LEICESTER’S superb run continued with a dramatic 46-44 win at local rivals Birmingham to strengthen their grip on a ROWE Motor Oil Premiership play-off place.
The Watling JCB Lions banked all three points from Perry Barr and are now six clear of chief rivals Oxford, still with a match in hand on the Spires.
Ryan Douglas was the Heat 15 hero as he kept back a hard charging Fredrik Lindgren for the race win with captain Max Fricke supplying the crucial third place.
That ensured the Lions finished on top after what had been an awkward evening in which they had dropped four points down at the halfway stage.
Seven races into the contest, the scores were level even though the Lions had provided all but two of the race winners.
Douglas picked himself up from a first-bend fall in Heat 4 to make a classy move around the outside of Leon Flint in the re-run, and he then added a win over Lindgren two races later to underline his pace.
Guest Drew Kemp, Sam Masters and Luke Becker were all early winners too, but with Fricke and Becker running last places in their opening outings the Brummies held an early lead, before Becker and Masters carded a 4-2 in Heat 7 to make it 21-21.
However, the home side hit back strongly in Heat 8 when a lively Wiktor Lampart got out in front, whilst Flint chased hard and snatched second place from Richard Lawson on the line for the first 5-1 of the evening.
The next two races were shared with Douglas continuing his winning ways in Heat 9, before Lions levelled in a terrific Heat 11 with Fricke making it from the inside and Lawson charging hard inside Tom Brennan at the end of the first lap.
A nip and tuck contest followed and it was the Lions’ turn to lead after Heat 12 as an initial 5-1 was split by Zach Cook, but Masters held on for the win with Kemp third.
Heat 13 was shared after a tight first lap with Douglas getting squeezed out whilst Fricke forced his way to the front on the back straight.
Lions led by two but the Brummies riders gated in Heat 14, only for Becker to pull off a great third to first pass to hit the front – but Cook came storming back to repass him on the inside, and with Flint holding off Kemp for third it was all square again at 42-42.
Manager Stewart Dickson went with Fricke and Douglas for Heat 15 and crucially both riders made good starts leaving the Brummies chasing, and whilst Lindgren did manage to make it past Fricke, he couldn’t quite get on terms with Douglas who held his nerve superbly to take the Lions to victory.
Dickson said: “I knew it was going to be tough here, and it was a good team performance, and very pleasing because halfway through it was getting to the stage of could we hold on for a point, never mind three.
“Credit to the lads for showing the determination to get us over the line, because no matches are easy in this Premiership and that was a toughie tonight.
“Birmingham will feel absolutely gutted, I know I would if I was in their shoes. I thought they raced really well, and we had to pull all the stops out to get the win.
“Max started slowly but he finished very strongly, and Ryan Douglas with four wins was really good for us. Freddie was right on Dougy’s tail in Heat 15 for the last two laps, but Ryan held his nerve and got us over the line.
“Good teams find a way to win, and that’s not being blaze about it - we got there in the end, and I was very pleased for the big travelling support.”
Lions’ current roll means they are now just five points off the top of the table ahead of their trip to leaders Ipswich on Thursday.
BIRMINGHAM 44: Zach Cook 12, Freddie Lindgren 9+1, Wiktor Lampart 8, Tom Brennan 6+1, Leon Flint 5+3, Michael Palm Toft 4+2, Piotr Pawlicki r/r.
LEICESTER 46: Ryan Douglas 12, Max Fricke 8+1, Sam Masters 8+1, Richard Lawson 7+1, Luke Becker 7, Drew Kemp 4, Sam Hagon 0.
Leicester win the aggregate point
Photo credit: STEVE FEENEY
