Thanks to Bryn for this latest update from the Wightlink Islanders speedway team. Ed
The Wightlink Islanders head for Norfolk tomorrow night (Wednesday) aiming to secure at least a point from their National League clash with King’s Lynn which will see them qualify for the end-of-season playoffs between the top clubs in the table and the chance for them to take the title.
They had completed their scheduled home fixtures for this season last Tuesday with a four point National Trophy win over Stoke and, looking at matches to ridden by other clubs over the weekend just gone, anticipated results from those suggested that our chances of finishing in the league’s top four were minute.
Every chance of qualifying
Those matches last weekend saw Hertfordshire club Rye House record victories over Scunthorpe and at Stoke which relegated us to sixth place in the league table with the Raiders moving above us and whilst initially those results on the face of things seemed harmful to our play off hopes, detailed analysis showed they’d given us every chance of qualifying!
In one almost exclusively for the mathematicians, those two victories for Rye House meant that whilst we were indeed now sixth in the table with 17 points from our outings so far, that was the same amount of league points as the three teams immediately above us namely Stoke, Rye House and Scunthorpe with whom we are also level on race points difference!
With no other matches scheduled to take place prior to tomorrow’s midnight cut off for play off qualification other than ours at King’s Lynn, the bottom line is that even if we are defeated, provided we lose by six points or less, we will secure a vital league point that would shoot us back up to third place in the table and into those play offs!
“We’re going there to win”
“Make no mistake we’re going there to win,” was the message from co-manager Chris Hunt, “and the lads are really fired up to do just that.”
Now should the Wightlink Islanders indeed clinch their place in the playoffs, details of who they will meet and on what dates will be circulated as soon as proves possible.
