Scorpions show resilience to clinch final place

PETERBOROUGH PANTHERS 51 SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 39 (CHAMPIONSHIP KNOCKOUT CUP, semi-final, first leg)
Scunthorpe win 98-82 on aggregate

HENDERSON INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions have done it! Scorpions have reached the Knockout Cup at second tier level for the first time in the club’s history, after completing a 98-82 aggregate victory over Peterborough Panthers at the East Of England Arena last night (Saturday).

Holding a 28-point advantage after a fantastic performance in the first leg at Scunthorpe’s Eddie Wright Raceway, Scorpions saw that lead halved in the first six races, as Peterborough came right back into the tie, with Panthers marching 25-11 ahead on the night.

However, Scorpions then rallied, starting with a key 5-1 from Jake Allen and Jason Garrity in Heat 7.

Skipper Steve Worrall ended the unbeaten runs of both flying Panthers’ reserve Simon Lambert and Thomas Jorgensen in Heat 9, with Worrall pressuring Jorgensen into a mistake to slip by and take the race win.

Scorpions edged ever closer with a 4-2 from a lively Heat 10, with Garrity winning the race, while Allen came third, after a battle royal with Ricky Wells and Emil Grondal for the minor placings.

Scorpions’ guest Kyle Howarth had endured a nightmare start to the evening, with machinery problems just before Heat 1, prompting a last-minute change to his spare bike, and then touching the tapes in Heat 5. Howarth came alive to post a second place in Heat 11, and Scorpions only needed to take two more points off Panthers.

Those were picked up in Heat 12. Garrity ran Lambert wide on the second bend, enabling himself and Gino Manzares to come home in the minor placings in a 3-3.

Scorpions were practically already there, needing just two finishers in the final three races. But any mathematical doubt was removed in Heat 13, where Worrall posted his second successive race win. Howarth nearly joined him for a 5-1, but lost out in a battle for second place to Wells. But it didn’t matter… Scorpions were through and their fans on the back straight celebrated wildly.

Allen won Heat 14, while the final race was also shared, with Allen recovering from fourth to overhaul Grondal and join Worrall for a 3-3.

Panthers won the second leg by 51-39, while Scorpions were through to the final by 16 points on aggregate, having outscored the hosts by 28-26 in the final nine races.

Allen (11), Worrall (10+1) and Garrity (8+2) were all paid for double figures, while Stefan Nielsen, Manzares and Howarth all picked up vital points during the evening. For Panthers, Lambert was exceptional with paid 17, while Wells, Jorgensen and Carl Wilkinson all proved excellent guests.

Speaking post-meeting, Scorpions’ skipper Steve Worrall said: “It’s great to get through to the cup final. Who would have thought it – a couple of months ago we had a patchwork team and life was a struggle. But we’ve put in two solid performances by the whole team and deserve our place in the final.

“Peterborough did build up a bit of momentum early on. At that point, it’s tough, because it’s so easy for us to allow our morale to drop and everyone to start to get flustered. But that didn’t really happen – we just kept pushing on, fine tuning the bikes, and it paid off.

“When Jason (Garrity) and Jake (Allen) went out and took the 5-1 (from Heat 7), that spurred on the rest of the team.

“I swapped bikes after two races, because my No 1 bike just wasn’t doing what I wanted it to do. The second bike was ten times better and was the bike I used here last year, when I barely dropped a point here. As a rider, you’re always looking for something better, but maybe I should have stuck with what I knew worked around here.

“We’ve just got to go that one step further now and beat Workington in the final. They’re a strong outfit, but it’s all about who scores the most points over the two legs.”

PETERBOROUGH 51: Simon Lambert 15+2, Ricky Wells 12+1, Emil Grondal 10, Thomas Jorgensen 8+2, Carl Wilkinson 6+1, Ulrich Ostergaard 0, Bradley Wilson-Dean r/r.
SCUNTHORPE 39: Jake Allen 11, Steve Worrall 10+1, Jason Garrity 8+2, Stefan Nielsen 4, Gino Manzares 3+2, Kyle Howarth 3, Danny Phillips 0.
Scunthorpe win 98-82 on aggregate.

* THE first leg of the Knockout Cup final, between Scunthorpe Scorpions and Workington Comets, will take place at Scunthorpe’s Eddie Wright Raceway on Sunday, October 21st at 5pm. The evening will also accommodate the British 125cc Championship in the second half.