COVENTRY Storm went agonisingly close to taking a league point from their 40-50 defeat at Stoke on Saturday.
The City Gearboxes Storm, who face the Potters and King’s Lynn in a double-header at Brandon on Sunday (2pm), were only once more than six points down on the night.
Unfortunately, that one occasion was immediately after the final race of the match, Heat 15, when maximum man Lee Payne combined with Jon Armstrong for a 5-1 after the Storm’s Martin Knuckey had been disqualified.
The visitors’ top five were solid with Rob Shuttleworth excelling on his return to his home track of last season as he won his first three races.
There was a positive debut from Mark Baseby, after a lengthy time out of the sport, whilst Knuckey also kept up his strong form but came to grief in the early stages of the last race after previously scoring ten points.
After Stoke went into an initial four-point lead Shuttleworth combined with skipper Dan Greenwood for a 5-1 in Heat 5 which levelled the scores at 15-15, but successive Potters 4-2s followed which rebuilt the home side’s advantage - and the majority of the races in the second half of the meeting were shared.
The exceptions were a 4-2 to the Potters in Heat 11 which put them six points clear as Shuttleworth finally missed out, and their maximum advantage in the last race to take them ten up, making the final scoreline somewhat harsh on the Storm.
Manager Laurence Rogers said: “It was so close to a point for us, and it’s a shame we just missed out.
“Obviously Stoke’s strength at reserve told with 12 (paid 15) for them compared to one for our two kids there, but they both battled hard and are riders for the future.
“Rob was outstanding in his first three rides and it gave me a dilemma for Heat 15, I went with Marty along with Dan because he’d come from the back to win Heat 14 and looked very fast, but unfortunately he got a tough first turn from Lee Payne and the referee judged him to be at fault and disqualified him.
“Mark Baseby was a big plus as well, he led his first race and then he came from the back to win his last one, so he got better as the night went on and he’s now gone home to work on his machinery ready for Sunday.
“It’s disappointing to miss out on a point but now we must make the most of our home matches starting tomorrow, it’s onwards and upwards for that and we hope for plenty of support.â€
STOKE 50: Lee Payne 15, Jon Armstrong 10+1, Shaun Tedham 7+1, Paul Burnett 5+2, Danny Phillips 5+1, Chris Widman 4+1, Ryan Terry-Daley 4+1. COVENTRY 40: Martin Knuckey 10, Rob Shuttleworth 9, Darryl Ritchings 8+1, Dan Greenwood 7+1, Mark Baseby 5+1, Callum Walker 1, Jamie Halder 0.
