Workington Comets v Edinburgh Monarchs

REPORT Saturday 17th April 2010, 10:00pm

by Mike Hunter

  Edinburgh Monarchs

With Kalle Katajisto missing, and Workington?s team changes substantially strengthening them, we were up against it at Derwent Park.

What might have happened had both teams had their regular 1-7s in action is open to conjecture ? we may well have won. As it stood, we needed an outstanding performance to take the points, and we didn?t come up with it.

We started well with yet another Ryan Fisher heat 1 win, comfortably leading Comets? very effective guest Rene Bach. It looked as though Richard Lawson possibly didn?t have his fuel turned on, and he stopped to gift Jozsef Tabaka a point.

In heat 2 we saw Max Dilger turn in a good first two laps, holding second between Branney and Cook. However leaving the fourth bend on lap two he lost his back end and fell awkwardly. It seems he may have a dislocated shoulder.

The rerun was a home 5-1, and so was heat 3 with Kevin Wolbert not quite getting to grips with Schramm and Kildemand.

Andrew Tully was quickly into his stride, forcing past both home riders in heat 4 for a good win.

Schramm made the gate in heat 5 with Fisher taking Kildemand very wide on the first turn. The Dane battled to get back with several outside passing attempts on both Fisher and Tabaka, who was right in the mix too. Finally on that tricky fourth turn Kildemand fell off.

Workington racked up another 5-1 in heat 6 though, as Bach and Lawson held off Andrew Tully. The gap was not 10 and we quickly utilised Kevin as a TR.

He made a good start off the inside in heat 7 but went so wide on the first corner that Cook got past him and went on to win easily. We were restricted to a 5-3 advantage.

In heat 8 Lawson and Branney led the way but Tabaka was snapping at their heels until Cal McDade fell just before the end of lap two. That stupid rule which insists on a rerun gave us another chance, and this time Lawson stopped at the gate. Jozsef edged ahead of Branney and took a good victory for a 3-2.

Tully got another good win in heat 9 from Schramm, and Cal McDade amazingly led Kildemand for two laps, a great effort though he was eventually passed.

Richard Lawson led all the way from Wolbert in heat 10, and though we had Bach at the back for a bit, he eventually passed Matthew who wasn?t looking quick.

Kildemand and Cook teamed up to block Ryan Fisher in heat 11, very effectively. Ryan was riding wide on the third/fourth bend which had caused trouble for so many riders, but he couldn?t find a gap to get through.

Wolbert won heat 12 with Schramm falling early, and remounting. Cal McDade should have had a gift point but he threw it away by tumbling and letting the remounted Schramm through.

We were now in a position for our second TR, and used Andrew in heat 13. Both him and Ryan were away well and briefly an 8-1 looked possible, but as they sorted themselves out it was Bach who burst ahead. So all we got was another 5-3.

McDade with battered bike and person didn?t come out for heat 14. He would have had a point because Kildemand stopped in a heat won by Cook from Wethers. The Dane then angrily threw his bike over.

Bach completed a good performance by winning heat 15 from Tully and Wolbert, and we had made 40. We would have liked a few more.