Monarchs fail to rule over city rivals

It was double derby defeat for Edinburgh Monarchs as they were downed twice in the space of three days by the Glasgow Tigers.

But while their home reverse on Friday night at Armadale Stadium was a huge disappointment, they were able to pick up a losing bonus point in a much tighter affair in Glasgow on Sunday afternoon.

The Tigers were simply too strong in West Lothian against an out of sorts Monarchs line-up who sealed a 51-39 triumph after which co-promoter Alex Harkess said:“We just weren’t good enough, we can’t have any complaints.

“We weren’t getting into good positions early in the races. Tigers rode very well and deserved their victory.”

Sam Masters grabbed 11 points but following a decent start which saw the scores level after four heats, the Tigers ran away with proceedings as three 5-1s in the space of the next six heats saw them build up a 14 point lead before easing over the finish line.

Edinburgh bounced back well but eventually lost 46-44.

Masters and Kye Thomson picked up race wins in heats 13 and 14 which gave the Monarchs a fighting chance to grab a draw, trailing by four entering heat 15, but former Edinburgh skipper Craig Cook was able to split Masters and Josh Pickering to ensure a Tigers double.