PREVIEW: LEICESTER v SCUNTHORPE (KOC)

LEICESTER’S KO Cup clash with Scunthorpe tonight (Saturday) will now be a first leg tie after the abandonment of Friday’s fixture at the Eddie Wright Raceway.

Scorpions guest reserve Joe Alcock suffered a suspected broken femur in a Heat 2 crash, which resulted in the air ambulance arriving at the stadium.

But the crew then decided it was better for Alcock to remain in the initial ambulance and make his way to the hospital in that, accompanied by the paramedic, and with no guarantee of the time of their return, the meeting was abandoned.

Scunthorpe promoter Rob Godfrey said: “First and foremost, we wish Joe Alcock a speedy recovery from the leg injuries he sustained.

“Meanwhile, I can only apologise to the supporters, who came along to watch a full speedway meeting but only saw two races.

“We didn’t have to offer full re-admission to another meeting using last night’s tickets, but I know that it’s the right thing to do as a goodwill gesture, because we have to keep faith with our supporters.  

“It’s sod’s law that this happened on a night when we only had one paramedic at the track, while at the previous meeting we had two. But even then, we would have been waiting on the ambulance.”

Leicester had led 7-5 at the time of the stoppage, and in the second leg the Scorpions will be without No.1 Ryan Douglas who aggravated a shoulder injury in Heat 1.

Justin Sedgmen guests for Tero Aarnio, who has been banned for 14 days by the SCB after failing to return from Thursday’s FIM World Long Track event, and Jamie Halder steps in at reserve.

*LIVE STREAMING: British Speedway Network – https://watch.britishspeedway.co.uk

LEICESTER: Richie Worrall, Dan Thompson, Nick Morris, Connor Mountain, Kyle Howarth, Anders Rowe, Joe Thompson.
SCUNTHORPE: TBC, Jordan Palin, Zaine Kennedy, Jake Allen, Justin Sedgmen, Jamie Halder, Simon Lambert.