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and i will show you a losing team!

And if it was a worthwhile true professional sporting competition it might matter.

 

However Speedway in its current form is much more a partially contrived sports entertainment (and in general isn't always getting that part right either)

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SPEEDWAY: Play-off row for Panthers following big win
721783415.jpg
Anders Thomsen and Simon Lambert on the charge for Panthers against Scunthorpe. Photo: David Lowndes.
Mark Plummer

07:54Monday 14 September 2015

Peterborough Panthers have seen their Premier League play-off challenge descend into controversy before it has even begun.

The city team powered past struggling Scunthorpe 54-36 in their final meeting of the regular season at the East of England Showground yesterday (September 13).

Recent signing Ben Barker spearheaded a fine display with a paid maximum and fellow recent arrival Anders Thomsen also impressed with a double-figures return of his own.

Their efforts inspired a success which clinched fourth position in the final standings and turned an almost inevitable play-off quarter-final clash against Sheffield into a reality.

Their opponents have already announced the first leg of that tie will take place at their Owlerton base on Thursday (September 17), but Panthers chiefs stress they have not agreed and will not agree to race on that date.

They face being without three riders - Barker, Thomsen and Emil Grondal - due to overseas commitments in addition to captain Ulrich Ostergaard, who recently won the Premier League Riders’ Championship at the track, being ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury.

Joint team boss Carl Johnson said: “We have made our position known regarding the staging of the first leg and we hope there will be further developments in the early part of this week.

“We have three riders away due to other meetings on the continent and we do not feel we should be forced to ride without our best team.

“We have worked so hard for six months to get into this position and we do not want that to go to waste due to having to race without important riders.

“We have had enough bad luck this season through injuries without having anything else to deal with.

“I can’t see why there is such a rush to stage the meeting so soon after we have finished our league campaign anyway.

“I hope people see sense and realise we need to wait an extra week to be able to field the team that a meeting of this stature deserves.”

Panthers will at least go into the end-of-season honours battle with confidence and momentum after putting Scunthorpe to the sword yesterday.

They provided 11 race-winners and racked up eight heat advantages during an impressive display headlined by their two most recent captures.

Barker followed in Grondal for a maximum in heat four before charging to victory in his remaining four races – typically by swooping around the outside on the opening lap.

And World Under 21 title hopeful Thomsen claimed three victories of his own to amass a second double-figures return in only three meetings for the club. Club bosses’ hunch that he would prove to be on a false average are proving accurate.

Barker and Thomsen combined to bring the curtain down on the regular season with a bang courtesy of a heat 15 5-1. The former missed all the drama in behind as Thomsen twice had to battle past high-scoring Scunthorpe reserve Alex Davies.

He was not at all impressed with the forceful riding of his rival either and the two men exchanged barges and pleasantries on the cool-down lap.

Guest number one Rohan Tungate did his prospects of further Panthers outings in the play-offs no harm with a couple of victories in his nine-point haul while Grondal was paid for the same tally after managing two wins of his own from reserve.

The bulk of the visitors’ points were scored by their reserves as Davies – the son of early 1990s Panthers rider Stephen - and Nike Lunna contributed 20 between them.

Guest David Bellego – a Sheffield rider - also made the most of some valuable Alwalton laps ahead of the play-offs with a 10-point haul, but another man borrowed from the Tigers, Andre Compton, fared nowhere near as well with 5+1 from five rides.

Johnson added: “We wanted to put in a good home performance to set ourselves up for the play-offs and we did that.

“Ben and Anders showed why we brought them into the team and their arrivals have really given us a boost.

“There were good points from other riders as well with Rohan doing well as a guest. I can’t see any reason why we wouldn’t use him again with Ulrich out for the season.”

SCORES

PANTHERS: Ben Barker 14+1 (paid max), Anders Thomsen 13+1, Rohan Tungate (guest) 9, Emil Grondal 8+1, Simon Lambert 5+2, Michael Palm Toft 5+1, Rafal Konopka 0.

SCUNTHORPE: Alex Davies 12+1, David Bellego (guest) 10, Nike Lunna 8+2, Andre Compton (guest) 5+1, Carl Wilkinson 1, Leigh Lanham 0, Rider replacement for Zdenek Holub.

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So it looks like Rohan may be a regular pussycat for the play offs - if you ever get round to agreeing to ride of course. wink

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Swales was a regular at the waiting game which is why we've won bugger all since 2006. How many times did we wait for riders to return to form, whether due to injury or just because they'd lost it for good, if they ever had it. 2013 being a prime example, and that's partly the reason we are here. Rathbone seems to have a clue, it's a shame that he didn't surface a few years ago when we were in the big league with the clout. Loyalty & respect are nice but you can't retire on them :wink:

 

WOW. Unsolicited and massive backing to your 'Supremo'. How times change. :shock::D:P

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WOW. Unsolicited and massive backing to your 'Supremo'. How times change. :shock::D:P

 

Times are always the same. Credit where it's due. Trouble with speedway is that such opportunities are few and far between :wink:

 

Don't tag poor old Ged with the mad brush. BSF Supremo Tsunami has a certain ring about it though :D

Edited by Crump99
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I could see him in our team for next season on a nice average.

always looking the bargain!

 

In all seriousness a move away could be the catalyst Rohan needs to kick on.

 

I actually think he would do well moving up to the EL. IMO he is the sort of rider that would score almost as well at the higher level.

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Their opponents have already announced the first leg of that tie will take place at their Owlerton base on Thursday (September 17), but Panthers chiefs stress they have not agreed and will not agree to race on that date.


They face being without three riders - Barker, Thomsen and Emil Grondal - due to overseas commitments in addition to captain Ulrich Ostergaard, who recently won the Premier League Riders’ Championship at the track, being ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury.


Joint team boss Carl Johnson said: “We have made our position known regarding the staging of the first leg and we hope there will be further developments in the early part of this week.


“We have three riders away due to other meetings on the continent and we do not feel we should be forced to ride without our best team.


“We have worked so hard for six months to get into this position and we do not want that to go to waste due to having to race without important riders.



But why should Sheffield not ride on their normal race night as Peterborough are missing riders? Where are the missing 3 riding?


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Their opponents have already announced the first leg of that tie will take place at their Owlerton base on Thursday (September 17), but Panthers chiefs stress they have not agreed and will not agree to race on that date.

They face being without three riders - Barker, Thomsen and Emil Grondal - due to overseas commitments in addition to captain Ulrich Ostergaard, who recently won the Premier League Riders Championship at the track, being ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury.

Joint team boss Carl Johnson said: We have made our position known regarding the staging of the first leg and we hope there will be further developments in the early part of this week.

We have three riders away due to other meetings on the continent and we do not feel we should be forced to ride without our best team.

We have worked so hard for six months to get into this position and we do not want that to go to waste due to having to race without important riders.

But why should Sheffield not ride on their normal race night as Peterborough are missing riders? Where are the missing 3 riding?

..so we should be punished just because we so happened to end up with Sheffield who normaly ride on a Thursday which happens to be the one night half our team is missing..is that really how you want 6 months hard work to be played out?..a free passage through?..hardly fair is it? and i guarentee should it have been the other way round Ged would agree to another date without question because he is a speedway man and its the right thing to do..sound like you are "win at all costs" unfortunately similar to a lot of other selfish people these days... And I am not actually that old..but I know what is right and what is wrong. Edited by Lukas
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Riders I'd like too see back:

 

Thomsen - dream world mind as the kids going far

Barker - as said above, watching hug the boards is a sight of old

Grondal - now on proper average, is well worth a punt

 

Maybes:

 

Ully - will he improve his average? Nah, but will he give you commitment, yah, so will be signed IMO.

MPT - 5.95 average, 2nd string, worth a punt? I think so, but as proudpanther said on worky thread, needs gating practice or wont improve.

 

Nah tah, thanks and move on.....

 

Lambert - sadly, might be hated here, can Simon improve/maintain that 5.55 average, answer is no IMO.

Rafa - tries hard.... sadly dont get points for trying.

 

Riders I'd like too see:

 

Zac whats his face - sadly all premier/elite league teams will be after him mind!

Rosen - very attractive average.

Tungate - 7.29, worth a punt IMO.

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Nah tah, thanks and move on.....

 

Lambert - sadly, might be hated here, can Simon improve/maintain that 5.55 average, answer is no IMO.

Rafa - tries hard.... sadly dont get points for trying.

 

 

 

So two of our riders who will be there Thursday riding for Panthers can read that fans are already filling out their P45. Don't you just love these posts before season end.

 

I'd get MJJ back, Darren Fletcher & The Crew Girls etc. I miss the EL and resident looney.

Edited by Crump99
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