Scorpions out of luck in league opener

PLYMOUTH GLADIATORS 49 SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 41 (Cab Direct Championship)

ATTIS INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions put in a determined effort in their opening Cab Direct Championship match at Plymouth last night (Tuesday), but lost out 41-49 after a last-heat decider.

Plymouth took a 5-1 from a messy opening race, and then led for the whole evening. But Scorpions twice reduced the deficit to two points, before Gladiators pulled away with back-to-back 5-1s in Heats 9 and 10, which left them ten points in front.

Scorpions were not beaten. Ryan Douglas came into Heat 12 as a tactical substitute and joined Connor Mountain for a 5-1, while Michael Palm Toft pushed inside Richie Worrall for third place in Heat 13 to join Douglas for a further 4-2.

Jake Allen was in fine form for Scorpions and won his third race of the evening in a shared Heat 14, as Scunthorpe went into Heat 15 four points in arrears and needing a 5-1 to force a draw and an extra Superheat.

For one moment, it looked like they may get it. Allen made an excellent start from the outside, but behind him Kyle Howarth and Ryan Douglas got in a tangle on the second bend while contesting second place and the unlucky Douglas found himself taken down for a third time during the evening. Struggling for machinery, he borrowed a bike from guest Lee Complin for the re-run. Second time around, Ben Barker and Howarth trapped, and despite the determined efforts of Allen – who forced his way into second place at one point – Gladiators took a match-winning 5-1.

Scorpions had little luck during the evening. In addition to the last race, Heat 5 was stopped after Plymouth’s Paul Starke fell. Douglas had fought himself alongside Barker at the time of stoppage and arguably it should have been re-run rather than awarded.

Heat 8 was another awarded race. Plymouth’s Jake Turner lost his chain and was struggling to push his bike from the track. The race continued for a while with Turner’s bike still partially on the circuit, but fortunately race-leader Simon Lambert avoided what could have been a nasty contact, before the race was eventually stopped a lap later by the referee.

Both Allen and Douglas scored 11 points, while Joe Thompson collected a highly useful six from reserve and skipper Lambert scored 5+2 around a track that isn’t one of his favourites.

Speaking post-meeting, Scunthorpe promoter, and stand in manager for the evening, Rob Godfrey said: “There was an element of bad luck for us tonight, but Plymouth were deserving winners.

“They pulled away with two mid-meeting 5-1s, but even then we weren’t beaten and we took it to the final race. For a moment, it looked like we might get the 5-1 we needed. Jake Allen had been on it all night and made a fantastic gate, while Ryan Douglas was where he needed to be to swoop past Kyle Howarth down the back straight. Unfortunately, Ryan and Kyle then tangled up and Ryan took a nasty fall.

“Fortunately, Ryan was okay, which was the main thing. But he already had one bike out of commission and the crash damaged his other machine, so he ended up on Lee Complin’s bike in the re-run. His mechanic David Howe is going to have a busy time getting Ryan’s bikes back to working order for our cup meeting at Birmingham. Jake battled all the way in the re-run, but Plymouth took the 5-1.

“There was one race I thought was awarded prematurely, because Ryan was alongside Ben Barker, so I couldn’t see how that race could be awarded one way or the other, so we missed out on a point there.

“There’s a winning mentality around the team this year, and we are disappointed when we lose. But we’ll look at the positives, pick ourselves up, and move onto Birmingham seeking the best possible result.

“We’re also still very much in contention to take an aggregate bonus point off Plymouth. I’m convinced those are the key to success in the Cab Direct Championship this year. Last year, an eight-point away loss would have been devastating, this year there’s still a chance to take the bonus point and outscore the opposition by a point over the two matches.”

PLYMOUTH 49: Kyle Howarth 12+2, Ben Barker 12+1, Dan Gilkes 9+2, Richie Worrall 8, Paul Starke 5+1, Jake Turner 3+1, Ben Trigger 0.
SCUNTHORPE 41: Ryan Douglas 11, Jake Allen 11, Joe Thompson 6, Simon Lambert 5+2, Michael Palm Toft 4+1, Connor Mountain 3+1, Lee Complin 1.

* ATTIS INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions move onto Birmingham tonight (Wednesday) for the first leg of a Knockout Cup quarter-final tie. Scorpions will track an unchanged line-up at Birmingham. The concluding leg is at the Eddie Wright Raceway on Friday (May 5, 7.30pm).

REPORT by Rob Peasley
PHOTO: Jake Allen enjoyed a terrific evening at Plymouth (pic: IAN RISPIN)