Edinburgh Monarchs v Workington Comets

Workington haven't been in great form, but the unavoidable absence of Kalle left us vulnerable at reserve in our third home Premier Trophy tie.

We made a shaky start but came through in the end with our main men performing well.

Ryan Fisher opened up with his usual heat 1 win but Jozsef made a poor start and didn't score.

Heat 2 wasn't good as our makeshift pair were swamped by the very handy duo of Cook and Branney - the best part of the current Workington team.

The Wethers/Wolbert pairing is our strongest, and they were off to a good start with 5 points in heat 3. After his 1800 kilometre drive Kevin had to be exhausted but he was still determined to do well.

Cal McDade was away well in heat 4 and battling to hold position. Adam Roynon ran into him, Cal didn't budge and Adam was excluded. Andrew Tully took the rerun easily and we edged ahead.

Matthew Wethers was in good nick and took heat 5, with Lawson riding a steady race and holding off Kevin's passing attempts. Andre Compton made no headway at the back.

Heat 6 was very interesting with Craig Cook leading for most of the race. Fisher was trying to get to grips with him without any rash moves, and finally it paid off with an inside pass on the final bend. Jozsef also passed Adam Roynon who then pulled out.

Andrew flew to his second win in heat 7 but Max was nowhere against Schramm and Kildemand.

Heat 8 was a turning point in the match. Lawson and Cook had been going well and might have been expected to get the better of Tabaka and McDade but it was our pair who seized the initiative on the first corner. Jozsef cleared off while Cal had a terrific battle with the visiting pair. Eventually he slipped back to third and then fell on the last lap, but what a great effort it was - helping Jozsef to get clear of the opposition.

Wolbert and Wethers then clocked up another 5-1 and we were now 10 up. This allowed Kildemand to take a TR against Ryan Fisher. Our man led with the Dane looking determined - until he fell on the pits bend.

Comets could have used their TR in the next race but didn't, maybe a comment on Compton's current form. He missed the start and came down heavily as Max ran into his back wheel. That was the end of Andre's night.

Tully won the rerun with Max falling again. Wolbert made the start in heat 12 but was strongly challenged by Craig Cook, who just overdid things and knocked Kevin into the pits bend boards.

Schramm was taking the second TR and in the rerun he grabbed his chance to take 6 points.

Comets brought their reserves into heat 13 to replace Compton and Roynon, and when Fisher and Tully took 5 the match was just about over.

Max Dilger did make a reasonable start in heat 14 and slotted in beside Matthew, but when Kildemand passed him he fell again. He punched his bike in frustration.

Matthew won the heat and joined Fisher in the last heat. This was a cracking battle for second behind Fisher with Wethers and Kildemand passing and repassing, and Matthew then withstanding a fierce inside challenge to hold second place and complete his paid maximum.

A great finish to a reasonable night's speedway and a good home display in the circumstances.

Edinburgh Monarchs v Workington Comets

According to the preview of Workington's season on their official website, we should be in for a sparkling show this Friday because a shower of alien Comets will be raining down on the Scotwaste Arena.

The Cumbrian coastal town most certainly didn't have its troubles to seek over the winter, and the same could be said about their speedway club. Having built a successful new side after the 'Stoney' years, their big two of Adrian Rymel and Kevin Doolan both opted to return to 'pastures old' at Berwick and King's Lynn respectively..

Imagine Edinburgh having to replace both Ryan Fisher and Kevin Wolbert just before the start of the season. At least Workington did eventually manage to retain their experienced third heat leader, Sheffield asset Andre Compton to lead the side, otherwise it might have been like losing Matthew Wethers too.

Being unable to find any suitable higher average riders so late in the day left Workington almost 3 points under the team-building limit, indicating that life for the starting Comets could be a struggle. Drafted in to provide some solidity is Chris Schramm from Essex who, when not riding speedway, drives lorries around Tilbury Docks.

Now entering his tenth season for his eleventh different club, Chris has ridden at all levels in the UK, most recently as part of last year's all-conquering King's Lynn side. To fill the third heat leader spot, Comets have placed their faith in a newcomer to speedway in this country, Peter Kildemand, a member of Denmark's Under-21 side, coming in on an assessed 7 point average.

Very good news for the future of the Comets is that the rest of the side is made up of four young local riders who all have the capability to improve. The most experienced of these is a rider who always gives 100% effort, John Branney, the younger of the brothers from Whitehaven, amazingly now entering his ninth season.

He is closely followed by Adam Roynon from Barrow, whose predicted path to the top level of the sport has been so cruelly held back by serious and life-threatening injuries. It's a miracle that Adam is back riding at all and, although his starting average of 5.71 seems low, he will undoubtedly need time to settle back before hopefully pushing on upwards.

The final two Comets are motocross pals Richard Lawson from Maryport and Craig Cook, another who hails from Whitehaven. They are still in the very early stages of their speedway careers but both look exciting prospects. Richard got a slight head start in speedway but lists Edinburgh as his worst track!

So Workington field a team full of youthful promise, all of which will need to be fulfilled if their 40th season is to be one of celebration. Monarchs will be keen to continue last week's crushing form and their fans should see a much more spirited visiting team who have already won on the road.

Likely line-ups:

Monarchs: Ryan Fisher, Joszef Tabaka, Kevin Wolbert, Matthew Wethers, Andrew Tully, Max Dilger, Kalle Katajisto

Comets: Andre Compton, Richard Lawson, Chris Schramm, Peter Kildemand, Adam Roynon, Craig Cook, John Branney