Speedway: Defeat in Glasgow was story of season for Tigers, admits boss Stead

Tigers went down 51-39 at Ashfield Stadium despite being level at the halfway point.

But Glasgow pulled clear in the latter stages to finish comfortably and Stead was clearly disappointed not to end the season on a high.

He said: “It’s very frustrating. We were right in it but could find an extra gear. That’s been the story of our season really.

“It’s always a hard one to swallow. We were level after Heat 8 and I felt we could definitely get something out of it.

“Somehow we just lost a bit of firepower, Glasgow found an extra bit and they got clear of us. We seemed to have felt like that all season.

“The reserves were excellent tonight with Zaine Kennedy and Broc Nicol. Justin Sedgmen also put his hard night at Edinburgh behind him with a great display.

“But instead we lacked in other areas. It just seems we’ve not been able to get everyone firing on the same night, too inconsistent.”

Kennedy was excellent in the early stages on the way to paid 10 and when the Aussie and Nicol scored a great 5-1 in Heat 8, the Tigers were level at 24-24.

But Danny King suffered a rare off night with just five while Jake Allen was a shadow of his recent form as a guest, scoring just four.

That meant Glasgow dominated the big races towards the end and Craig Cook delivered two sensational passes in Heat 13 and 15 to kill off any lingering hopes.

Stead added: “It’s been a really tough year. We had big hopes but it’s just not clicked for us consistently which is frustrating.

“I’d like to pay a special thanks to the fans for sticking with us 100 per cent. It’s not always been pretty for them to watch but they’ve been loyal.

“We will go away, re-group and come back even hungrier for next season. We want to give it a right go in 2020 again.”

Glasgow 51: Craig Cook 14+1, Rasmus Jensen 13, Claus Vissing 11, Connor Bailey 6+1, Sam Jensen 5+2, Kyle Bickley 2.

Sheffield 39: Justin Sedgmen 14, Zaine Kennedy 9+1, Broc Nicol 6+3, Danny King 5, Jake Allen 4, Todd Kurtz 1+1, Josh MacDonald 0.