Ipswich Tru7 Group Witches team manager Paul Hurry is expecting former club favourite Adam Ellis to pose a test as they head to Northampton on Thursday.
The Witches travel to the Rowe Motor Oil Premiership’s basement club seeking their third victory at Brafield this season. But the Foxes have strengthened up in recent weeks by recruiting Great Britain star Ellis and Australian SGP2 star Mitch McDiarmid. Ipswich is missing legend Scott Nicholls, who remains sidelined with a broken collarbone. Lewis Kerr guests in his place.
Hurry is expecting a tougher test against a Northampton side – now bolstered by Ellis – that they defeated 49-41 in the Premiership Knockout Cup on April 30 and 46-44 in a Premiership thriller on June 29.
He said: “You see riders like Adam, and they seem to go up a gear when they are against Ipswich and have good meetings. It doesn’t go unnoticed.
“We’re going there with an open mind. We haven’t ridden for a week or two, so fingers crossed the boys can do what they do, and we can make it into the play-offs.
“Knowing Tony Gaul from the Foxes promotional side, they have put a hell of a lot of work and effort into it. They won’t want to be beaten by us again. They will want to finish on a high.
“Fair play to them – you don’t go into any competition wanting to lose. That’s not the name of the game. It’s all about winning, and we are expecting a tough fight. We’ll go there, do the best job we can and see where we end up.”
Following their visit to Brafield, the Witches face back-to-back meetings at Foxhall against Sheffield on Monday and leaders Belle Vue on Thursday, before wrapping up their regular season at Leicester on Monday, September 14.
The Witches need seven points from their remaining fixtures to guarantee play-off qualification, and Hurry can’t wait for the challenge. He said: “These meetings are a chance for us to show what we are about and get things in line. I certainly don’t want to lose any meeting at home – I’m passionate about my club and I don’t like losing.”
STARTING LINE-UPS
NORTHAMPTON FOXES: 1. Niels Kristian Iversen, 2. Kye Thomson, 3. Nicolai Klindt, 4. Adam Ellis, 5. Jaimon Lidsey (captain), 6. Mitch McDiarmid, 7. Luke Harrison.
IPSWICH TRU7 GROUP WITCHES: 1. Richard Lawson, 2. Lewis Kerr (guest), 3. Danny King (captain), 4. Tom Brennan, 5. Tobiasz Musielak, 6. Kevin Juhl Pedersen, 7. Jason Edwards.