WELCOME to the latest news from the Elite League, featuring items on all nine competing teams.
This week’s bulletin includes comment from Alun Rossiter.
BELLE VUE promoter Chris Morton is backing his team to start winning at home more comfortably – when the middle order and reserves start to find their feet.
Morton said: "There was a significant performance from Lukasz Jankowski last week, and he is getting to grips with our track and the Elite League.
"Our top three, Jason Crump, Joe Screen and Charlie Gjedde, have maintained a high standard at home and as long as they maintain that form we just need a couple of the other guys to start hitting better form."
COVENTRY manager Peter Oakes felt the Champions had displayed plenty of character to overcome Ipswich at home, having trailed at the half-way stage and lost reserve Andreas Messing in his first ride.
Oakes said: "I think we looked like the real Coventry, the riders showed the ability to fight and battle for the points - and it proves they have the character, because if they hadn't we would have succumbed in that meeting.
"It will have done a lot for people's confidence, when you think our top two finished up with 10 points between them and yet we had a comfortable win in the end. Ipswich are a good team, but it was terrific to see so many good points for us, and Stan (Burza) had by far his best meeting at Elite League level."
EASTBOURNE are hoping to have No.1 Scott Nicholls back in the side for their weekend clash with Wolverhampton, following treatment on two broken bones in his hand.
Nicholls suffered the injury during the Eagles' impressive win at his former club, Coventry, and skipper Lee Richardson feels that result is a clear sign of what the club can achieve this season.
Richardson said: "Everyone is doing their job, but there is more to come. If we can all up it a little bit further, and there's no reason why we can't, then we have got a team capable of winning everywhere."
IPSWICH manager Pete Simmons felt the damage had been done at home after the Witches went out of the Knock-Out Cup in the first round at Wolverhampton on Monday.
Simmons said: "We did not bring enough of a lead with us to defend, and the Wolverhampton team were very fired up. Piotr Swiderski was excellent again, but we did not have enough support to hold on.
"We have a week off now, and I need to lift the team in time for next Monday's vital Elite League match at home to Swindon."
LAKESIDE boss Jon Cook has underlined the importance of his team performing throughout whole meetings if they are to avoid letting further points slip.
Cook said: "The loss of AJ (Andreas Jonsson) at Belle Vue was an important factor, not only in that meeting but also in the other two matches last week. We should have won both at Belle Vue and at Peterborough, but we let things slip towards the end of those matches.
"Similarly, we allowed Swindon to run us fairly close on Friday even though we had built up a 14-point lead after just six heats. We need to keep the momentum going all the way through the fifteen heats."
PETERBOROUGH manager Trevor Swales says there is still plenty of room for improvement after his team salvaged a draw with a late rally at home to Lakeside - although the Hammers still secured the overall group win in the Craven Shield.
Swales said: "There is no way a team like Lakeside should be running us this close around here. I have made no secret of the fact that we need to win all our home meetings and win them well, so obviously a draw disappoints me, but I am a lot happier than I would have been had we lost.
"If you ask me to sum up the past week, it has been bad, bad, bad and not quite so bad - and it is clear we have to improve."
POOLE manager Neil Middleditch hailed the display of reserve Freddie Eriksson, who piled up 17 (paid 18) in the Pirates' narrow defeat at Belle Vue, despite being reduced to one engine mid-way through the meeting.
Middleditch said: "Freddie's performance was unbelievable, fantastic, and he's just on a high at the moment. When he stopped in his fifth ride he had blown his engine up. It was the only engine he has been riding on this year.
"Fortunately, his spare was fairly good for Belle Vue because he won his last two races on it. But now he only has one engine for the Elite League and that is not enough at this level, so hopefully something can be worked out."
SWINDON boss Alun Rossiter took more positives from an away defeat as the Robins held Lakeside to a 5-point margin at Purfleet.
Rossiter said: "I'm not disappointed - I'm actually relatively pleased, especially with the manner of our fightback. It's what this team is all about.
"People can say it's still a loss, and I suppose a loss is a loss whether it's by 2 points or 20, but the manner in which we went about things, especially when the going got tough, was superb. We could have given up and come away with a right hiding, but we didn't and we've got a lot to be proud of."
WOLVERHAMPTON skipper Fredrik Lindgren was delighted to see his side make progress in the Knock-Out Cup with victory over Ipswich on Monday.
He said: “I can’t remember going through to the next round in recent seasons, so this is a big boost for us all.
“It was a solid all-round performance from the team and it gives us great encouragement. People have to remember Ipswich are a very good team.”
