Monarchs set for double header
Two-for-one speedway at Armadale
Speedway fans are in for a treat on Friday as the Edinburgh Border Roofing Monarchs race a doubleheader meeting against Redcar and Plymouth.
The action gets underway at Armadale Stadium at the earlier time of 7pm.
The double-header has come about due to the Monarchs’ awful luck with the weather this campaign which has seen eight home fixtures postponed. Clubs need to complete their fixtures before the third week in September with Edinburgh having five home matches remaining.
Unfortunately, the home side will not be at full strength and could face tough battles against sides that are in the lower reaches of the Premier League table.
Captain Sam Masters is unavailable as he will be en route to Sweden for the Grand Prix Challenge with Newcastle Diamonds ace Ludvig Lindgren putting in a guest appearance for Edinburgh. The Monarchs will also have to do without promising youngster Dan Bewley after he suffered a nasty concussion at Newcastle on Sunday afternoon.
After initially struggling in his first Premier League season, Bewley has been in stunning form of late and his will be a key loss for the hosts. His replacement has yet to be named. American ace Ryan Fisher will race through the pain barrier after sustaining two broken bones in his left foot.
Redcar will field former Monarchs Tobias Busch and Jye Etheridge, who was dumped earlier this season after a string of poor performances in his maiden British speedway season. Australian Under-21 champion Jack Holder is Plymouth’s key figure.
The Monarchs are well placed to seal a top-six play- off spot as they search for a third consecutive Premier League title. They go into the clashes sitting in fourth place, five points ahead of the Ipswich Witches who currently occupy seventh spot.
Edinburgh are coming off an eventful weekend where they defeated the Glasgow Tigers in the second leg of their Knockout Cup quarter-final clash, although the 48-41 score wasn’t enough to overturn a huge Tigers advantage from the first match with the Monarchs going out 95- 78 on aggregate.
That was followed up two days later with a losing bonus point in a 33-27 loss at Newcastle.
The match was abandoned after 10 heats due to a number of crashes causing substantial delays with the Monarchs settling for a point.