Author Archives: Henry Chard

About Henry Chard

Digital Media Manager at Ipswich Speedway

RACEDAY PREVIEW: WOLVERHAMPTON – SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R2 (H)

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By Henry Chard

All the details ahead of our Sports Insure Premiership R2 fixture with Wolverhampton.

WHEN & WHERE

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches host the Wolverhampton Wolves at Foxhall Stadium on Thursday 6th July in a Sports Insure Premiership R2 fixture that starts at 7.30pm.

MEETING SPONSORS

The Fat Cat Ipswich – They are a small, friendly Free House where you can enjoy a wide selection of up to twenty real ales served straight from the cask from our temperature-controlled tap room. Also, on offer are up to seven real ciders as well as a selection of gins, whiskies, rums, wines and Belgian beers. They are a pub about the beer and the people so whether it is lively debate you’re after or a quiet pint in the greenery filled garden, you can find it there!

The Fat Cat Colchester – Fat Cat Colchester is a well-established free house serving a great selection of ales, wines, spirits and food. You’ll be warmly greeted by their friendly atmosphere, the oak bar with a row of hand pumps advertising a selection of real ales. Above the bar, a blackboard details the wide range of beers sourced locally, nationally and from abroad.

TEAMS

IPSWICH: 1. Emil Sayfutdinov 9.80 2. Erik Riss 5.93 3. Danny King 6.73 © 4. Keynan Rew 4.00 5. Jason Doyle 9.66 6. Danyon Hume 3.92 7. Dan Thompson (RS). Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

WOLVERHAMPTON: 1. Sam Masters 8.24 © 2. Steve Worrall 6.51 3. Scott Nicholls (G) 7.00 4. Ryan Douglas 6.45 5. Rory Schlein 6.79 6. Zach Cook 4.38 7. Leon Flint (RS). Team Manager: Peter Adams

REFEREE: S.H. Kennett

SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP TABLE

TeamMeetingsPoints
Belle Vue1629
Wolverhampton1220
Leicester1120
Sheffield1115
Ipswich1213
King’s Lynn127
Peterborough122

TICKETS

Tickets are available to buy online (until 7pm on raceday) and on the gate and are priced at £22 for adults and £20 for concessions (65+). Children 16 and under go free. Official programmes are priced at £3 and are available at the stadium. Car parking is free for all supporters. Debit and credit card payments are accepted. Turnstiles open at 6.40pm.

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches face Wolverhampton in the Sports Insure Premiership on Thursday evening at Foxhall. The Witches have not had any league fixtures for the last two weeks and are now at the halfway stage of the campaign, sitting fifth in the table just outside of the play-off positions. The hosts know they need a big second half of the season to get into the top four starting on Thursday against a side that has already won convincingly in Suffolk.

There is a new number one for the home team with Emil Sayfutdinov now topping the averages, as Jason Doyle moves to number five. Danyon Hume is back at reserve with Keynan Rew at number four and Erik Riss is at number two. The first priority for the home team is the win and two league points but if they could build a healthy lead to put themselves in a good position for the aggregate bonus point when the two sides meet on 21st August, it would go down as a good night’s work.

FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins gives us his pre-match thoughts…

“Things will look a bit different without Doyley at number one tonight with the change in the averages. Emil’s average has gone slightly above Doyley’s and there is a new look to us with a bit of a shake-up. Hopefully that will help us and whichever way round Doyley and Emil are they are obviously a very strong pairing, so in that sense it doesn’t make a massive difference.

“Keynan comes back up into the team, and he has shown he is quite capable of riding in that position, he has had a few meetings at reserve and now he needs to kick on back in the side at number four tonight. Danyon has had experience of riding in the team and now drops back to reserve, he needs to take advantage of that experience now. Erik should be an extremely strong number two for us.

“Wolverhampton will come to us with great confidence after their result at our place earlier on in the year. In that meeting we got ourselves in great positions and kept throwing it away right at the start of the meeting and gave them the opportunity to pounce late on. That is something we need to cut out this time and make sure we make every point count and don’t make so many silly errors this time.

“We are only halfway through the season and things can change very quickly after a few surprise results here and there. For us, we need to concentrate on winning speedway meetings, starting on Thursday. Winning our home meetings is important but we need to win away from home as well. We will take it one meeting at a time at the moment and make sure we get two points on the board on Thursday, that is the main and first objective.”

THE WOLVES

Wolverhampton sit second in the table and have put themselves in a strong position to secure their play-off place going into the second half of the season. They have a 100% home record and have already tasted victory in Suffolk after a 51-39 win at Foxhall last month. On Monday they suffered a heavy defeat at Belle Vue and will be looking to end the week on the road in more positive fashion.

Ipswich legend Scott Nicholls has been drafted in at number three for the visitors in place of the injured Luke Becker. The Australian duo of Ryan Douglas and Zach Cook will be looking to repeat their scores from last month at Foxhall having scored 12+1 and 10+3 respectively.

RISS LOOKING TO REPAY WITCHES’ FAITH IN HIM

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By Mike Bacon

Erik Riss is hoping to help fire the Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches back into the play-off picture with his worrying illness now behind him.

Riss, 27, was diagnosed with intracranial hypertension, a build-up of pressure around the brain, after just a few weeks of the new season. It was a worrying time for the amiable German who has had to endure three lumbar punctures and much medication to alleviate the problem.

Now, and with the Witches standing by him throughout his lay-off, he says he’s feeling good and wants to repay the club’s faith in him, as he and the Witches go head-to-head with Wolverhampton Wolves at Foxhall Stadium on Thursday night (7.30pm), in a crucial Sports Insure Premiership clash.

“I’m feeling back to normal now, probably two weeks ago I was like, ‘okay, I’m feeling normal again,’” he said.

“It’s been a long process. It wasn’t a quick improvement, but I’m pleased to say the symptoms have gone and the improvement has happened.”

A diagnosis of such must have been a worry for Riss. How did he cope with it?

“Yes, at the start when they first diagnosed it, I’ll admit it was quite a worrying thing to hear. So, I was a bit concerned.

“But when they did some more investigation, it turned out it was nothing too serious to worry about because although this condition can point to something more serious, it wasn’t the case for me. So, I was never afraid or scared of what I had.

“All I was worried about was when will I get better?”

Throughout his time away from the track, Riss was in constant dialogue with the Ipswich
Witches management.

“I really appreciate Ipswich waited it out for me to get better,” he said.

“For them it was sort of the same thing as me, they didn’t really know when I was going to get better. I couldn’t give them a clear answer. The fact Ipswich waited is nice for me and makes me feel they really want me in the team.

“The worst thing as a speedway rider is having to watch others ride. When you have an injury like a break, like I did with my leg last season, there is no doubt you can’t ride.

“But when you had the condition I had, you sit at home thinking, maybe I could ride, maybe it would work. But every time I did a bit of exercise, I felt dizzy and knew it wasn’t right.”

So, feeling better and raring to go, Riss says his season starts now and helping Ipswich into the play-offs is a No.1 target.

“There is still plenty left of the season,” he said.

“I still feel I’m at the start of the season though. Before I was out, I’d only done three meetings. I’m still catching up on engine set-ups. But, yes, the goal is the play-offs for me and the team. And we can do it.”

There is little doubt Wolverhampton will provide a big test at Foxhall on Thursday, as they include Foxhall specialists, Aussies Sam Masters and Rory Schlein.

“It will be a tough meeting, we know that,” Riss said.

“They are strong at our track and a strong team in general. So, we must be on our A game.

“But the good thing about speedway is it’s about on the day. Even if you think you are stronger than the opposition there is a lot more to it than that. Bike set-ups, getting out of the starts. There is no reason we can’t win.”

IPSWICH WITCHES v WOLVERHAMPTON WOLVES, Thursday, July 6, Foxhall Stadium, 7.30pm

RACEDAY REPORT: SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP PAIRS

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Picture courtesy of Jeff Davies

By Henry Chard

QUALIFYING SCORES

PETERBOROUGH 33: Ben Cook 8, Richie Worrall 23, Jordan Jenkins (RS) 2. Team Manager: Rob Lyon

BELLE VUE 32: Dan Bewley 20,Brady Kurtz 12, Jake Mulford (RS) 0. Team Manager: Mark Lemon

SHEFFIELD 29: Jack Holder 16, Tobiasz Musielak 13, Dan Gilkes (RS) 0. Team Manager: Simon Stead

LEICESTER 26: Max Fricke 19, Justin Sedgmen 2, Drew Kemp (RS) 5. Team Manager: Stewart Dickson

IPSWICH 26: Erik Riss 8, Danny King 18, Dan Thompson (RS) 0. Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

KING’S LYNN 22: Nicolai Klindt 22, Thomas Jorgensen 0, Anders Rowe (RS) 0. Team Manager: David Hoggart

WOLVES 21: Sam Masters 5, Steve Worrall 16, Leon Flint (RS) 0. Team Manager: Peter Adams

SEMI-FINAL: Kurtz, Bewley, Holder, Musielak– 7-2 to Belle Vue

FINAL: Kurtz, Bewley, Worrall, Cook – 7-2 to Belle Vue

REFEREE: P. Griffin

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches pairing of Danny King and Erik Riss just fell short of the semi-final at Leicester on Thursday night in the Sports Insure Premiership Pairs.

The Suffolk side went into the meeting as reigning champions but were without their top two Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov for this event with Doyle having to ride for his Polish club in a re-arranged fixture which took priority and Sayfutdinov not contracted to ride. However, skipper King and Riss were right in the mix throughout and were on course for the semi-final until a controversial exclusion for Riss in heat 19 ended their hopes of silverware. Belle Vue took the title on the night.

King won heat one from the gate ahead of Nicolai Klindt and Riss hung on for two points in third to give the Witches a 6-3 over King’s Lynn.

Ipswich continued their strong start in heat five as King took victory again and was followed home by Riss for a 7-2 maximum over Wolverhampton.

Team manager Ritchie Hawkins brought in Rising Star Dan Thompson in heat nine for his compulsory ride against hosts Leicester. Fricke took the chequered flag ahead of King with Sedgmen third for a 6-3 to the Lions.

Belle Vue’s Dan Bewley won heat 12 by a distance but with Riss and King in second and third it was a 5-4 heat advantage to the Witches over the Aces.

The Sheffield duo of Jack Holder and Tobiasz Musielak raced to a 7-2 over the Witches pair in heat 16.

There was drama in heat 19 with Ipswich coming up against Peterborough but the race was stopped on the first lap. Richie Worrall came up the inside of Riss going into the third turn with the German hitting the fence. Replays showed Worrall making contact with the Witches man, but the referee decided to exclude the Ipswich man to the bemusement of many. Worrall won the re-run as the Panthers claimed a 6-3, a result that ended Ipswich’s night.

Belle Vue saw off Sheffield in the semi-final before they sealed the title by beating Peterborough in the final.

REACTION FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins reflects on Thursday’s event at Leicester.

“I thought it was a decent performance and we were leading for most of the qualifying heats and then made a hash of the fifth qualifying race and it put the pressure on the last one. I felt it was pretty clear on the BSN coverage that Erik had his leg taken but the ref said he fell over on his own.

“Danny started the meeting flying, he was making such good gates and that is brilliant to see for everyone. Erik improved every race and by the end of the meeting looked like his old self, I was pleased with the boys. Dan did well in his ride and got stuck in and I can’t fault the team. It was one of those incidents that could have gone the other way and we could have been in the semi-final and then who knows what would have happened.

“I suppose Belle Vue would have been pre-meeting favourites and in the semi-final, they looked really good. In a sense it was good to see Peterborough do well, which was a turn up for the books. They took a lot of criticism before the start of the meeting and then won the qualifying heats; it goes to show there is a lot more to racing than what is on paper and people’s opinions.”

UP NEXT

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches host the Wolverhampton Wolves at Foxhall Stadium on Thursday 6th July in the Sports Insure Premiership. Tickets can be purchased online in advance here and on the gate.

RACEDAY PREVIEW: SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP PAIRS

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By Henry Chard

All the details ahead of the Sports Insure Premiership Pairs.

WHEN & WHERE

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches pairing travels to Leicester for the Sports Insure Premiership Pairs at the Pidcock Motorcycles Arena on Thursday 29th June which starts at 7.30pm.

TEAMS

KING’S LYNN: Nicolai Klindt, Thomas Jorgensen, Anders Rowe (RS). Team Manager: David Hoggart

IPSWICH: Danny King, Erik Riss, Dan Thompson (RS). Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

WOLVERHAMPTON: Sam Masters, Steve Worrall, Leon Flint (RS). Team Manager: Peter Adams

LEICESTER: Max Fricke, Justin Sedgmen, Drew Kemp (RS). Team Manager: Stewart Dickson

BELLE VUE: Dan Bewley, Brady Kurtz, Jake Mulford (RS). Team Manager: Mark Lemon

SHEFFIELD: Jack Holder, Tobiasz Musielak, Dan Gilkes (RS). Team Manager: Simon Stead

PETERBOROUGH: Ben Cook, Richie Worrall, Jordan Jenkins (RS). Team Manager: Rob Lyon

REFEREE: P. Griffin

TICKETS

Tickets are available on the gate and in advance here. The meeting will also be streamed online here.

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches pairing heads to Leicester on Thursday for the Sports Insure Premiership Pairs. Ipswich won last year’s edition over five rounds at different tracks, but this year’s competition has been reduced to a one-off event in the East Midlands.

Team manager Ritchie Hawkins is unable to call upon his top two riders in the averages for this event with current world number four Jason Doyle riding for his Polish side on Thursday in a re-arranged fixture which takes priority. Emil Sayfutdinov is not contracted to ride in this competition with promoter Chris Louis explaining further during the live draw which can be watched here. Skipper Danny King will lead the side alongside Erik Riss. Dan Thompson is the ‘Rising Star’ and is guaranteed at least one ride as part of the regulations.

HOW IT WORKS

Each club will have two riders and a ‘Rising Star’. There will be 21 qualifying heats of action with the top scoring team from the qualifying heats going directly to the final. The teams placed in second and third will compete in a semi-final with the winning side from that race progressing to the final to decide the winners. Each team has six qualifying heats each and the ‘Rising Star’ must take at least one ride during the meeting. The points scoring system for the competition in each race will be 4-3-2-0.

FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins gives us his pre-match thoughts…

“We defend the Sports Insure Premiership Pairs on Thursday with a team of Danny and Erik. Danny played a big part in winning the event last year and Leicester is a track he likes, so he will be looking to do the same again this year. The plan was for him to be paired with Doyley but as I’m sure some people have seen; a Polish fixture has been re-arranged and they take priority over this event so he will be forced to ride there.

“We needed to replace him, and Erik was the obvious choice after coming back. He needs laps under his belt, but he is also someone who goes well at Leicester so if they both produce on the day then we can go well.

“Erik looked like he was lacking race sharpness at Ipswich last week, there were just a couple of things you could see on track where he wasn’t quite putting himself in the right positions whereas normally, he would do. The more laps for him, the better.

“We won this event last year and we didn’t get to celebrate because of the weather and rain-offs, so it would be nice to win it this year and be together. Consistency is the key; we will probably have to attack it a bit differently this year. I don’t know the stats, but I wouldn’t have thought Doyley dropped many points over the five rounds last year. It is an easy format to work out, no last places and you get through. We need to be consistent and team ride together.”

THE LINE-UP

Hosts Leicester field Grand Prix rider Max Fricke and Justin Sedgmen who have formed a strong partnership in their league fixtures. League leaders Belle Vue go with British champion Dan Bewley and captain Brady Kurtz. Wolverhampton have chosen captain Sam Masters and Steve Worrall who similarly to Fricke and Sedgmen have built a strong on-track relationship. Sheffield have current world number two Jack Holder and their number one Tobiasz Musielak representing them whilst King’s Lynn have chosen the Danish duo of Nicolai Klindt and Thomas Jorgensen. Peterborough opt for Ben Cook and Richie Worrall.  

AWAY DAYS

An adult ticket costs £24, concessions £22 and children aged 16 and under go free. There will be 235 free car park spaces available at the stadium with further free car parking facilities on the Beaumont Shopping Complex (maximum time of 4 hours). Three Coach/Mini Bus spaces, 15 Disabled spaces available, 15 Motorcycle spaces, Taxi drop-off point. For travel information head here.

For more information about the club head to Leicester’s official website.

RACEDAY REPORT: IPSWICH 52-38 PETERBOROUGH – SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R1 (H)

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By Henry Chard

MEETING SPONSORS

Scott Properties – Scott Properties is a self-funded Land Promoter operating throughout East Anglia and the South-East of England. Working closely with Landowners and Local Authorities, they manage the land promotion and planning process from initial site identification through to the sale of consented development sites. If you own land and would like to explore the potential for development, please contact the team at Scott Properties for an initial no obligation chat.

DJ Evans – The DJ Evans Group is a family run business with a history dating back more than a century.  They are East Anglia’s premier independent builder’s/engineer’s merchant and architectural ironmonger, offering products and materials from quality assured manufacturers across the industry.

THE SCORES

IPSWICH 52: Jason Doyle 11+1 (Paid Maximum), Danyon Hume 6, Danny King © 12+1, Erik Riss 3+1, Emil Sayfutdinov 9, Keynan Rew 6+2, Dan Thompson (RS) 5. Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

PETERBOROUGH 38: Niels-Kristian Iversen 12+1, Ben Cook 4+2, Benjamin Basso 5+1, Richie Worrall 9+1, Vadim Tarasenko 5+2, Hans Andersen © 3, Sam Hagon (G) (RS) 0. Team Manager: Rob Lyon

REFEREE: G. Allen

SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP TABLE

TeamMeetingsPoints
Belle Vue1424
Leicester1120
Wolverhampton1017
Sheffield1013
Ipswich1213
King’s Lynn117
Peterborough102

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches recorded a convincing win against Peterborough on Thursday night at Foxhall in the Sports Insure Premiership.

The home team were finally back to their full one to seven for this fixture, welcoming back Erik Riss after long-term illness. The league’s bottom side kept things tight early on, but the hosts pulled clear mid-meeting for a comfortable victory which saw them pick up the points as well as the aggregate bonus point having won at Peterborough earlier in the season. Danny King top scored with 12+1.

Jason Doyle won a shared heat one before Dan Thompson enjoyed a dream home debut, winning heat two with Keynan Rew second for a 5-1 to the hosts. The Panthers hit a 2-4 in heat three and Emil Sayfutdinov won heat four in a 3-3 leaving Ipswich 13-11 in front.

The points were shared in heat five before Danyon Hume and Doyle teamed up for a maximum in heat six. The Witches made it two 5-1s on the trot in heat seven as Sayfutdinov and Rew raced to the chequered flag. Hume won heat eight with Thompson picking up third for another heat advantage, leaving Ipswich comfortably ahead at 30-18.

Niels-Kristian Iversen came in as a tactical substitute in heat nine for Peterborough, but he could only beat Riss to the line for a point as King won a 3-3. Doyle won a shared heat 10 and there was another 3-3 in heat 11 as Sayfutdinov took victory. King got another win under his belt in heat 12 with Thompson third for a home advantage that put the Suffolk side 43-29 in front.

Heat 13 looked like being 5-1 to Ipswich with Sayfutdinov and Doyle clear at the front but Sayfutdinov retired with machinery issues, resulting in a 3-3 that still mathematically confirmed the victory on the night for the Witches. Heat 14 ended in a 3-3 and King finished the evening off with a win in a shared heat 15 as the home fans celebrated a much-needed bonus point win that saw them make ground on the top four.

REACTION FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins reflects on Thursday’s win over Peterborough.

“I thought it was a professional job, you need to win against the team that is bottom of the league, and we didn’t leave ourselves in any trouble. I was pleased with some of the performances which were an improvement on previous weeks, so I’m happy overall.

“I was really happy with Dan, to come out in heat two, make a start like that and win your first race on your home debut and get that straight out of the way showed that he has got a lot about him. It was very impressive and five points from your number seven is a good return.

“Danny has spent a lot of time testing this week and put a lot of work in and I thought he looked the best he has all season around here, certainly of late. Hopefully that has given him a good platform to build on going forward.

“It is good to have Erik back in the team and maybe he needs to just get laps under his belt now and get back into racing. He was lacking race sharpness and I’m sure in two weeks when we come back, he will be back to his old self. It was a good one for him to get out of the way tonight with less pressure. Now he has two weeks to build on that and get back up to speed for our next home meeting.

“When we come back, we will be starting the second half of the season and we are behind the game at the moment. We are going to need a big push now and to click into gear and build some momentum to get ourselves in the play-offs.”

SCOTT PROPERTIES & DJ EVANS RIDERS OF THE NIGHT

Scott Properties chose Doyle after his paid maximum.

King picked up the award from DJ Evans after top scoring.

WHAT IT MEANS

Ipswich add three points to their tally after picking up the win and the bonus point, meaning they go level with fourth placed Sheffield. Peterborough stay cut adrift at the bottom of the table.

UP NEXT

A Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches pairing travels to the East Midlands on Thursday 29th June for the Premiership Pairs at Leicester. Tickets can be purchased on the gate and in advance online here.

LOUIS: NO REASON THIS SEASON CAN’T HAVE EXCITING FINISH

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By Mike Bacon

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches promoter Chris Louis knows his side face a competitive, but still potentially exciting, second half of the season.

The Witches boss is realistic of the situation his side find themselves in, currently sitting one place outside the play-off picture. However, with Erik Riss back in the Witches line-up this Thursday after a long lay-off, as Ipswich entertain Peterborough Panthers at Foxhall Stadium, 7.30pm start, Louis knows his team can – and must – kick on.

“I still see no reason this season can’t have an exciting finish for us,” Louis said.

“There’s certainly no doom and gloom from the management or the team, I can assure you. Yes, perhaps we have made it a bit tougher than I would rather it was.

“But speaking to many fans, I know in the main they are supportive and appreciative of what we’ve done and are trying to do, and they love watching Jason (Doyle) and Emil (Sayfutdinov).

“They enjoy all the wonderful racing antics those two are bringing to the team, but of course it’s currently a little tempered by the fact we are not winning enough meetings. I get that, it’s disappointing.

“My first thoughts on that are that if we had ever been able to put out the team we built, we would be winning more meetings. But obviously that team never even took to the track with Jack (Thomas) suffering his broken back.

“Keynan (Rew) has seen his start to the season also tempered as he has just come back from major injuries and then of course we lose Erik (Riss) within a couple of meetings. So, it has been a tough start for us.”

And Louis says he gets why fans call for change.

“Of course, I understand the calls for changes,” he said.

“I’ve heard, why don’t we sign this guy and that guy and the other guy? But you know, we wanted a change, we’ve been down many of these roads, and we needed to do things slightly differently and that’s what we’re doing.

“Now, with Erik back, if his health is maintained, we are back to where we should be and we can win the meetings we need to and get into the play-offs, which I think we can still do.”

Louis, like all Witches fans, is delighting in the quality of Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov, but knows they need support.

“Too much pressure has been put on Emil and Jason, they’ve responded fantastically but too much pressure has been put on them and it’s not fair,” Louis said.

“It will be nice when Keynan finds a bit of consistency to his points-scoring, 15 one week, two the next is difficult to cope with. But he’s got all the time in the world with us. We haven’t brought him in to be a superstar in 2023, that was never the plan.

“He has no pressure on him, but now he’s been to all the tracks in the Sports Insure Premiership, hopefully he can find that consistency at the back end of the season.

“Danny (King) is another who has had to take on more rides, more responsibility and with that more pressure. But now, with a fit Erik back, that pressure on everyone will be hopefully alleviated.

“However, there is much for us to improve on, and it starts this Thursday against Peterborough.”

The Panthers arrive at Foxhall with their new Russian star Vadim Tarasenko on board. With the Witches having won at Peterborough back in March, any victory for Louis’ side will see Ipswich claim all three points in their play-off pursuit.

The Panthers also stand in the way of the Witches and a Knockout Cup final appearance, with the Witches holding a 24-point lead after the two sides met in the semi-final first leg. The second leg is at the East of England Arena in August.

“Thursday will be a tough test, don’t just think it will be easy because of their league position,” Louis said. “They have a decent line-up.

“And we need to finish the job off in the cup at Peterborough. Then we possibly have a cup final to look forward to and, as I said, I still see us in the play-offs.”

IPSWICH WITCHES v PETERBOROUGH PANTHERS, Foxhall Stadium, Thursday 7.30pm.

RACEDAY PREVIEW: PETERBOROUGH – SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R1 (H)

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By Henry Chard

All the details ahead of our Sports Insure Premiership R1 fixture with Peterborough.

WHEN & WHERE

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches host the Peterborough Panthers at Foxhall Stadium on Thursday 22nd June in a Sports Insure Premiership R1 fixture that starts at 7.30pm.

MEETING SPONSORS

Scott Properties – Scott Properties is a self-funded Land Promoter operating throughout East Anglia and the South-East of England. Working closely with Landowners and Local Authorities, they manage the land promotion and planning process from initial site identification through to the sale of consented development sites. If you own land and would like to explore the potential for development, please contact the team at Scott Properties for an initial no obligation chat.

DJ Evans – The DJ Evans Group is a family run business with a history dating back more than a century.  They are East Anglia’s premier independent builder’s/engineer’s merchant and architectural ironmonger, offering products and materials from quality assured manufacturers across the industry.

TEAMS

IPSWICH: 1. Jason Doyle 10.13 2. Danyon Hume 4.00 3. Danny King 6.79 © 4. Erik Riss 6.14 5. Emil Sayfutdinov 9.40 6. Keynan Rew 4.00 7. Dan Thompson (RS). Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

PETERBOROUGH: 1. Niels-Kristian Iversen 6.77 2. Ben Cook 5.41 3. Benjamin Basso 6.09 4. Richie Worrall 6.25 5. Vadim Tarasenko 5.00 6. Hans Andersen 4.96 © 7. Sam Hagon (G) (RS). Team Manager: Rob Lyon

REFEREE: G. Allen

SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP TABLE

TeamMeetingsPoints
Belle Vue1424
Wolverhampton1017
Leicester1017
Sheffield913
Ipswich1110
King’s Lynn117
Peterborough92

TICKETS

Tickets are available to buy online (until 7pm on raceday) and on the gate and are priced at £22 for adults and £20 for concessions (65+). Children 16 and under go free. Official programmes are priced at £3 and are available at the stadium. Car parking is free for all supporters. Debit and credit card payments are accepted. Turnstiles open at 6.40pm.

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches entertain the Peterborough Panthers in the Sports Insure Premiership on Thursday evening. This fixture marks the halfway stage of the league season for the Witches, and they currently sit fifth in the table, knowing have they work to do in the second half of the campaign to catch the top four. Ipswich have already faced Peterborough at Foxhall this season in the Knockout Cup where they raced to a big 57-33 victory, and they know that nothing less than a win will do on Thursday before a two-week break from action. The Suffolk side are also in the driving seat to pick up their first aggregate bonus point of the campaign, having won at the East of England Arena by six points back in March.

Ben Barker’s 28-day spell as cover for Erik Riss is now over and the German returns to the side for the first time since April 6 having recovered from long-term illness. Dan Thompson makes his home debut after replacing twin brother Joe last week in the ‘Rising Star’ position.

FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins gives us his pre-match thoughts…

“It’s nice to be back at Ipswich and we welcome Erik back into the team as well as new signing Dan. We’ve already won at Peterborough, and they are having a tough season again, but we can’t afford to relax as we have not been good enough to be in a position to relax. We need to put in a thoroughly professional performance and get our first bonus point of the year to get three points. That will set us up for a run in the second half of the season and we need a big push if we want to make the play-offs.

“We need to put in a big performance the same as we did in our last home meeting which was really impressive. If we do that, we will get another victory, but we need it for the team because it has been a tough few weeks. We are back with our full one to seven and we can kick on from there.

“We are delighted to welcome Erik back; he has done a couple of meetings and is feeling better. We have had a long wait and he has had a tough time but I’m sure everyone will get behind him. I’m happy to see him back racing and I’m ready for him to kick on and have a good second half to the season.”

THE PANTHERS

It would be an understatement to say that 2023 has not gone to plan for Peterborough. They sit bottom of the table with just two points to their name and barring a miraculous second half to the season are out of the race for the play-offs already. Their one victory so far this season has come at home against fellow strugglers King’s Lynn.

In more positive news the team are now back to a full one to seven with Vadim Tarasenko coming into the team as the replacement for Nicki Pedersen who left the club in April. Niels-Kristian Iversen holds the track record at Foxhall and rides at number one for the visitors. Sam Hagon guests in place of the injured Jordan Jenkins in the Rising Star position.

RACEDAY REPORT: SHEFFIELD 51-39 IPSWICH – SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R1 (A)

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By Henry Chard

THE SCORES

SHEFFIELD 51: Tobiasz Musielak 9+1, Lewis Kerr 5+1, Adam Ellis 8+1, David Bellego 5+1, Jack Holder 9, Kyle Howarth © 10+4, Dan Gilkes (RS) 5+1. Team Manager: Simon Stead

IPSWICH 39: Jason Doyle 13+1, Danyon Hume 2+1, Danny King © 5+1, Ben Barker 2, Emil Sayfutdinov 14+1 (Paid Maximum), Keynan Rew 0, Dan Thompson (RS) 3. Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

REFEREE: C. Durno

SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP TABLE

TeamMeetingsPoints
Belle Vue1322
Wolverhampton1017
Leicester915
Sheffield913
Ipswich1110
King’s Lynn107
Peterborough82

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches were beaten by Sheffield on Thursday night in the Sports Insure Premiership.

Having won 47-43 in Suffolk earlier in the season, Ipswich side held a slender lead with regards to the aggregate bonus point and there was little to separate the two sides early on with just two points between them after six races. However, the home team then went through the gears and showed their strength on home shale as they raced away for convincing victory. Emil Sayfutdinov top scored with a sublime 14+1 paid maximum.

Tobiasz Musielak won a shared heat one from the gate before the Tigers went ahead in heat two with a 5-1. The points were shared in heat three before Sayfutdinov won heat four ahead of Jack Holder and Dan Thompson picked up a point for a Witches 2-4 that made it 13-11.

Jason Doyle won a shared heat five by a distance after an impressive blast around the outside of the opening two turns. Sayfutdinov glided to victory in heat six in another 3-3 but Sheffield then hit a maximum in heat seven to extend their lead. The hosts then recorded another 5-1 in heat eight to give them a 29-19 lead.

Team manager Ritchie Hawkins brought in Doyle as a tactical substitute in heat nine and he and Sayfutdinov worked together for a convincing maximum to reduce the deficit. Musielak won heat 10 as Danny King did well to pass Lewis Kerr for second but Ben Barker couldn’t find a way past Kerr, meaning a 4-2 to Sheffield. Doyle recorded another impressive victory in a shared heat 11 before the Tigers hit another 5-1 in heat 12 to put them on the brink of victory with a 42-30 lead.

Sayfutdinov continued his perfect night with another win in heat 13 but with Doyle at the back it was a 3-3 which confirmed the victory for the home team. The South Yorkshire side also wrapped up the bonus point in heat 14 with a maximum. Sayfutdinov completed his paid maximum with a win in heat 15 and he was followed home by Doyle for a Witches maximum, but it was little consolation as Ipswich went home empty-handed.

REACTION FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins reflects on Thursday’s defeat to Sheffield.

“I felt in the first half of the meeting we were right in it, and we could kick on and give ourselves a good chance by the end of the meeting, but we didn’t, and we went the other way. It is easy to see from the score chart where we were lacking, we didn’t have any back up for our top two.

“It was a good debut from Dan, he did well for his first meeting for us in the Rising Star position and showed a lot of potential. I was happy with him. It was a new track for Keynan, and he really struggled from the start tonight, it is something I’m sure he will improve on and get his head around next time we go there.

“Emil’s first visit to Sheffield and quite clearly, he took a liking to it straight away. He is in great from and loving life at the minute. It is great to see, and he is a joy to watch.

“As it stands this will be Ben’s last meeting and I certainly can’t fault his effort. He has come into the team and has put absolutely everything into it for the month. His effort has not been rewarded with the points it warranted. I can’t fault him, and we thank him for coming in and racing the month for us, he slotted back in and was a great part of the side.

“I think we will be stronger in the second half of the season but that needs to start now. The improvement needs to start from here on in and we have got a big second half of the season to reach the play-offs. I think we will be stronger now going forward, Keynan has been to most of the tracks now and is gaining experience and learning all of the time and I think he will kick on in the second half of the season as well as Danyon. Danyon isn’t far off making another step up, so going forward we will be stronger to back the top two up, who are clearly the best riders in the league at the moment.”

RIDER OF THE NIGHT

Sayfutdinov was in a different postcode all night as he breezed to a stunning 14+1 paid maximum and was a joy to watch.

WHAT IT MEANS

Ipswich stay fifth and lose ground on the top four as Sheffield add three points to their tally and strengthen their place in fourth.

UP NEXT

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches host the Peterborough Panthers at Foxhall Stadium on Thursday 22nd June in the Sports Insure Premiership. Tickets can be purchased online in advance here and on the gate.

RACEDAY PREVIEW: SHEFFIELD – SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP R1 (A)

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By Henry Chard

All the details ahead of our Sports Insure Premiership R1 fixture with Sheffield.

WHEN & WHERE

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches travel to Sheffield to face the Tigers at Owlerton Stadium on Thursday 15th June in a Sports Insure Premiership R1 fixture that starts at 7.30pm.

TEAMS

SHEFFIELD: 1. Tobiasz Musielak 8.24 2. Lewis Kerr 5.35 3. Adam Ellis 6.09 4. David Bellego 5.80 5. Jack Holder 8.12 6. Kyle Howarth 5.18 © 7. Dan Gilkes (RS). Team Manager: Simon Stead

IPSWICH: 1. Jason Doyle 10.13 2. Danyon Hume 4.00 3. Danny King 6.79 © 4. Ben Barker 4.38 5. Emil Sayfutdinov 9.40 6. Keynan Rew 4.00 7. Dan Thompson (RS). Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

REFEREE: C. Durno

SPORTS INSURE PREMIERSHIP TABLE

TeamMeetingsPoints
Belle Vue1222
Wolverhampton916
Leicester813
Sheffield810
Ipswich1010
King’s Lynn95
Peterborough82

TICKETS

Tickets are available on the gate.

THE STORY

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches have more Sports Insure Premiership action on Thursday as they travel to Sheffield. The two sides met on Monday at Foxhall in front of the Eurosport cameras with Ipswich racing to an impressive 51-39 win, ending their poor run of form. This fixture is the return R1 fixture, meaning the Suffolk side hold a four-point lead in the battle for the aggregate bonus point after a narrow win over the Tigers back in April.

The visitors have made a change to their team in the build-up to this fixture with Dan Thompson coming into the side to replace his twin brother Joe in the Rising Star position. Joe came in as a late replacement for the injured Jack Thomas in pre-season but has found points hard to come by in the top-flight. His twin brother Dan was recently released by Leicester and the Ipswich management have moved quickly to bring him into the team and he will make his debut on Thursday. Ben Barker returns to the team after missing Monday’s win with a back injury.

FROM THE BOSS

Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins gives us his pre-match thoughts…

“We will go the Sheffield to attack the meeting and obviously a four-point lead is not a great margin for a bonus point. Doyley and Emil are going well everywhere, Danny very much likes Sheffield and so does Ben if he is back. I think it is a place Keynan will take well to, so we got a team we know can score well around there and we will go there off the back of a good performance on Monday looking to put another one in.

“It is a fast track that we will enjoy racing on, and it is somewhere we might have to go to a few times this year by the looks of things, so we need to get dialled in quickly. You race speedway to go fast and race hard and that is what you need to do at Sheffield.

“We are not in a position where we are getting free hits at the moment and everywhere we go if we can pick up points, they are going to be a bonus and much needed. I wouldn’t say there is pressure on the meeting, it is a bit early for that but if we can do something around there it will certainly make the league table look a bit more favourable to us.”

THE TIGERS

Sheffield will be looking to maintain their 100% record at Owlerton and further strengthen their position in the top four on Thursday. The home team have posted some huge wins on home shale this season and with only a four-point deficit to overturn for the aggregate bonus points, Simon Stead’s men will be targeting a three-point haul in front of their home supporters.

The hosts field the same line-up as they did at Foxhall on Monday. Tobiasz Musielak was their star man in Suffolk, clocking up 15 points from number one whilst you can expect the likes of Jack Holder, David Bellego and Kyle Howarth to improve on their scores from Monday on home shale.

AWAY DAYS

An adult ticket costs £22, concessions £20 and children (aged 17 and under) £1. Official programmes cost £3. All the stadium is open except the back straight which remains closed for safety reasons. There is seating in the Panorama Room, which also boasts a restaurant and bar overlooking the track. There is a fast-food bar, and the Panorama Room Restaurant also offers a ‘Speedway Special’ carvery with a choice of meats. The Panorama Room Restaurant has large bar with ideal viewing facilities in addition to the carvery. Reserve your table now by calling Owlerton Stadium on 01142 343074. For travel information head here.

For more information about the club head to Sheffield’s official website.

2023 SIGNING: DAN THOMPSON

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By Henry Chard

The Ipswich ‘Tru Mix’ Witches have signed Dan Thompson to replace Joe Thompson in the Rising Star position, subject to BSPL approval.

Joe came in as a late replacement for the injured Jack Thomas in pre-season but has found points hard to come by in the top-flight.

His twin brother Dan was recently released by Leicester and the Ipswich management have moved quickly to bring him into the team and he will make his debut on Thursday at Sheffield.

Promoter Chris Louis explained why the club has made the change and praised the attitude of the Thompson family.

“The race for the play-offs is ultra-competitive and it is getting tighter and tighter as we head into the second round of fixtures,” said Louis. “We realise that every single point is vital, and we have got total respect for Joe, the Thompson family and Darren their dad for their professionalism.

“We just felt Dan’s scores have been slightly better than Joe’s. It’s a really difficult one, they are brothers, and it is a difficult situation, but they are totally professional as a racing family and we just felt we wanted to give Dan the opportunity after being dropped by Leicester and see how he goes, particularly at Foxhall.

“We have made the change and it was all done quite late on Monday and we thank Leicester for their cooperation, and we are looking forward to going to Sheffield. It is a real tight one, we have got to get within four points, so we will see how that goes.

“These bonus points are going to be vital in the race for the play-offs, it looks like Wolverhampton and Belle Vue are beginning to ease clear at the top and the race is on with King’s Lynn and Peterborough both strengthening up, and with all the other teams to make the top four, so it is going to be a tight end to the season.”