Sheffield Tigers 38 Lakeside Hammers 52

Action from Thursday nights meeting between Sheffield Tigers and Lakeside Hammers. Photo: Andy Garner

Tigers threw away a 10-point advantage over high-flying Lakeside, going down 38-52 as their unbeaten home record came to an end.

It all looked so good for the Tigers who dealt with the tricky conditions better following a downpour before the start of the fixture.

Quick gating saw them register two 5-1s in the opening four races, and their eight point lead was maintained as they packed the middle-order points.

And when Lasse Bjerre charged under Zach Wajtknecht in the fifth off bend four, before captain Kyle Howarth made it two out of two with Todd Kurtz nettling for third, their advantage was increased to ten with six gone.

But they would concede seven straight heats after that in a costly run for the Tigers who suddenly lost their gating gloves.

Their problems began in the seventh when Georgie Wood’s mechanical woes continued on the start line as Adam Ellis coasted to a second win of the night for Lakeside.

Their reserve Bowtell clattered into Shanes into bend one of the next, but both riders stayed on their machines with Kurtz unable to make an impression at the back.

And with Ellis bang in-form, they brought him in as a tactical substitution alongside skipper Richard Lawson in the ninth. Their gamble worked perfectly as the big-hitting duo got the better of Bjerre and Broc Nicol away from the tapes.

And it was that man Ellis who led another advantage for Lakeside as they pulled level in heat ten. He may have lifted out of bend three of the second lap, but he recovered well to end Howarth’s unbeaten night despite his best efforts.

Lakeside No.1 Nick Morris came to the party in Heat 11 with a classy win from the starts and with Wood’s bike again packing up, that gifted the Hammers third place as they took the lead for the first time.

Sheffield had no answer to their opponents’ gating and consecutive 5-1s in 12 and 13 confirmed a disappointing collapse for the Tigers.

SHEFFIELD 38: Kyle Howarth 10, Charles Wright 9, Lasse Bjerre 6+1, James Shanes 6+1, Todd Kurtz 3+1, Broc Nicol 3+1, Georgie Wood 1+1.

LAKESIDE: 52: Adam Ellis 13+2, Richard Lawson 11, Nick Morris 8+3, Ben Morley 6, Kyle Newman 5, Zach Wajtknecht 5, Alfie Bowtell 4.