By Henry Chard

THE SCORES…

IPSWICH 48: Richard Lawson 12+1, David Bellego 10, Jake Allen 9+1, Danny King © 6+1, Cameron Heeps 6+1, Krystian Pieszczek 4+1, Chris Harris 1. Team Manager: Ritchie Hawkins

KING’S LYNN 42: Erik Riss 14, Michael Palm Toft 8, Robert Lambert © 7, Thomas Jorgensen 5, Ty Proctor 3+1, Kasper Andersen 3+1, Lewis Kerr 2+1. Team Manager: Peter Schroeck

REFEREE: P. Carrington

VENUE: Foxhall Stadium

MEETING SPONSOR…

RN Euston – RN Euston Limited has supplied steel framed buildings in East Anglia for over 40 years.  Established by Ray Euston the business has grown steadily over the years and now Ray works in partnership with his son Mark.  The company is based in Suffolk and work all over East Anglia where they have gained a reliable reputation.

PREMIERSHIP TABLE

Team	Meetings	Points
Poole	3	6
Wolverhampton	2	6
Ipswich	3	6
Peterborough	4	5
Swindon	2	4
Belle Vue	4	4
King’s Lynn	2	3

WHAT HAPPENED?

The ‘Tru Plant’ Witches beat the King’s Lynn Stars 48-42 at Foxhall on Bank Holiday Monday in the Premiership.

In front of a big crowd, it was a closely contested East Anglian derby from the off as their Norfolk opponents put up much more a fight than their first visit to Suffolk earlier this year. The home side were never more than six points ahead in the meeting with plenty of close racing throughout the afternoon. The hosts held their nerve to seal the victory with a heat to spare but the away side made sure they would take a point for their efforts as Erik Riss won heat 15 to ensure a six-point defeat. Richard Lawson was the top man for the Witches, scoring 12+1.

Lawson won heat one from the tapes as the points were shared with Chris Harris missing the start. Heat two was stopped with the away side on a 5-1 after Cameron Heeps went under Kasper Anderson at the start of the second lap with the King’s Lynn reserve falling and the Witches man excluded from the re-run. Michael Palm Toft won the re-run for the Stars ahead of Jake Allen with Andersen way behind in third, meaning the away side took an early lead. David Bellego won heat three as Riss managed to hold off King for second as the Witches man tried everything he could to join his partner at the front. That 4-2 for the Witches levelled the score at 9-9.

Allen won a shared heat four before the home team recorded the first 5-1 of the day in heat five thanks to Bellego and King who were comfortable in victory. Lawson produced a terrific ride in heat six to win with Harris third for a 4-2 that extended the home side’s lead. With Thomas Jorgensen leading ahead of Harris and Lawson it looked like being a 3-3 but Lawson first passed his teammate before storming past Jorgensen coming out of the second turn on the final lap to take the win and give the Witches a 21-15 lead.

Heat seven was stopped after Krystian Pieszczek fell on the second turn and was excluded. The Polish rider had made the gate and was leading but got out of shape and crashed into the air fence. The Stars took advantage in the re-run as Riss and Ty Proctor held off Heeps for a 5-1. The Suffolk side hit back in heat eight though with a maximum of their own thanks to Lawson and Allen. There was plenty of drama before heat nine even got started. Bellego was having issues with his bike at the start line with Heeps’ bike ready to jump on if needed. Bellego jumped on Heeps’ bike with the two minutes almost up but then with the problems seemingly sorted rushed back onto his own bike, only to miss the two minutes by seconds and be excluded from the race. Heeps replaced him in the re-run and it was a cracker. The Stars pair of Palm Toft and Jorgensen tried everything they could to shut Heeps out for a 5-1 but the Witches man gave it everything he had to split the pair with barely any room between the three riders as they changed positions throughout. That heat advantage to King’s Lynn made the score 29-25 to Ipswich after nine heats.

Riss was warned for moving at the start in heat 10 but he won the re-run ahead of Lawson who was close on his tail and with Proctor picking up a point, it narrowed the home side’s lead to just two points. Pieszczek produced a much-needed win for the hosts in heat 11 ahead of Robert Lambert as Allen took third for a Witches 4-2 that gave them a four-point lead. The lead was back to six points after heat 12 as King held off a strong challenge from Palm Toft in second and Allen passed Proctor for third on the second lap for a Witches 4-2 that put them 39-33 up.

Heeps replaced Harris in heat 13 as Lambert won a shared heat to put the Witches on the brink of victory. Riss won heat 14 but with Bellego and Heeps both in the points it had confirmed the victory for Ipswich. Riss was almost unbeatable on the day and won heat 15 despite being pushed hard by Bellego and that 3-3 made the final score 48-42 to the Witches, with the Stars picking up a consolation point.

RN EUSTON RIDER OF THE DAY…

It was great to see Bellego back in the points after a frustrating couple of weeks. If it wasn’t for his exclusion he could have scored more than his 10 points, but his performance will give him confidence going forward from here.

KEY MOMENT…

With the Witches leading by just four points going into heat 12, every race was crucial. King held off a fast Palm Toft to win and Allen produced a vital pass on Proctor to pick up third for a heat advantage that gave the home team a little breathing space and edged them closer to the win.

WHAT IT MEANS…

Ipswich pick up three points after this win, putting them on six points from three matches. King’s Lynn take a point after their narrow defeat, leaving them on three points after racing two meetings away from home.

WHAT’S NEXT?

The ‘Tru Plant’ Witches travel to Dorset to face the Poole Pirates on Thursday 9^th May in a Premiership Supporters Cup fixture at 7.30pm.

AROUND THE TRACKS…

Poole drew 45-45 at Belle Vue in the Premiership on Monday to put them top of the table after a strong start to the campaign. Swindon narrowly beat Peterborough 46-44 at the Abbey.

Click here for reaction from team manager Ritchie Hawkins.