Broken collarbone for Conor Dwyer

COVENTRY STORM 71 SCUNTHORPE STAGS 18 (National League)

CONOR DWYER suffered a broken collarbone in the opening race, as the Scunthorpe Stags experienced an 18-71 loss in their National League fixture at Coventry last night (Friday).

Coventry Storm are one of the strongest sides in the National League, and this proved to be the toughest test for the fledgling Stags so far.

Even taking a point from the opposition was a challenge. After the opening heat 3-2 to Coventry after falls for both Coventry’s Mark Crang and then Dwyer in the re-run, 12 of the remaining 14 races were 5-1s; the two exceptions being Heat 4, where Ryan MacDonald rode a steady four laps to keep Martin Knuckey conformably at bay for second place, and a terrific second place for Danno Verge in Heat 12, as he passed Knuckey from behind in fine style.

Stags’ team manager Richard Hollingsworth said: “The meeting got off on the wrong foot for us, with Conor Dwyer breaking his collarbone. The track was a bit grippy on the inside early on, so we talked about riding mid-track. Sadly, Conor moved to the inside and the track bit him.

“After that I saw a lot of positives, with our riders improving at the night wore on.

“Across the three meetings we’ve had in the last week, Danno (Verge) has been quick. His biggest challenge is getting off the start. He put in a great ride to pass Martin Knuckey from behind in Heat 12.

“Ryan’s (MacDonald) confidence is building. He’s been to three tracks and been on the pace at all of them. Again his main issue is his gating.

“But he’s gaining in confidence all the time. I have seen the comments on forums; that riding in the NL would knock the confidence of our riders. But actually the opposite is true. There are no dropped heads, because there is improvement all the time.

“Liam Sanderson was steady tonight, gradually building up his speed and learning. On Wednesday at King’s Lynn, he was trying too hard and it was counter-productive. Tonight he was steady and closer to the others, and went away feeling good.”

Coventry 71: Dan Greenwood 12+3, Oliver Greenwood 12, James Sarjeant 12, Stefan Nielsen 11+1, Ryan Terry-Daley 10+5, Luke Crang 7+2, Martin Knuckey 7+1
Scunthorpe 18: Steve Jones 6, Ryan MacDonald 5, Adam Kirby 3, Danno Verge 3, Liam Sanderson 1, Sam Woods 0, Conor Dwyer 0

* The introduction of the experienced Lee Dicken to the Stags’ side has been blocked by the sport’s authorities.