Riding order switch works wonders as Lions win derby
LEICESTER Lions returned to winning ways by beating Birmingham 43-29 in the Midlands derby Premiership fixture, writes Alan Jones.
Manager Stewart Dickson, left, switched his riding order around ahead of the match – a decision that was based on past performances of his riders on the Perry Barr track.
The changes potentially made the Lions stronger in certain races and the experiment paid off as the team made a flying start.
The new opening partnership of Max Fricke and Ryan Douglas gave the Lions the lead in heat 1.
There was more success to follow, which left Birmingham reeling as Leicester outscored the home side in four of the next six races.
The spell gave the Lions a 29-13 lead before track conditions began to alter as the rain arrived.
The Brummies rallied, taking the points in heats 8 and 9, which reduced Leicester’s lead to 10 points.
Richard Lawson steadied the ship for Lions in the 10th heat after overtaking Tom Brennan for the lead, which forced a share of the points, and Douglas was then first to cross the finish line in the next race.
Due to the wet surface, winning times were now six seconds slower than when the match began.
But the Lions kept their focus to win the 12th heat.
Steve Worrall made the better start, only to lose his position when Drew Kemp and Luke Becker both passed the Birmingham rider along the back straight.
The result was Leicester’s fourth maximum score of the night and it put the team in an uncatchable position.
However, with three heats still to race, the referee called a halt to the match and the score was declared as a win for Leicester.
The measured gamble by Dickson to alter his line-up positions worked for the team as there were only four occasions when a Leicester rider was pointless.
Drew Kemp had his best score of the season as did his reserve partner Joe Thompson.
Dickson said: “I think we began to see signs of what this team is capable of on Monday night.
“I know it’s only one result, and one swallow doesn’t make a summer, but there was a glimpse of what this team can do when they collectively all score.”
Scorers Birmingham Brummies 29:
Vaclav Milik 2 points, Tom Brennan 7+1, Steve Worrall 4, Scott Nicholls 3+1, Piotr Pawlicki 4+1, Zach Cook 8 and Leon Flint 1.
Leicester Lions 43: Max Fricke 4 points, Ryan Douglas 10+1, Luke Becker 4+2, Richard Lawson 8, Sam Masters 7, Dew Kemp 7+1 and Joe Thompson 3+2.