KEY WIN FOR LIONS

LEICESTER consolidated their top four place in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership with a 52-38 win over King’s Lynn which also saw them take the aggregate point.

A hat-trick of 5-1s from Heats 4 to 6 saw the Lions overturn an early Stars lead and take control of the meeting.

They secured victory with maximum points in Heat 13 from Max Fricke and Sam Masters in a race which was re-started after Masters had fallen on the first bend, before Masters combined with Ryan Douglas for another 5-1 in Heat 15.

Douglas totalled 12+1 from five rides for the Lions with Masters on 10+2 and Fricke on ten from four, whilst Jan Kvech raced hard for 11+2 from seven rides for the Stars.

Leicester boss Stewart Dickson said: “I said beforehand that this was a meeting we had to win, we did win it, and to win by 14 points probably exceeded my expectations.

“In Heats 13 and 15 we showed the importance of having a big boy, when you watch Max Fricke locking it on these guys, and then Sam and Dougy did it in Heat 15 as well, so that sent the majority of the fans home happy.

“I know one or two riders think they could have done a little better, which is always good to hear from a team manager’s point of view, and it was also much better from Dougy tonight as well, so that was really good to see.”

King’s Lynn manager Rob Lyon said: “We didn’t have quite enough race winners, so we just fell short, and a couple of refereeing decisions went against us which can be crucial in a match like this.

“Leicester were just a little bit too good for us tonight, and decisions such as Heat 13 are the sort of things that can make a difference in a match, but that’s speedway I guess.”

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Photo credit: STEVE DIXON