Monday briefing

Next meeting: Wednesday 29 May, Poole Pirates v Jewson Bandits, start 7.30pm. Cab Direct Championship

Next home meeting: Saturday, 1 June, Jewson Bandits v Scunthorpe Scorpions, 7pm. Cab Direct Championship

So the Jewson Bandits, powered by Keenwood Karpets, end the weekend on top of the Cab Direct Championship, on points difference from Workington after victory over Plymouth on Saturday.

Most of the focus this week will be on our number one Lewis Kerr who is due to have scans to discover the extent of the damage to his leg.

Having successfully made his comeback from a fractured ankle and the subsequent five-week layoff at Scunthorpe the previous night his Shielfield return didn’t make it past the first bend of heat one.

He and Plymouth guest Connor Mountain were determined get to the first bend in front, Danyon Hume off the inside gate also getting involved in the three-into-one rush for Norfolk first bend supremacy.

Mountain initially hit the dirt but got up and dusted himself down. Lewis was not so lucky in the rerun, hitting the deck hard with his previously damaged leg bearing the brunt. After medical treatment – and having been withdrawn from the meeting – Lewis was driven back home and will undergo further medical tests this week.

With our next meeting not for ten days we await the medical bulletin although initially the hope was that it was ligament damage rather than a further break or fracture.

Mountain certainly made hay against the Bandits last weekend, racking up 24 and three bonus points over the two meetings. His previous best at Shielfield Park was nine points for the Scorpions last year and as a Leicester rider in 2019.

Rory Schlein’s 15-point haul was his best as a Bandit and his highest haul at Shielfield Park since an 18-point maximum in Ipswich colours in 2018. Roo Boy also scored 15 for the Witches here in 2017.

Bastian Borke’s 11+1 was a British career best, surpassing his 9+2 for the Bandits against Edinburgh, itself the same as he scored in Monarchs’ colours against Berwick in the 2023 meeting which alerted us to his prodigious talent. It was achieved in front of his proud parents who were in the main stand at Shielfield along with friends and relatives from Denmark.

Also in his corner this weekend was Kamil Jozwiak who looks after Bastian’s bikes in the European leagues. The vastly experienced mechanic began his career at Gdansk in 2009 and has worked for Mikkel Bech and Kai Huckenbeck in the Danish, Swedish and Polish leagues and has previous worked with Kacper Gomolski and Hans Anderson in Britain.

Shielfield Park’s ability to exist within its own weather zone was to the fore again on Saturday.

Plymouth fans making their way from Scotland and those travelling from around the Borders left glorious sunshine and temperatures in the early-20s only to find the old homestead considerably colder and shrouded in, what was at times quite thick, fog. And fog it was rather than the more usual sea fret which can roll in and out with the tides.

It caused us problems last season too, the Bullets match against Kent – part of a double header involving the Bandits’ Championship clash with Scunthorpe – truncated after 11 heats as visibility deteriorated.

And of course there was the infamous Border Trophy clash with Workington in 1974 was abandoned after just one heat with few in the stadium aware of what had gone on.

Fortunately, nothing that severe on Saturday although visibility did ebb and flow at times but it was responsible for a cold, damp atmosphere which affected the performances of some engines and may have contributed to some of the patchiness on the track which led to a major regrade after heat seven.

Among the crowd on Saturday night were members of the motorcycling fraternity attending the B.A.S.M.C.C. 11^th annual Monks Rally which had converted a portion of the car park into a camp site.

All 300 pitches for the rally were sold out well in advance and the three-day event also included live bands in the Black and Gold.

Over the years the rally has become a huge event with the local takeaways, supermarkets and off-licences, not to mention the B&G doing roaring trade and earning the car park owners, Northumberland County Council a healthy rental income.

Despite the sea of tents there was still plenty of free parking space available for the speedway spectators even if their favourite spot might have been taken.

And the verdict from the men and women who don’t bat an eyelid at roaring around country lanes on 1,000cc monsters on their speedway counterparts? “Must be mad, that’s terrifying,” one told me.

Quote unquote

Boss man Stewart Dickson: “I thought we showed a lot of character and commitment to bounce back from a very bad night at Scunthorpe.

“Another home win keeps the supporters happy and we have to keep doing that.”

Perfectionist Drew Kemp: “I’m not too happy with my riding even though the points are ok. There’s a bit of a gap now until our next fixture and that will give me a chance have a bit of a reset.”

Bastian Borke apologises for wearing his gating gloves: “In tough conditions it was good to be making starts. Maybe not as exciting for the fans but nice for me!”

Bandits promoter Steve Dews: “It was an interesting night which threw up a lot of different challenges. As always our thanks go to the staff and volunteers a fair few of whom had to put in a big shift!”

For the record

Averages, valid from 1 June subject to confirmation of the status of Lewis Kerr’s incompleted ride v Plymouth

2024 Only

*Bonus points do not count towards averages

Pictures: Ian Rispin