After falling victim to the weather at the weekend, it’s up to Manchester on Thursday 3rd. October for the first leg of the Play Off Semi Final to take on the Belle Vue Colts for the Kent TouchTec Kings.
Having fallen at this last four semi stage in both of the last two seasons, Chris Hunt’s charges are determined this time to make it through to the title-deciding Play Off Final (where the winners of the Cradley vs. Leicester semi would await).
Being a new month, new ‘calculated match averages’ [CMAs] apply and indeed these are the final end of season figures – with regular NL matches only applying.
For both teams there’s a change at number one: for Belle Vue it has to be a surprise that neither of their GB U21 international stars Kyle Bickley or Leon Flint end the campaign at the top and instead taking the ‘honour’ is 15 year old newcomer, Jordan Palin. Likewise for the TouchTec Kings, the friendly rivalry between NL Pairs winners Anders Rowe and Drew Kemp sees Rowe back into the no. 1 race-jacket for the Play Offs and ending the season top of the pile
A ‘veteran’ of both previous Play Off campaigns in 2017 and ’18, Rowe is confident that led by himself and GB U19 champion Kemp, the team can go all the way this term, “I think we can do it, me and Drew ride really well together and with an injury-free one to seven which at last we are back to we are a match for any team in the Play Offs. Drew knows where I like to ride and I know where he does, so we complimemt each other perfectly. “We know how important the two of us are to the team and if we’re both on song then we’re always in with a shout”
The first leg on Thursday is staged at Belle Vue’s home track at the National Speedway Stadium , Kirkmanshulme Lane, Manchester M12 4WB – start time is 7.30pm