisher, Michal Rajkowski, Thomas H Jonasson, Matthew Wethers, Andrew Tully, Aaron Summers, Byron Bekker.