Bumps for the skipper Image Credit: Ron MacNeill

Big win on an eventful night

NEWS Saturday 27th May 2017, 2:15am

by Mike Hunter

  Edinburgh Monarchs

The Parsons Peebles Monarchs recorded an unexpectedly easy 60-30 victory over the Peterborough Panthers to move further ahead at the top of the Championship table.

It was the hottest day of the season and maximum man Sam Masters, home captain, said “They did really well to get the track as good as it was on a day like this. It was one of our easier meetings, not criticising Peterborough but they were unlucky. It’s good to go into a busy month ahead at the top of the league.”

With key man Mark Riss absent, it was expected that Panthers would push Monarchs close, but two things happened to make such predictions wrong:

1. The Parsons Peebles Monarchs lifted their game on a track they were very happy with – much more grippy.

2. The Panthers enjoyed no luck at all on a track some of them were not happy with – too much grip.

The visitors were already using rider replacement for Ulrich Ostergaard, which should have been more than adequate with everyone getting a ride, but they lost Jack Holder (heat 5, knee injury) and Kenneth Hansen (heat 8, unspecified injury). Thereafter the Panthers relied solely on Starke and Wilson-Dean for any effective challenge, and they found the Monarchs in very good form.

It was a bad night all round for Hansen who discovered he is out of the Peterborough team, effective tomorrow, so perhaps that explains why he has expressed a few extreme thoughts subsequently.

Sam Masters scored a full 15, Ricky Wells and Erik Riss dropped only a point each and once again Max Clegg was in superb form, turning in the race of the night in heat 11 to pass both the opposition riders. Sam had been promising a maximum, and Erik gated as well as he has all season.

In addition Josh Pickering had his best meeting for a while, scoring 6+1 with no last places and a flying win in heat 14. That will set him up for a guest booking for Peterborough on Monday!

Mitchell Davey helped the team take the lead in heat 4 by following Sam Masters home for a 5-1, but he also took a knock in the heat 8 pileup with Hansen.

Full marks for effort to Luke Ruddick who was drafted in to guest for Mark Riss and gained a point in a rerun heat 10.