By Henry Chard
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.
Ipswich Town Football Club – They offer an extensive range of hospitality, advertising and sponsorship opportunities to place your business front and centre, plus unforgettable experiences for their passionate and loyal supporters.
Whether you’re looking to catapult your brand through a bespoke partnership or impress and engage key clients at a memorable match day, Ipswich Town Football Club is the place to do it.
THE SCORES
IPSWICH 44: Scott Nicholls (G) 8+1, Dan Thompson (RS) 8+1, Danny King © 7, Troy Batchelor (G) 9+2, Emil Sayfutdinov R/R, Keynan Rew 8+1, Jordan Jenkins 4+1. Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins
BIRMINGHAM 46: Fredrik Lindgren © 15 (Maximum), Piotr Pawlicki R/R, Antti Vuolas (G) 0, Zach Cook 9+1, Tom Brennan 14+3, Michael Palm Toft 5+1, Leon Flint (RS) 3+1. Team Manager: Sam Ermolenko
REFEREE: M. Wear
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP TABLE
| Team | Meetings | Points |
| Sheffield | 24 | 42 |
| Leicester | 22 | 37 |
| Belle Vue | 24 | 37 |
| Ipswich | 24 | 34 |
| Oxford | 24 | 26 |
| King’s Lynn* | 22 | 20 |
| Birmingham | 24 | 11 |
THE STORY
The Ipswich ‘Tru7 Group’ Witches finished their regular ROWE Motor Oil Premiership campaign with a defeat to Birmingham on Thursday night at Foxhall.
The hosts welcomed back Keynan Rew at reserve but were still without the trio of Jason Doyle, Emil Sayfutdinov and Adam Ellis. Scott Nicholls guested at one and Troy Batchelor came in for Ellis whilst rider replacement was used for Sayfutdinov. Birmingham were without Piotr Pawlicki and Wiktor Lampart with Antti Vuolas in for Lampart and rider replacement in operation for Pawlicki. The meeting was tight throughout with the Witches holding a narrow lead for most of the contest until Birmingham hit the front in heat 13. The Witches responded with a 5-1 in heat 14 to retake the lead but the Brummies hit a maximum in heat 15 to give them their first away win of the season and the aggregate bonus point having also beaten Ipswich on Monday at Perry Barr. Batchelor top scored with 9+2.
Fredrik Lindgren won a shared heat one and Rew did the same in heat two. The Witches went in front in three courtesy of a maximum from Danny King and Batchelor. There was another 3-3 in heat four leaving Ipswich 14-10 up.
Birmingham levelled the score in heat five as they raced to a fortunate maximum with King retiring with mechanical issues whilst in second. The Suffolk side went back in front in heat six as Nicholls got the better of Tom Brennan to win and Dan Thompson finished third for the 4-2. Heat seven was shared but Ipswich extended their lead in heat eight with a 5-1 from Thompson and Jordan Jenkins, making it 27-21.
The away side recorded a heat advantage in heat nine and Thompson was a winner again in a shared heat 10. The scores were level after heat 11 as Lindgren and Brennan hit a maximum. The Witches regained the lead in heat 12 as King won in a 4-2 putting the hosts 37-35 in front.
Birmingham then took a big step towards victory with another maximum from Lindgren and Brennan in heat 13 putting them in the lead. However, the hosts responded, roaring to a 5-1 of their own in heat 14 thanks to Rew and Batchelor, taking it to a last-heat decider with the home team two points ahead. It was the combination of Lindgren and Brennan that won it though as the pair struck another 1-5 which condemned Ipswich to a sixth defeat in a row.
REACTION FROM THE BOSS
Ipswich ‘Tru7 Group’ Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins reflects on Thursday’s defeat against Birmingham.
“I know we are short of riders, but it was a meeting we should have been able to win and cover that, but we didn’t. We had some bad luck and some machinery problems but really, we should have been good enough for that not to matter.
“Freddie and Tom were brilliant tonight, and we didn’t get many from R/R instead of Emil, R/R has been a struggle of late, it is not that easy to find suitable guests either. It didn’t work tonight, and Scott and Danny were our two heat leaders and they both suffered mechanical problems. That all contributed to the defeat.
“On a positive note, Dan has struggled the last few weeks, but it was good to see him get a good meeting under his belt. He will be dropping to reserve to finish the season and it should be a good confidence boost for him and I am really pleased for him. Keynan carried on riding very well on his return to the side and suffered no ill effects after his recent injury which is good news. I thought after heat two Jordan put in a couple of good rides which carries on his improvement in form. In that respect, the lower end of the team has improved and is doing well.
“Now the league has finished, and we have got a massive cup final next week. From here on in we should be settled with one or two guests and a full one to seven. We will regroup for the cup final and play-offs and will be ready to try and win some trophies.”
FAT CAT & IPSWICH TOWN FOOTBALL CLUB RIDERS OF THE NIGHT
Ipswich Town chose Thompson who scored 8+1.
The Fat Cat went for King who scored seven points.
WHAT IT MEANS
Ipswich complete their league campaign finishing fourth and will race whoever finishes top of the league in the play-offs. Birmingham end their season on a high picking up three points but finish bottom of the table.
UP NEXT
The Ipswich ‘Tru7 Group’ Witches travel to Sheffield to take on the Tigers on Monday 2nd September in the first leg of the Knockout Cup final. Tickets can be purchased on the gate.
Digital Media Manager at Ipswich Speedway