Newcastle Diamonds v Edinburgh Monarchs

Other than guest Robert Branford in heat 2, it took us so long to get a race winner in this match that it seemed we had no chance of success - until a turnaround which saw us come close to getting all of the last four race winners and pushing the Diamonds hard.

Tully, Wolbert and Katajisto finally won heats, with Kalle also taking a paid win in heat 13, and Craig Cook only losing the lead in heat 14 due to a mistake on the last bend of lap three.

It was just too late as far as the victory on the night or on aggregate was concerned, but it showed what might have been. In the earlier heats, any time we had gated (which was not often) we were undone by failure to cover the outside of turn two, which was the only real passing line on the circuit.

It was used impressively by Robson (over Wolbert in heat 5), Bach (over Katajisto in heat 6) and Sneddon (over Branford in heat 8).

Our reserves were doing their bit and picking up points but the heavy-duty scoring we require from the top five wasn't happening - we were riding like a team of second strings.

Both Kevin Wolbert and Kalle Katajisto had started with last places after poor starts and first corners, and race wins did not look likely.

When Matthew packed up while chasing Newman in heat 11, we slumped to a 28-38 deficit. For Newcastle, it isn't a great idea to go 10 ahead at that point because their heat 12 pair is pretty poor, and there's not much they can do about it.

We duly put Andrew on a TR and with Ashley beating Richie Worrall, the 7-2 cut the gap to 40-35 - a wee bit of a travesty really.

However that proved to be a wake-up call, and with the outside line a little slicker, making the gate was suddenly more profitable as Kevin raced away with the heat and Kalle rode a tenacious race to hold off Bach for second. The previously invincible (and fast gating ) Mark Lemon was nowhere.

So that amazingly was 41-40 and we were in with a chance!

Craig Cook tried his best to keep things going by leading the outstanding Robson in heat 14, though young Branford was well back this time.

Unluckily for Craig he lifted at the end of lap three and by the time he had corrected it, Robbo was gone.

So we needed a 5-1 for victory on the night even though the aggregate was beyond us, unless Newcastle didn't get a finisher.

Kalle kept his improvement going with a good win, but Kevin finished at the back after keeping Bach under pressure for most of the race.

Over the two legs, we know perfectly well we can do a bit better.

Newcastle Diamonds v Edinburgh Monarchs

Scotwaste Monarchs will travel to Tyneside on Sunday (6.30) for the second leg of the Premier Shield in much better spirits after a determined performance against Glasgow last night which saw them get a morale-boosting win in spite of a few setbacks.

Meanwhile the Newcastle Diamonds were losing at Scunthorpe in a match which they might have been expected to win considering the Scorpions' No.1 David Howe scored only 4 points. But they lost out massively to Viktor Bergstrom at reserve.

Monarchs' main man, Kevin Wolbert took only five minutes to restore his reputation with the Armadale fans with a double figure score from his five rides after a dismal start against the Diamonds the week before.

Matty Wethers, Andrew Tully and Craig Cook provided the kind of solid support Monarchs will require this year and Kalle Katajisto can be counted on to bounce back after an ordinary showing in his second match, having looked so good in his first.

With Jay Herne being taken to hospital as a precaution, it put sever pressure on young Ashley Morris who had to take extra rides. But it is all part of the learning process and the Brough Park track will prove another testing ground for him.

Thankfully Jay Herne has not suffered any serious damage although he will be ruled out of the newcastle match. His place will be taken by guest reserve Robert Branford, a young Australian rider who rides with Redcar and Buxton.

Newcastle of course have that formidable heat leader trio of Stuart Robson, Rene Bach and Mark Lemon, backed up by a rejuvenated Derek Sneddon. But the price of four such good riders is that the Diamonds look vulnerable elsewhere.

Newcastle have two narrow away wins to their credit already but their two home wins have been equally tight affairs. So there is every hope that Monarchs can pull back the two points defecit from the first leg to claim the first trophy of the season.

The key will be how many of the main men on either side are on song on the day. If Monarchs' top five all fire on the same day they can beat anyone, but these fixtures have a history of turning on small incidents and this one looks to be no different.

Likely line-ups:

NEWCASTLE SAPPHIRE ENGINEERING DIAMONDS: Rene Bach, Derek Sneddon (capt.), Lubos Tomicek, Stuart Robson, Mark Lemon, Kyle Newman, Richie Worrall.

SCOTWASTE MONARCHS: Kevin Wolbert, Matthew Wethers (capt.), Andrew Tully, Craig Cook, Kalle Katajisto, Ashley Morris, Robert Branford (guest).