Rob shares this latest from Island Speedway. Ed
The Isle of Wight Wightlink Warriors speedway team have been rocked by the sudden decision of Nathan Greaves to accept a team place at Championship side Ipswich, a club who also race home meetings on a Thursday night, thus ruling out his continuation on the Island.
Clearly shocked by this very unexpected news, Warriors Co-Promoter Barry Bishop said,
“This news has come right out of the blue and puts us in a difficult position ahead of our meeting this week. Neither Martin Widman (Co-Promoter) nor I had been given any indication that this move was being considered.
“Nathan top scored for us last week and appeared to be happy to be here, however these things happen and with all things Warrior, we will use this development as a stepping stone to improvement and will re-assess our team make-up over the coming days and act to better the squad. We wish Nathan well at his new club and in the meantime we have invited Liam Carr to guest for us this week.”
Guest appearance
Carr will be in action on Thursday (11 May) when the Warriors welcome the Lakeside Hammers to the Andrew Younie Smallbrook stadium. Gates will open at 17.30; the rider parade will be at 18.45 with the first race starting promptly at 19.00.
The Hammers, based at the Arena Essex Raceway at Thurrock, have joined the National League this season having stepped down from speedway’s Elite League after many years in the top flight.
Despite earning a place in last year’s Elite play-offs, during last winter the Hammers management agonised on how best to sustain speedway in the Essex area and after much deliberation the National League option was preferred – an understandable outcome given the proximity of Kent, Eastbourne and Mildenhall and the prospect of exciting local derbies.
Wily co-promoter Jon Cook has persuaded former GB international and TV pundit Kelvin Tatum to stay on as team manager and with the experienced Ben Morley leading the team (supported by the up and coming Zach Wajtknecht who was on the Island last week) it promises to be another tough test for the Warriors.
Having completed Challenge, Cup and Trophy meetings, the visit of the Hammers marks the start of the Warriors National League season proper and despite recent developments, they will be determined to put their stuttering start behind them.
Tyler Govier again misses out with shoulder damage and the rider replacement facility will be used to cover his absence. Rik Mullins is also absent taking time out to gain extra practice and improve his fitness so Alex Spooner from Kent will provide cover in the reserve position.
Teams for race
The teams are expected to be:
Warriors: Ben Wilson, Rider Replacement for Tyler Govier, James Cockle, Chris Widman, Liam Carr, Jamie Sealey, Alex Spooner, Jamie Bursill (number 8).
Hammers: Ben Morley, George Hunter, David Mason, Alfie Bowtell, Zach Wajtknecht, Jamie Couzins, Nick Laurence.
The Warriors will be running a mini-bus to the British Speedway Grand Prix in Cardiff on 22 July and anyone interested in joining the trip should visit the track shop or email [email protected]
Image: © Ian Groves
