Speedway: Ipswich lose first leg of Knockout Cup final
There's a twenty point deficit
Last updated 3rd Sep 2024
Ipswich Witches will have a lot of work to do to retain their Knockout Cup title, after they were beaten 55-35 by Sheffield last night in the first leg of the final.
They remain without their top two riders, Jason Doyle and Emil Sayfutdinov, due to injuries.
Jaimon Lidsey and Tom Brennan guested in their absence.
Witches team manager Ritchie Hawkins reflected on the defeat at Sheffield: “It was a far bigger deficit than we were looking to pull back on Thursday.
"It is quite clear that we have lost our race winners, and we are not winning enough races without them. That was the big difference and there were heats that we needed to attack for heat advantages...
“The guests are coming in and doing a decent job, but you are never going to get a like for like replacement. I was really pleased with the commitment from Jaimon and Tom, and they gave everything for the team.
"You are not going to get straight replacements for Jason and Emil, we know that.
“It was great to see so many of our fans up there, the support was amazing as always. It is even more appreciated now when we know things are tough and it was nice to chat to a few of them after the meeting who are very loyal and understanding of the situation we are in at the moment.
“We go into Thursday with the boys determined not to roll over and to put everything into pulling the points back. We have had big wins at home in the past and if we can get on a roll, you never know.”
The second leg's on Thursday at Foxhall.