Scorpions boss insists: “It’s not over!”
PETERBOROUGH PANTHERS 54 SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 36 (KNOCKOUT CUP, quarter-final, first leg)
HENDERSON INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions’ promoter Rob Godfrey insists that the club can still reach the semi-finals of the SGB Championship Knockout Cup, despite a 36-54 defeat at Peterborough’s East Of England Showground last night (Friday), in the first leg of their quarter-final tie.
With Todd Kurtz guesting for the unavailable Lewis Kerr – riding for Somerset – and Ben Hopwood in for Josh Bailey, Scorpions kept it tight for most of the evening, with eight shared races plus four 4-2s to Peterborough in the opening 12 races.
However, Panthers then outscored Scorpions by 14-4 in the final three races, to leave the final margin between the two clubs at 18 points.
Josh Auty (pictured) top scored for Scorpions with 8 points, while Jack Holder scored a full 15-point maximum for Peterborough.
Godfrey says: “It’s not over yet! There’s another 15 races to go at the Eddie Wright Raceway, once the two clubs agree a date.
“The final margin was a little more than we’d wanted. The track was very slick, and we did what we could.
“We didn’t have the rub of the green. I was convinced Tero (Aarnio) had snatched the verdict in one race, but he wasn’t given it, while Michael (Palm Toft) was coming around the outside in Heat 15, when he was forced wide into the boards.
“Every point counts in a cup tie and we can get this back.
“At the time of the abandonment a couple of weeks ago, we were 19-11 up against the Panthers and had provided all five heat winners. We can still do to them at our place what they did to us at their place, and therefore it’s still in the balance.”
PETERBOROUGH PANTHERS 54
1. Chris Harris 1* 3 3 2* 2* (11+3)
2. Bradley Wilson-Dean 2 0 3 1 (6)
3. Paul Starke 1* 0 FX 3 (4+1)
4. Ulrich Ostergaard 2 3 3 3 (11)
5. Jack Holder 3 3 3 3 3 (15)
6. Zach Wajtknecht (Guest) 3 0 0 1 (4)
7. Tom Bacon 1 1 1 0 (3)
HENDERSON INSURANCE SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 36
1. Michael Palm Toft 3 1* 2 0 0 (6+1)
2. Tero Aarnio 0 2 2 1* (5+1)
3. Todd Kurtz (Guest) 3 1* 0 2 (6+1)
4. Ryan Douglas F 2 2 2 (6)
5. Josh Auty 2 2 2 1 1 (8)
6. Carl Wilkinson 2 1* 0 1* F (4+2)
7. Ben Hopwood (Guest) 0 0 1* (1+1)
1: Palm Toft, Wilson-Dean, Harris, Aarnio, 60.3 (3-3) (3-3).
2: Wajtknecht, Wilkinson, Bacon, Hopwood, 60.8 (4-2) (7-5).
3: Kurtz, Ostergaard, Starke, Douglas (fell), 60.8 (3-3) (10-8).
4: Holder, Auty, Bacon, Hopwood, 60.5 (4-2) (14-10).
5: Ostergaard, Aarnio, Palm Toft, Starke, 59.4 (3-3) (17-13).
6: Harris, Auty, Wilkinson, Wilson-Dean, 59.1 (3-3) (20-16).
7: Holder, Douglas, Kurtz, Wajtknecht, 59.7 (3-3) (23-19).
8: Wilson-Dean, Aarnio, Bacon, Wilkinson, 61.6 (4-2) (27-21).
9: Ostergaard, Auty, Hopwood, Starke (fell, excluded), awarded – no time (3-3) (30-24).
10: Harris, Douglas, Wilson-Dean, Kurtz, 60.1 (4-2) (34-26).
11: Holder, Palm Toft, Aarnio, Wajtknecht, 60.8 (3-3) (37-29).
12: Starke, Kurtz, Wilkinson, Bacon, 61.9 (3-3) (40-32).
13: Holder, Harris, Auty, Palm Toft, 60.7 (5-1) (45-33).
14: Ostergaard, Douglas, Wajtknecht, Wilkinson (fell), 62.0 (4-2) (49-35).
15: Holder, Harris, Auty, Palm Toft, 60.9 (5-1) (54-36).
