Kings focus on next year
Speedway Cricket
The Kent Kings have confirmed no racing will take place at Central Park this year following the news that the league season has been scrapped.
Some clubs have been looking at running alternative fixtures between now and October but the Sittingbourne-based club are now focussing on 2021. Co-promoter Len Silver said: “Regrettably, no racing will take place at Central Park this year.
“With our primary concern being the well-being of both our customers and officials, it was always going to be a difficult call, so when any chance of official competition was ruled out by Speedway’s controlling body, there was little alternative open to us. “Like everyone else, we are hoping for a return to normality during the coming winter and, subject to that, we plan for our opening meeting in 2021 to be at 6.30pm on Tuesday, March 30, followed by Easter Monday April 5.
“We are assuming and expecting all our current riders to be available for that new beginning and judging from their performances in a private practice session at King’s Lynn on Monday, I think we will all be pleasantly surprised come Easter
2021.”
The Kings are unable to race without fans due to financial constraints and supporters won’t be allowed into stadiums until October, at the earliest.
Bowling coach Simon Cook sees no reason why Kent shouldn’t be eyeing a place in the Bob Willis Trophy final this summer. Kent will begin their Bob Willis Trophy schedule on Saturday when they face 2019 County champions Essex at Chelmsford, having played a two-day behind closed doors practice match against the same opposition in Canterbury earlier this week.
They are in a six-team regionalised south group and Kent’s first home game at the Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence, also played behind closed doors, will be against Sussex a week after their opener.
The Bob Willis Trophy, a oneoff red-ball competition, replaces the County Championship for the 2020 season - after 10 rounds of matches were lost due to lockdown after the coronavirus outbreak - but matches will hold full first-class status.
With the two best group winners from the three regionalised groups going onto compete in a five-day final of the trophy, Cook is targeting silverware.
He said: “I think every team in the country wants to be up there and challenging and to be in that final.
“To be honest, I think we are going to take it game-by-game. “I know it’s a bit of a cliche