Edinburgh Monarchs v Workington Comets

The Scotwaste Monarchs lost 44-49 at home to Workington and have yet to win a match in August.

The scoreline probably flattered Monarchs as the Comets managed to make a few errors on their way to victory, and also an 8-1 advantage in heat 14 helped to take the match to a last heat decider.

There was an early shock for everyone as the originally booked guest Jason Lyons was ineligible and should not have been booked. This only came to light on Friday afternoon and the only rider who could be pressed into action was Jacek Rempala, who had scored 8 on his last appearance.

In the event he had a poor match and looked unsteady and slow.

The start was fine. Derek Sneddon and George Stancl made good starts, Ostergaard fell on the second bend and the home pair finished a long way ahead of the toiling Carpanese.

We hoped our young reserve pair might take something out of heat 2, but they didn?t, both gating poorly as is their norm. It seemed Katajisto might pass Branney once or twice but it wasn?t to be.

James Wright easily won heat 4 but guest Rempala and Tully eventually got the better of Craig Branney who made a mistake while lying third.

Matthew Wethers had to work hard to hold second ahead of John Branney in heat 4 and it did look as though Matthew might not be at his quickest.

Carpanese was in heat 5 which allowed us to share it behind Ostergaard. Rempala was making decent starts but thereafter lacked speed, and it was Tully who chased the Comets? no. 1.

George Stancl lunged at the tapes in heat 6, but was caught out and left as they rose. Derek Sneddon once again ode a fine race to win but Stancl lost ground if anything behind Nieminen and Charles Wright, leaving us still 2 down.

Things went wrong in heat 7 though. Craig Branney got his first turn right with a wide sweep, and James Wright settled in on his inside. Wethers toiled to reach them but it was a comfortable 5-1 to the Comets.

Sneddon kept his unbeaten run going in heat 8, and Sam Martin came back after a poor start to grab a late point from John Branney.

Heat 9 looked like another Comets? 5-1 through Charles Wright and Nieminen, but Andrew Tully thought otherwise. He chased all the way and rounded Nieminen on the last bend to take second, with Rempala well adrift.

James Wright won heat 10 while Derek Sneddon repaid earlier favours from Stancl by helping him come past Craig Branney to share the heat.

We were still six down and that was unchanged as Ostergaard won heat 11, in which Katajisto easily beat the dire Campanese.

Heat 12 didn?t look too clever but Charles Wright gifted us a shared heat by falling and picking up an exclusion. It was Martin rather than his Bandits? team mate Rempala who gave chase.

Nieminen and Ostergaard raced off for a 5-1 over Wethers and Stancl in heat 13, opening the gap to 10 and apparently ending the match as a contest.

But not quite. Andrew Tully was out as a TR in heat 14, and showed great determination to go round the outside on the first corner and lead. Charles Wright fell again, and Katajisto was putting Craig Branney under pressure. So much so that Branney hit the fence on the pits bend, and the wee Finn was through for an 8-1 (Wright had remounted).

So amazingly we were only three down going into the final heat. Sneddon and Wethers stepped up to the plate again, against James Wright and Kauko Nieminen.

It was three abreast into the pits corner, Wethers between the two Comets. The visitors went ahead but Matthew did manage to pass Wright in his best ride of the night. Derek seemed to be having bike problems, and that was that. A last heat 5-1 was not in most people?s list of likely outcomes.

Edinburgh Monarchs v Workington Comets

The Workington Comets roll into town on Friday for another Premier League match which looks like being a cliffhanger. But what prospect does this match offer the team now desperate to get back on the winning trail?

The good news has to be the return of George Stancl to the side. George was badly missed last weekend and we have to hope that he has fully recovered physically and mechanically to give us the firepower we need to shoot down the Comets. Kai Laukkanen will be missing from the side because he has again been called up for Grand Prix duty. In his place we again have Jason Lyons as our guest. We know how well Jason rides the Armadale track so we have no worries that he will score heavily for us.

The middle of the team always gives us complete effort and commitment. Derek and Matthew both scored well over the weekend matches and provided a lot of exciting moments. Andrew is also riding well and giving it his all but, unfortunately, his gating has been letting him down badly making every race a struggle from the back. We have to hope that he can make some decent starts in this match in which every point is likely to count.

It?s at reserve that we look most vulnerable. Kalle Katajisto was, by all reports, at Belle Vue earlier in the week to try and sort out his starting procedure. If he can get out of the gate with the rest of the field he?ll have a much better chance to show us what he can do and get amongst the points. While Kalle has been gaining in experience we have often looked to the ?senior? reserve to take the weight of the scoring burden. This week the other reserve spot is filled by Berwick reserve, Sam Martin, himself fairly inexperienced particularly round Armadale so we can hardly expect miracles from him. If we are heavily outscored at reserve the onus on the rest of the team may be too much to bear.

What of Workington? They, too, have had a terrible time of it through injuries, the latest being to Carl Stonehewer in the Scottish Open. The Comets moved quickly to sign Ulrich Ostergaard when he was released by Birmingham. Ulrich is a quality rider but doesn?t perhaps pose the same threat as Carl would have. James Wright is sensational round Workington and while he has had some excellent races round Armadale he isn?t a consistent threat. Kauko Nieminen makes up the heat leader trio to give Workington a first class top end.

The rest of the team consists of a brace of Branneys, Craig and John, and another Wright, Charles. Craig Branney forms the middle order with the Italian, Mattia Carpanese, who has yet to ride at Armadale. We have to make sure that these two are kept quiet all meeting because it?s here we seem to have a big edge.

John Branney and Charles Wright at reserve are a very strong combination round Derwent Park. Our big danger is if they outscore our reserves heavily leaving too much for the rest to do.

It?s hard to pick a winner. It may boil down to who wants the win most. I expect this one to go all the way but maybe for once, should it come to a last heat decider, we have the top two to see us home. For that to happen we need to be ahead after heat 13 then cope with the difficult heat 14 to set us up for the win.