Slick starting Bandits teach Scorpions a lesson

SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 39 BERWICK BANDITS 52 (PREMIER LEAGUE)

HENDERSON INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions concluded a disastrous week with a second home reverse in five days, with a 39-52 defeat to the Berwick Bandits at the Eddie Wright Raceway last night (Friday).

As with the Bank Holiday Monday defeat to Peterborough Panthers, Scorpions’ main frailty was their inability to gate ahead of their opponents, resulting in a lack of heat winners.

On Monday, Scorpions provided only four heat winners against Panthers; yesterday, against Bandits, they provided just three.

The home riders never stopped battling, but were simply overwhelmed by the sharper-starting visitors. Even on a great racetrack such as Scunthorpe, speedway is far easier when you’re gating rather than chasing, and Bandits swept into a 36-25 lead after 10 races.

Scorpions did stage a brief late comeback. Ryan Douglas and Carl Wilkinson were not first from the tapes in Heat 11, but swept to the front after a fantastic opening lap, with Wilkinson then fending off pressure from the previously unbeaten Dimitri Berge, as Scorpions took a 5-1.

That was followed by a 4-2 from Wilkinson and Michael Palm Toft in Heat 12, and suddenly the gap was down to five points.

However, Berwick killed off the hopes of the home team with a 5-1 from ex-Scorpion Thomas Jorgensen and Berge in Heat 13, despite Berge being under pressure from both Douglas and Josh Auty.

Sport can be cruel, as Alex Davies found out in Heat 14. The struggling Scorpion made a good start, only to pull up in a shower of sparks on the second bend.

Douglas was Scunthorpe’s top scorer on 11 points and his main support came from Wilkinson (9 paid 10), while Jorgensen scored a sublime 14 points for the Bandits, suffering his only defeat to Douglas in Heat 4.

Young Josh Bailey definitely did his job for Scunthorpe, with 4 paid 5 from three rides, while recent signing Andreas Lyager put in no end of effort, with some spectacular riding around the outside, but reaped little reward in terms of points.

Scorpions’ team manager Dave Peet said: “I can’t understand why week-after-week, the riders from the opposing team are ten yards in front entering the first turn.

“It doesn’t seem to matter how we prepare the track. Rob (Godfrey, Scunthorpe promoter) has prepared the starts the way the riders has asked, but it makes no difference; we still can’t get out of the gate.

“The riders need to look at themselves and ask themselves questions, because we’ve done everything they’ve asked in terms of the track and it’s still not working.

“We’ll stick at it and we’ll work at it, but the riders need to take a good look at their selves.”

HENDERSON INSURANCE SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 39
1. Josh Auty 2 R 4# 0 (6)
2. Andreas Lyager 1* 2 R 0 0 (3+1)
3. Michael Palm Toft 2 R 2 1 (5)
4. Alex Davies 0 1 R (1)
5. Ryan Douglas 3 2 3 1 2 (11)
6. Carl Wilkinson 2 FX 0 2* 3 2 (9+1)
7. Josh Bailey 1* 1 2 (4+1)

BERWICK BANDITS 52
1. Dimitri Berge (Guest) 3 3 1 2* 1 (10+1)
2. Theo Pijper 0 2* 3 0 (5+1)
3. Kevin Doolan 1 3 3 2 (9)
4. Matthew Wethers 3 1 1 3 (8)
5. Thomas Jorgensen 2 3 3 3 3 (14)
6. Romano Hummel 0 X 1 0 (1)
7. Liam Carr 3 0 1 1 (5)

# = tactical ride

1: Berge, Auty, Lyager, Pijper, 59.87 (3-3) (3-3).
2: Carr, Wilkinson, Bailey, Hummel, 57.92 (3-3) (6-6).
3: Wethers, Palm Toft, Doolan, Davies, 57.69 (2-4) (8-10).
4: Douglas, Jorgensen, Bailey, Carr, 56.92 (4-2) (12-12).
5: Berge, Pijper, Davies, Palm Toft (ret), 56.56 (1-5) (13-17)
6: Jorgensen, Lyager, Hummel (excluded, dangerous riding), Auty (ret), 57.92 (2-3) (15-20).
7: (Re-run) Doolan, Douglas, Wethers, Wilkinson (fell, excluded), 57.58 (2-4) (17-24).
8: Pijper, Bailey, Carr, Lyager (ret), 58.23 (2-4) (19-28).
9: Jorgensen, Palm Toft, Hummel, Wilkinson, 57.63 (2-4) (21-32).
10: Doolan, AUTY (TR), Wethers, Lyager, 58.00 (4-4) (25-36).
11: Douglas, Wilkinson, Berge, Pijper, 58.60 (5-1) (30-37).
12: Wilkinson, Doolan, Palm Toft, Hummel, 58.07 (4-2) (34-39).
13: Jorgensen, Berge, Douglas, Auty, 58.32 (1-5) (35-44).
14: Wethers, Wilkinson, Carr, Davies (ret), 58.42 (2-4) (37-48).
15: Jorgensen, Douglas, Berge, Lyager, 58.02 (2-4) (39-52).

PHOTO: Ryan Douglas leads Thomas Jorgensen and Josh Bailey in Heat 4.