COVENTRY'S regular Elite League campaign ended in perfect fashion with their sixth away win of the season and their second of the year at the venue they previously couldn't win at!
But the Buildbase Bees' lack of success at both Swindon and Peterborough over recent years has well and truly been put to bed in 2010, and they will look to prove it once again at the Showground on Monday.
Bees travelled to Blunsdon for a fixture which had no great significance in terms of the league table, but was one which both teams took seriously, and despite the number of changes to the programme there was some excellent racing on a well-prepared circuit.
The two sides were missing their Polish riders involved in the Golden Helmet and in addition both Swindon and Coventry gave their No.8s an outing in place of their regular No.7s, in accordance with the rulebook, with Morten Risager left out of the Robins' line-up and Bees not risking the ongoing arm injury of Przemyslaw Pawlicki. Both sides were aware of the regulations for replacing a No.7, and both also knew that had the respective No.8s not been available, they would not have been able to magically double the average of their No.7 and then book a guest.
The match marked the final time the Bees would face Australian superstar Leigh Adams in a League fixture, and quite possibly the final time ever as the two sides are in opposite sides of the draw for the Knockout Cup. Adams has regularly scored maximums against Coventry at Blundson down the years, but although looking thoroughly capable of doing so on this occasion it was Ben Barker who achieved the notable feat of becoming the last man to beat him around the Abbey Stadium in League competition.
Adams was untroubled in Heat 1 as he got the better of Bees guest Hans Andersen around the first two turns, and the Robins collected a 4-2 with a misfiring Mads Korneliussen collecting third place as Richard Sweetman had already pulled out of the race.
Justin Sedgmen, in for Risager, then embarked on a punishing schedule of three rides in three races and appeared to be doing significant damage to Bees' chances, first with an impressive win over Lewis Bridger in Heat 2 as Pawlicki's replacement Aaron Summers held Cory Gathercole at bay for third place.
Sedgmen leapt from the start again in Heat 3 but this time he was reeled in by Edward Kennett, with the Bees man making his move around turns three and four on the third lap to take the lead. With Barker holding third place, Bees were briefly level, but Sedgmen was to the fore again in Heat 4 as he gated with Simon Stead, and a shock 5-1 looked on the cards for some time until Chris Harris managed to split the pairing at the start of the last lap.
Swindon did gain their 5-1 in Heat 5, though, as Lyons showed he still possesses plenty of ability at this level with a fast start and fast win, whilst Korneliussen wound up the outside line to first go beyond Sweetman at the end of the first lap. He then gained ground on Andersen and with the Coventry guest riding mid-track, Korneliussen kept on the outside and snatched second place on the line with an excellent ride.
Heat 6 was pulled back just as Harris thought he had the drop over Adams, and in the re-run it was the Swindon skipper who took control as Harris and Bridger kept Korneliussen at the back - but the meeting began to turn in the next race, which featured a thrilling battle between Kennett and Stead. The Bees man was on the outside, with Stead maintaining the inside line, and they were neck and neck for the majority of the four laps before Kennett moved clear. Behind them, Barker nipped inside Gathercole for third place as Bees cut the gap to four points.
Heat 8 was shared with Korneliussen gating and Bridger and Sweetman occasionally getting a little too close to each other as they chased - but Bees' switching of reserves certainly worked out as Summers then made an excellent start in Heat 9 to join Harris at the front, and in the battle of the Birmingham riders Summers held Lyons at bay to bring Bees level at 27-27.
Then came the race of the night with Adams seemingly take control as he has done on so many occasions throughout his career, only to be reeled in by Barker midway through the race. Suddenly Adams was having to defend against Barker's speed, and the Bees man twice nearly made it down the inside into the third bend before just having to pull out of the move. Into turns three and four, however, Barker took a wide entry, cut back sharply and dramatically won the race to the line for a brilliant win which will have given him as much satisfaction as his Heat 10 success over Adams at the same venue in last year's play-off semi-final.
With Kennett defeating the up-and-down Korneliussen for third place, Bees had the lead briefly, but this was quickly pulled back again when Stead got the better of Andersen in Heat 11, the two passing and re-passing on the second lap, as Sedgmen held third place over Sweetman.
But Bees finally took control of the meeting with another big 5-1 in Heat 12, Barker flying away from the outside for the win and Bridger moving inside Lyons at the end of the first lap to come through to second place.
A 3-3 in Heat 13 was an acceptable result for the Bees as Adams resumed his winning ways but Stead was pegged at the back behind Andersen and Harris, so that left the visitors needing an advantage from the penultimate race to ensure victory.
And that was exactly what they achieved, Kennett completing an impressive performance with an untroubled win ahead of a rather frantic battle for the minor places as Summers found himself between the Swindon riders, looking quicker than Gathercole but having to avoid any errors which would have given Lyons the opportunity to pass him. Bees came through with a 4-2, and that made sure of their second Blunsdon victory this term.
Adams was clearly determined to go out on a high, and the Swindon captain did just that, gating with Stead to a 5-1 over Harris and Barker, which was a fitting way to sign off his Blunsdon league career - but it was far from enough to spoil Coventry's night, as the Buildbase Bees head into the most critical phase of their season still on a major high.
