PREVIEW: Massive Bank Holiday Monday ahead for Spires
BETGOODWIN Oxford Spires head into their Bank Holiday Monday (May 5) double header against Birmingham Brummies knowing the importance of getting off the mark in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership. The two sides meet at the BetGoodwin Oxford Stadium at 1pm – with the return at Perry Barr in Birmingham at 7.30pm.
Spires have yet to record a victory in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership this season. But neither have Birmingham Brummies, so something must give on Monday.
Both sides have made changes ahead of the key clashes. For Spires, experienced former British Champion Craig Cook comes in for young Latvian Francis Gusts at reserve. Gusts started the season showing plenty of promise, but scored 0, 1 and 2+1 in his final three outings for Spires. Cook averaged 7.16 in a four-match spell for Spires last season – including a sensational 16-point haul at Sheffield – as a 28-day injury replacement for the injured Lewis Kerr.
Birmingham have experienced visa issues involving former Grand Prix star Matej Zagar and have brought in Paco Castagna and Danyon Hume to replace the Slovenian and Antti Vuolas.
Charles Wright will be fit for Spires. He suffered a hand injury in the televised meeting at King’s Lynn, but a subsequent hospital revealed no bones were broken.
Spires’ team manager Peter Schroeck said: “The two meetings on Bank Holiday Monday are very important – we need to get at least one victory under our belts, although we will aim to win both meetings against Birmingham.
“My thanks goes out to the fans for their patience and support, but we know we have to start winning home meetings with the Spires.
“There’s always tough decisions to make, and we made one by releasing Francis. I do feel for him, because had the rest of the team been performing to expectations, then we could have given him more time. He’s a very talented young rider and some of his early performances for Spires showed his potential. In the long-term, we would not rule out bringing him back in the future.
“I’m delighted to welcome back Craig Cook to Oxford. He had a 28-day-spell with us last season. Craig was an injury replacement for Lewi Kerr, and once Lewi was ready to return, we let Craig go. It was a show of loyalty to Lewi, but with hindsight, we should have kept Craig – who had put in impressive displays at Sheffield and Belle Vue. We know Craig is a solid scorer, especially at reserve.
“Of course, it’s not just about the reserves and the rest of the team know what we expect of them. One or two them know they need to start performing, starting in the two meetings against Birmingham on Monday.”
Tickets are already on sale for the home meeting on the Oxford Speedway website at https://oxfordspeedway.club/tickets/
Admission is available at the early bird price of £23 for all adults, which increases to £25 on Race Day. All under-16s go free. A reminder that Oxford Speedway is online ticket sales only – tickets remain on sale on the website until the start-time of the meeting. Spectators are also reminded that they will need to pay £2 if they are planning to park in the Unipart car park.
The first 600 supporters through the turnstiles on Monday will receive a free drinks voucher. The voucher will be valid for this meeting only, and entitles them to either a free pint or soft drink. Gates open at 11am.
Teams:
BetGoodwin Oxford Spires: Maciej Janowski (C), Erik Riss, Charles Wright, Peter Kildemand, Rohan Tungate, Craig Cook, Luke Killeen (RS).
Curtis Sport Birmingham Brummies: Tobiasz Musielak (C), Paco Castagna, Jonas Jeppesen, Keynan Rew, Michael Jepsen Jensen, Danyon Hume, Jason Edwards (RS).
PHOTO: Erik Riss and Luke Killeen on a 5-1 in the previous Bank Holiday Monday meeting against Leicester (pic: Steve Edmunds)