Scunthorpe Scorpions vs Somerset Rebels preview

HENDERSON INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions face Premier League leaders Somerset Rebels at the Eddie Wright Raceway on Sunday (6.30pm) in a clash which will be a mouthwatering one for a number of reasons.

Somerset currently have an unbeaten record in Premier League fixtures in 2016, with 11 wins out of 11, including four victories on the road.

In fact, their form across the whole season has been outstanding, with 18 wins from 19 official league, KO Cup and League Cup fixtures, with the only blot on their copybook being a 43-46 defeat at Rye House way back in April.

Much of Somerset’s success so far this year has been based on the effortless way in which Antipodeans Jake Allen and Bradley Wilson-Dean have adjusted to their first season of Premier League racing.

Meanwhile, another new recruit to the 2016 Somerset Rebels is another Australian, Rohan Tungate, and this highly controversial figure needs no introduction to the Scorpions’ fans.

The last time Tungate visited the Eddie Wright Raceway was on July 17, 2015, when he was riding for the Ipswich Witches. In a highly unsavoury incident, Tungate – after being beaten into third place in Heat 10 by Josh Auty and Alex Davies – rode straight into Auty on the second bend of the warm-down lap, and brought the Scunthorpe No 1 crashing down.

Auty, who had just returned from a two-month spell on the sidelines with a broken hand, was ruled out of action for the rest of the season after his hand was re-broken, while Tungate was subsequently handed what could be seen as a somewhat lenient 21-day-ban by the Speedway Control Bureau, after the explanation he gave to the referee was found not to match to match video evidence of the incident.

Scunthorpe promoter Rob Godfrey said: “It really does promise to be a cracker of a meeting on Sunday.

“Somerset have been flying, and there’s no doubt that they will prove to be really tough opponents, but we’d love to be the team who becomes the first to defeat them in league competition this season.

“I’m not worried about the respective league positions of the two teams. Glasgow came here as league leaders and we beat them, while Peterborough were riding high in the table and we beat then away from home; and we can do the same with Somerset, but only if our lads ride at the top of their game.

“We are going to have to pull out all the stops against Somerset, but the recent Premier League Fours showed that the Rebels are not completely infallible.

“I think it will be a brilliant meeting. It’s always a hotly-contest fixture – the two clubs were involved in a very close battle in the 2012 Premier League play-off final, which we won on aggregate by a point, and both clubs love to get one over the other.

“Our main aim will be taking the three league points. But it’s impossible to ignore that it’s the first time that Rohan Tungate has been to Scunthorpe since last year’s controversy. Our fans remember well what happened that night, I don’t need to remind them, and I have no doubt that the atmosphere will be electric.”

With the new Green Sheet averages kicking in, Josh Auty will move back to the No 1 spot for Scorpions, while Carl Wilkinson replace Michael Palm Toft at reserve.

There are 24 heats of action in total on Sunday, with a nine-race second half including a six-heat Northern Junior League match between Halifax and Northside.

Admission prices for Sunday:

Adult: £15.00
Student/OAP: £13.00
Child (10 – 17): £5.00
Child (0 – 9) Free (accompanied by paying adult)
Family Ticket £35 (2 adults, 2 Children 10-17)
Match Programme: £1.00

Expected teams for Sunday:

Henderson Insurance Scunthorpe Scorpions: 1. Josh Auty, 2. Michael Palm Toft, 3. Lewis Kerr, 4. Rider replacement for Alex Davies, 5. Ryan Douglas, 6. Carl Wilkinson, 7. Josh Bailey.
Somerset Rebels: 1. Josh Grajczonek, 2. Jake Allen, 3. Charles Wright, 4. Paul Starke, 5. Rohan Tungate, 6. Bradley Wilson-Dean, 7. Rob Shuttleworth (guest).

Northern Junior League teams:
Halifax Dukes: 1. Joe Lawlor, 2. Sheldon Davies, 3. Jordan Palin, 4. Luke Harrison.
Northside Stars: 1. James Hitchen, 2. Luke McKenna, 3. Corban Pavitt, 4. Gregor Millar.