LEICESTER will head to Ipswich for the second leg of their KO Cup tie on Thursday (7.30pm) with a positive attitude as they look to pull off a dramatic comeback.
The Watling JCB Lions trail by six points after losing at home to the Witches on Easter Monday, meaning the Foxhall side are strong favourites to reach the semi-finals.
However, they found themselves six down at home to Birmingham in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership last week before coming back to win the meeting, and the Lions will look to put the pressure on as they bid for a surprise result.
They performed well in two of their three visits to the Suffolk venue in 2023, going down 48-42 in the Cup and 47-43 in the first league match – whilst Wolverhampton, three of whose riders transferred to Leicester in the winter, also historically had a decent record at Ipswich.
Lions manager Stewart Dickson said: “We have to go there and give it a go. I’ve been in speedway long enough to know that strange results pop up.
“We know that three of our riders from last year scored well there, and the three former Wolverhampton boys can ride it, plus Joe Thompson had half a season there so he knows the place.
“I know the bookies would call it a long shot, but stranger things have happened, and we’ve got to go there believing that we can try to claw it back.
“We’ll be making a fist of it on the night regardless, and we have to make two more visits there in league action so it’s imperative that we find out about set-ups and also put on a show.
“Most folk would say the tie is almost over, but come Thursday night they might be wrong!”
The teams are unchanged from Monday, with the Lions continuing what will be a sustained period of Monday/Thursday racing.
Next week they visit Belle Vue in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership on Monday (April 8) before hosting champions Sheffield on Thursday April 11.
IPSWICH: Emil Sayfutdinov, Jordan Jenkins, Danny King, Adam Ellis, Jason Doyle, Keynan Rew, Dan Thompson.
LEICESTER: Max Fricke, Richard Lawson, Sam Masters, Luke Becker, Ryan Douglas, Drew Kemp, Joe Thompson.
