Leicester Lions v Northampton Foxes

LEICESTER held off the challenge of Northampton to record a 49-41 win at the Hydroscand Arena, Beaumont Park.

The Lions always led the meeting but were never allowed to stretch too far clear, with 5-1s to the home side in Heats 10 and 11 proving crucial.

Ryan Douglas (12+2) and Dan Thompson (12+1) combined for three 5-1s with Douglas dropping his only point to Foxes skipper Nicolai Klindt in Heat 13, whilst Thompson was unbeaten until the final race when Troy Batchelor split the home riders. Lions second-string Kyle Howarth withdrew after two rides following a heavy fall in Heat 3.

Klindt won three races for the Foxes to finish on 10 points, whilst Batchelor enjoyed his best meeting this season in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership with 9+1.

Leicester manager Stewart Dickson said: “I think after not racing for five weeks at home you’re almost starting again, and I think you could see it with some of our performances.

“I always thought it would be a tough meeting, because Northampton have riders who like this track, so I’m happy with the two points, and we’ll worry about the aggregate point when we go there.

“Our opening pairing of Dougy and Dan got us three 5-1s, and the fact that the two of them were in Heat 15 showed that at the moment those are the two who are riding at the top of their game.”

Northampton boss Chris Adams said: “We kept on plugging away and to lose by eight away from home is a credible performance, and it was really Heats 10 and 11 which took the wind out of our sails.

“Nicolai won three races in succession after a slow start, and it was good to see Troy having a better night tonight.

“I would maybe have used the tactical substitute a little earlier but it didn’t seem that we would be coming off the right gates, so when it came to Heat 14 I just felt we had to throw everything at it and try to reduce that deficit so we have a better chance of getting the aggregate when they return to us later in the year.”

ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R2
LEICESTER 49: Ryan Douglas 12+2, Dan Thompson 12+1, Sam Masters 9, Nick Morris 7+1, Drew Kemp 5+1, Joe Thompson 4+1, Kyle Howarth 0.
NORTHAMPTON 41: Nicolai Klindt 10, Troy Batchelor 9+1, Jonas Jeppesen 7, Kye Thomson 5+1, Niels-Kristian Iversen 4+2, Jaimon Lidsey 4, Luke Harrison 2+1.

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Photo credit: STEVE DIXON

Watch the action from Heat 10 (courtesy of LIONS TV) – see below