Speedway: Sheffield face uphill battle after play offs final first leg defeat to Belle Vue
Tigers had started well, winning each of the first three heats 4-2
Sheffield face a huge uphill battle if they are to win the Speedway Premiership, after a first leg defeat to Belle Vue at Owlerton.
Tigers had led narrowly for most of the Rowe Speedway Premiership Grand Final first leg, but 5-1 heat advantages in heats 13 and 15 by the visitors, both heats involving GP stars Brady Kurtz and Jason Doyle, plus a 4-2 reverse in heat 14, put Belle Vue well in control.
It means Sheffield, who lost tonight 47-43, now need to become the first team this season to beat the Aces at their home ground, the National Speedway Stadium.
Tigers team manager’ Simon Stead admitted it had been a tough evening for the Tigers, and that Belle Vue had shown why they had been top of the league all season.
He said: “Ultimately, we’ve fallen a little bit short tonight, but we’ve still got one to go.”
While he confirmed the side planned to give it a good go on Friday for the second leg, he admitted it had been a tough night.
He said: “It’s been a tough watch for me, and I’m disappointed, and I know the lads are disappointed. But the pressure is on Belle Vue, and we all need to do something extremely special on Friday, if we’re going to going to turn this around, but it’s not beyond the realms of possibility.”
He felt the visitors’ strength in depth showed and that Doyle and Kurtz had been phenomenal.
“Max (Fricke) has done a great job for us tonight, but we’ve just been on the back foot,” he said.
Stead added he could not fault any of his team members’ efforts, but they had been second best on the night.
Tigers had started the meeting well, winning each of the first three heats 4-2, with Max Fricke, Jye Etheridge and Leon Flint winning the first three races, Belle Vue’s World number three Kurtz dropping his only point of the night to Fricke in heat one.
But Tigers’ early six point did not last long and two successive heat advantages for the visitors had levelled the scores by the end of heat five.
Tigers slowly rebuilt a six point lead with 4-2s in heats six, 10 and 12, only to be blown away in the last three heats.
The sides are now due to meet in Manchester on Friday evening for the second leg.
Sheffield 43: Max Fricke 11, Jye Etheridge 9+1, Chris Holder 6, Anders Rowe 6, Leon Flint 5+1, Josh Pickering 5, Luke Killeen 1
Belle Vue 47: Brady Kurtz 14, Jason Doyle 12+2, Zach Cook 9, Tate Zischke 7+1, Norick Blodorn 3+2, Will Cairns 2, Mitch McDiarmid 0