NeilWatson

SR18.10 FACILITIES a.) Absent #1: G or RR b.) 1 Absent Rider (2 – 5): RR c.) More than 1 Absent Rider (1 - 5) 1 x RR facility and G for all others d.) Absent #6: G e.) Absent #7: NL G* f.) Absent #6 and #7 Riders: G (for the absent #6) / NL G* (for the other) g.) “No Facility”: NL G* NL G*: a Rider eligible for a NL Team who has never achieved an actual PL MA of 4.00 or above

COVENTRY will have revamped meeting presentation in effect for Elite League matches, starting with tonight's clash with Swindon. We are planning a new system which will feature presentation from both the centre-green and the pits throughout the evening, with official results still coming from the box. Chris Simpson will be on the centre-green with Peter York conducting interviews from the pits. The meeting will also see the return of the post-match disco in the under-stand bar, hosted by Chris Simpson, with opportunities to meet and greet the riders when time and circumstances allow. We have looked to respond to feedback, and we hope supporters enjoy the changes when they are in force tonight.

That is not the case. PETERBOROUGH have been forced to postpone their eagerly-awaited Premier League showdown against Edinburgh tonight (Tuesday). The East of England Showground clash has been called off due to a healthy and safety issue which is unlikely to be resolved today. Co-promoter Trevor Swales said: "It is a very unfortunate situation and we are absolutely gutted that we cannot race tonight. "It is no-one's fault but a health and safety issue has arisen and we don't expect to be able to rectify it in a matter of hours. "We didn't want to find ourselves in the position of having to call off the meeting much closer to the start time." Panthers will return to action on Sunday (May 11) when they travel to Newcastle.

COVENTRY moved to within one point of the Elite League’s play-off places with a hard-fought 49-41 win over leaders Lakeside at Brandon on Monday. Hans Andersen and Chris Harris secured a last-heat 5-1 for the Buildbase Bees as the winning run of the Hammers’ inspired Danish youngster Mikkel Bech came to an end. It left the visitors with nothing to show for the meeting despite having gone into that final race with the chance of salvaging a draw from a topsy-turvy contest. Bees gave a solid all-round display with their reserves, Jason Garrity and James Sarjeant, taking 5-1s in both of their races against their Lakeside counterparts. The top five all had up and down moments, although that was partly due to the fact that gate four appeared a significant handicap – with only Sarjeant, who conjured a remarkable start in Heat 9, really making the outside work. The sides traded 5-1s in the opening races before Lakeside regained the advantage in Heat 3 when Bech switched back and passed Ryan Fisher off turn two on the final lap for his first of four race wins. The visitors opened their lead to four points but Bees wiped that out with a 5-1 in Heat 5 thanks to Andersen and Harris, who had both run last places off gate four in their opening rides. The nip-and-tuck nature of the meeting continued with Peter Karlsson’s pass on Kenneth Hansen for third place in Heat 6 putting the Hammers back in front, only for Bees to edge back ahead with successive 4-2s of their own as Fisher resisted Richard Lawson in Heat 8 whilst Hansen this time kept Karlsson at bay. By this time, the Hammers had lost skipper Davey Watt to a hand injury although Karlsson and Lawson were able to take his remaining rides under the injury rider replacement facility. A big 5-1 from the Bees reserves was immediately cancelled out in Heat 10 when Andersen was squeezed out by Bech and Lawson going into the first bend, but Harris came up with an excellent start to get the better of Karlsson in the next race whilst Fisher worked hard on the inside to eventually force the error from Lewis Bridger and take third spot. Garrity and Kyle Howarth then pulled off a terrific 5-1 in Heat 12, keeping the previously impressive Lawson at bay, and that put Coventry eight ahead and seemingly in full control. The match looked set to be decided in Heat 13 especially with Karlsson pulling out with bike trouble, but Bech had other ideas and passed Harris before brilliantly swooping around Andersen for the lead after two laps of battling. Clearly fired up by that ride, the Hammers hit back with a 5-1 in Heat 14 from Bridger and Adam Ellis with Hansen marooned off gate four and arguably one lap short of being able to make a passing move. With the visitors needing a 5-1 from Heat 15 to draw the match, and needing to avoid conceding a 5-1 to take a point, they made the attacking move of deploying Bech from the unwanted gate four, clearly hoping that team-mate Lawson would make the start and that the Dane would work his way through. However, those plans were wrecked when Andersen and Harris hit the front for the Bees, and with track conditions constantly changing with rain intensifying, Bech slid off on the second lap as he attempted to make up ground – effectively handing Bees a 5-1 and maximum league points, although Lawson did gain ground late on to put pressure on Harris. Manager Gary Havelock said: “It was a real team effort, the meeting really ebbed and flowed, but when you look through our team it was solid all the way through. “Some guys had some bad rides but they got their heads down and the vital thing at the end was that when the chips were down, Hans and Chris produced the goods. “I’m really pleased with the team. We’ve shown this season at places like Poole and Lakeside that there’s plenty of fight there, and we showed it again here when it really mattered.” BUILDBASE BEES 49: Chris Harris 8+3, Hans Andersen 8, Kyle Howarth 8, Ryan Fisher 8, Jason Garrity 7+2, James Sarjeant 6+1, Kenneth Hansen 4. LAKESIDE 41: Mikkel Bech 12, Richard Lawson 11+2, Peter Karlsson 6, Lewis Bridger 6, Adam Ellis 4+1, Davey Watt 1, Liam Carr 1.

Stefan took a nasty tumble later in the meeting at Coventry on Friday.

Oliver Greenwood is a 'guest-only' rider on the draft list http://www.speedwaygb.co/14issues/el_issue7.pdf

I assume that word was sn@tch, censorship gone mad!

Simon was in red in the outside gate, Gemini, James in white from the inside. Simon won!

For Berwick Bandits read Redcar Bears.....

Plymouth 42 Peterborough 47 - Peterborough qualify for the semi-finals as Group winners.

Coventry = 54 1. Stefan Nielsen 3, 2', Fx, 2' = 7+2 2. Luke Crang 2', 3, 3, 3, 3, F = 14+1 3. RR (Oliver Greenwood) 4. Daniel Greenwood F, 0, 3, 2, 3 = 8 5. James Sarjeant 3, 3, R, 3, 3, 3 = 15 6. Ryan Terry-Daley 2, 1, 2', 1, 1 = 7+1 7. Martin Knuckey 1', 1, 1, 0 = 3+1 Kent = 39 1. Simon Lambert 1, 2, 2, 1, 1' = 7+1 2. Luke Chessell 0, 1', 2, 0 = 3+1 3. Ben Morley 1', 6!, 2, 3, 2 = 14+1 4. Benji Compton 2, 2', 1', 2 = 7+2 5. David Mason 2, 1, 1, 0 = 4 6. Luke Harris 3, 0, 0, 1, 0 = 4 7. Brandon Freemantle Fx, Fx, 0 = 0 An enjoyable meeting, run at a cracking pace. Simon Lambert retained the Bronze Helmet (v James Sarjeant).

COVENTRY Storm are looking to extend their impressive start to the National League season when Kent visit Brandon on Friday (7.30pm). The City Gearboxes Storm have won all three of their league matches so far, including dramatic Easter victories away at Mildenhall and at home to Cradley in what was the best meeting since the club entered the third tier last year. Now they face a Kings side who are also expected to be up amongst the play-off challengers, and who track one of the strongest top-orders in the league with Simon Lambert and Ben Morley both having team places in the Elite League via the fast-track system. The Storm go into the meeting without in-form Oliver Greenwood, who has a commitment with his Premier League club Peterborough, and the rider-replacement facility will entitle each member of the team other than No.1 Stefan Nielsen to an extra outing. Coventry promoter Mick Horton said: “To beat Mildenhall and Cradley over Easter was an incredible effort and now hopefully the boys can carry it on against Kent. “The Cradley match was a fantastic meeting and it showed just how good the racing can be at this level. Our boys are making rapid progress and obviously we want the fans to come along and cheer them on.” Supporters are reminded that admission prices for National League matches are just £10 for all adults, with all children free. A busy Bank Holiday weekend sees the Buildbase Bees return to Elite League action on Saturday at Lakeside before hosting the Hammers at Brandon on Monday. CITY GEARBOXES STORM (from): Luke Crang, Dan Greenwod, Oliver Greenwood R/R, Martin Knuckey, Stefan Nielsen, James Sarjeant, Ryan Terry-Daley.

Last train that evening is 21.18

NOON UPDATE: Peterborough bosses report the weather is currently good at the East of England Showground ahead of tonight's televised Premier League clash against Newcastle (7.30pm). And no problems are anticipated with the forecast for the remainder of the day also being positive. We will provide another update during the afternoon.

There's a Marriott Hotel and a Harvester pub/restaurant at the stadium entrance. That sounds about right for an airport taxi.

At the disabled vehicle entrance (Gate 3). Anyone in this situation please email me your details neil@peterboroughpanthers.co and I'll make sure the gate is aware.

Advance tickets for £5.00 still available - http://tickets.sky.com/Motorsport/E-a0Ab000000BaMecEAF

http://www.speedway-forum.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=76247&p=2437972

Ryan Fisher rode at both Ipswich & Coventry on Good Friday, so it can be done!

http://www.sheffieldspeedway.co/statistics14

7.09 from 1st May (currently 7.81).

SR16.2.1 ESTABLISHED MA’s are calculated on a “Rolling” basis, for a specified number of applicable Meetings, taking account of the number of Heats and Points (excluding Bonus Points) that a Rider has scored. The applicable Meetings are: Elite League: League Meetings, excluding the Play-Offs Premier League: League Cup mini-League Meetings & regular League Meetings National League: League Meetings, excluding the Play-Offs. NB: (Double) points scored as a TR will count at 50%. FTDP Riders in the EL and all Riders appearing as a Guest or as a #8 are ignored.

The turnstiles will open at 6.00pm as usual - both teams at full strength

THE Peterborough junior supporters’ group are doing their bit to create a colourful atmosphere for the television cameras. Sky Sports will be at the East of England Showground tomorrow (Tuesday) to beam live coverage of the ‘TC Harrison’ Panthers taking on Newcastle Diamonds to the nation. And the Panthers Cubs are laying on free face-painting for children at ‘Cubs Corner’ in the bar on the first bend from 6pm. The Panthers Cubs is free to join and is open to children aged 15 and under. New members receive a goodie bag upon joining. Membership forms are available in the bar at home meetings, or by following the link below. http://peterboroughpanthers.co/pantherscubs

SR 17.4 TEAM COMPOSITION 17.4.1 A Team’s initial Declaration must include 5 Riders whose combined MA does not exceed 32.00 points. This Declaration may include a maximum of 2 x “A” grade Riders and up to 2 Doubling-Up Riders who must at the time of declaration: a) be in a Premier League’s currently declared 1 – 7, have a PL MA established prior to the start of the season and c) give absolute priority to all British Speedway fixtures. The Team is completed with 2 Riders for the 6th & 7th positions as drafted from the British Speedway FTDP List. 17.4.2 A Teams combined MA for the top 5 positions must not exceed 32.00 points nor include more than 2 x “A” grade Riders or 2 Doubling-Up Riders (satisfying the same conditions as for the initial Team Declaration) when re-declared, either permanently or temporarily, except where the MA of the introduced Rider is equal to, or lower than the Rider being replaced. Similarly only Riders with the same or lower FTDP Grading may be re-declared for the 6th or 7th positions.