THE ROBINS consolidated their top spot in the Elite league table with a comfortable fourteen point victory over Lakeside.
Swindon limited the visitors to just two heat wins and were led brilliantly by Troy Batchelor who contributed a flawless fifteen point maximum - his first in Robins colours.
Thursday 15th May
Swindon Robins 53 Lakeside Hammers 49
Troy Batchelor took centre stage as Swindon eased to a comfortable thirteen point victory over a Lakeside septet who could only muster two heat wins all night.
Batchelor’s flawless fifteen point maximum was acquired with breathtaking speed, plenty of determination and bundles of composure. However, it wasn’t just Batchelor who boasted an unbeaten tally, Swindon captain Leigh Adams contributed a characteristically workmanlike performance on route to a paid fifteen point haul.
Elsewhere, Mads Korneliussen looked set for a maximum of his own but was cruelly denied by machinery gremlins just moments before the start of heat nine. The popular Dane’s dash back to the pits led to a two minute exclusion and consequently a fifteen metre starting handicap from which Korneliussen was unable to collect his fourth race win of the night.
Leigh Adams romped to victory in the opener as he rode an intelligent first corner to head the pack and was untroubled from that point on. James Wright tried valiantly to engineer a route past Lakeside’s Leigh Lanham but was unable to gather enough speed to mount a serious challenge.
Seb Alden blasted to victory in the ensuing race to collect a second successive points share before Korneliussen and McGowan handed Swindon the lead with a well worked 5-1 in the third. Both Swindon riders rode well to repel the persistent pressure of Lakeside captain Adam Shields who flirted with the Blunsdon dirt line as he hunted for a route past.
The Queensland firebrand, Troy Batchelor, demonstrated sensational speed in race four as he eased away from former Swindon rider Joonas Davidsson whilst Seb Alden struggled to stamp his authority at the rear.
Heat five brought the fourth 3-3 of the meeting as Mads Korneliussen rode a barnstorming race to halt the charge of Swedish international Andreas Jonsson. Meanwhile, Travis McGowan stalked Lakeside’s Leigh Lanham for the entirety of the race but couldn’t quite squeeze past the Brit.
The Robins shuffled their lead to six points with a well worked 4-2 from Adams and Wright in heat six before a second successive Swindon 4-2 ensued via Troy Batchelor and Theo Pijper in race seven.
Lakeside struck back with a tapes to flag 5-1 from Lanham and Kylmakorpi in race eight which slashed the Robins’ advantage to four points.
Korneliussen and McGowan combined for a well worked heat advantage in race nine before Adams and Wright registered Swindon’s fourth 4-2 of the evening in race ten.
Batchelor’s impressive speed continued in heat eleven as he inflicted defeat on Jonsson to ensure a points share and maintain Swindon’s eight point lead.
Mads Korneliussen was excluded for exceeding the two minutes time allowance in race twelve and the Dane opted to start the race from fifteen metres back. The flamboyant racer made light work of his handicap and was challenging Adam Shields for the race win on the charge to the chequered flag.
Adams and Batchelor collected a comfortable 5-1 in heat thirteen before Lakeside nominated Joonas Kylmakorpi for a tactical ride in race fourteen. The Finnish rider could only muster second spot which resulted in a 4-4 points share and moved Swindon’s tally along to 48 points, ten ahead of their opponents.
The Australian duo of Adams and Batchelor once again reigned supreme in heat fifteen and in doing so both ensured they concluded the night with maximums.
