Aces mauled by Lions as play-off bid takes a hit on the road

BELLE Vue’s play-off hopes took a battering as they lost 58-32 at Leicester last night.

The Aces quickly slipped to a 12-point defecit to the Lions after six races.

And although they rallied with Max Fricke and Mark Riss teaming up in Heat 9 to close the gap, three consecutive 5-1s to the hosts dashed any chance of recovery.

Riss is already proving a safe investment for the Aces at reserve, scoring a commendable seven points from five rides, while Dan Bewley top-scored for the Aces with 8+1 from six rides.

Team boss Mark Lemon said: “It’s difficult to find the positives from nights like these because, on paper, we have a strong team that is capable of winning, which make this all the more frustrating.

“It’s very difficult to put our finger on what went wrong, but we can’t take anything away from Leicester. They were the better team on the night and took full advantage of our misfortunes.

“For some reason, this year, we just don’t seem to have found our mojo on the road.

“But there’s still a lot for us to play for and while there’s still an outside shot at the top four, we’ll fight for it.”

National League action returns to the National Speedway Stadium on Wednesday when the Kent Kings come to Manchester to take on reigning champions the Cool Running Colts.

Tickets are on sale now at www.bellevueaces.co.