lisa-colette 6,049 Posted April 26 5 hours ago, Noelinho said: I am not so confident. I’d just be happy with a win of any sort. I think we will struggle big time at reserve, and I fancy Nicholls to have the better of Worrall tonight. Seriously? Oxford are short of a HL atm. 2 hours ago, Nickinho said: Boughen's looked good so far this season and I think Killeen will like this track more than the smaller ones. If Jenkins gets the better of Flint then this first leg could be a difficult proposition tonight. Really??? The same JJ that has struggled a lot so far that Oxford fans want him replaced by Riss. That JJ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jaizer 2,879 Posted April 26 Wow didn't see that coming from smudge. Match winner and no mistake. Just a thought would gilkes and smith fit if worst case scenario needs to replace our reserves? Best wishes to ace hope not broken wrist as updates suggest. Strange decisions I thought from Oxford TM, hard to judge as wasn't there but not giving a 16 yo a ride for 6 heats when track would be very different seemed odd..as did replacing Killeen and not Atkins after the former had led bomber for 2.5 laps. How did Leon look? I know times mean little but heat win nearly 3 seconds slower than boughen the heat before seems drastic Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gazc 7,140 Posted April 26 7 minutes ago, Jaizer said: Wow didn't see that coming from smudge. Match winner and no mistake. Just a thought would gilkes and smith fit if worst case scenario needs to replace our reserves? Best wishes to ace hope not broken wrist as updates suggest. Strange decisions I thought from Oxford TM, hard to judge as wasn't there but not giving a 16 yo a ride for 6 heats when track would be very different seemed odd..as did replacing Killeen and not Atkins after the former had led bomber for 2.5 laps. How did Leon look? I know times mean little but heat win nearly 3 seconds slower than boughen the heat before seems drastic Leon looked better tonight but still lacking speed his track craft more than anything got him through. Think we would have took 12 points before it started and some great racing again. Sets things up nicely for Wednesday. And take a bow Jack Smith absolutely superb. 2 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MD 1,319 Posted April 26 25 minutes ago, Gazc said: Leon looked better tonight but still lacking speed his track craft more than anything got him through. Think we would have took 12 points before it started and some great racing again. Sets things up nicely for Wednesday. And take a bow Jack Smith absolutely superb. Leon lacks speed into the third bend making him vulnerable coming off the fourth though much better tonight. Smith made it much more comfortable than expected especially when Pijper crashed out. Makes Wednesday very interesting though choice of guest for Ace will be crucial if he is out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SilentLurker 106 Posted April 26 Do not think anybody was predicting a 12 point win this evening. Some superb racing especially with heat 12. Special mention to Jack Smith who has certainly improved as a rider and ended up scoring paid more than the other 3 reserves combined. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MB723 10 Posted April 26 Smith riding like he's been told there's a contract available, man of the match only out scored by Harris. Might be worth experimenting swapping Pearson and Starke at home, Pearson looking much more comfortable. Leon to me still not good enough, his 2 3rds were very nearly lasts and his 2 wins were heats he should be easily winning. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gazc 7,140 Posted April 26 5 minutes ago, MB723 said: Smith riding like he's been told there's a contract available, man of the match only out scored by Harris. Might be worth experimenting swapping Pearson and Starke at home, Pearson looking much more comfortable. Leon to me still not good enough, his 2 3rds were very nearly lasts and his 2 wins were heats he should be easily winning. Leon scored paid 10 from 4 rides which for your 3rd heat leader is more than acceptable. I agree he is still lacking speed but with our injury/suspension issues he is the least of our worries. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cast1rn 467 Posted April 26 Steve Worral looking good out the gates tonight and also think he had more passes tonight than he did in 3 seasons at Wimborne road. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joseq7 363 Posted April 26 45 minutes ago, Gazc said: Leon scored paid 10 from 4 rides which for your 3rd heat leader is more than acceptable. I agree he is still lacking speed but with our injury/suspension issues he is the least of our worries. What caught my eye about Leon was that he wasn't very smooth. I sit at the 3rd bend and he seemed to be making a helluva lot of effort, whilst others, such as Jimmy P, appeared to be nice and smooth. Obviously I wasn't taping everyone and analysing them in detail, but it caught my eye. As the 3rd bend is my usual perch I must compliment the track staff on whatever they've done to the 3rd bend. The racing tonight was just fantastic. I didn't think Ashfield could get any better. Jeezo, that Ashton Boughen looks a prospect. He's a bit "watch him through yer fingers" but boy has the lad got some speed. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
szkocjasid 3,116 Posted April 26 2 hours ago, Jaizer said: Wow didn't see that coming from smudge. Match winner and no mistake. Just a thought would gilkes and smith fit if worst case scenario needs to replace our reserves? Best wishes to ace hope not broken wrist as updates suggest. Strange decisions I thought from Oxford TM, hard to judge as wasn't there but not giving a 16 yo a ride for 6 heats when track would be very different seemed odd..as did replacing Killeen and not Atkins after the former had led bomber for 2.5 laps. Gilkes average is far higher than Glasgow's bottom 4, so no chance of him signing. I thought the same thing too about Boughen, by getting Killeen's minimum 3 rides "out of the way" Boughen had to go in 3 out of 4 races, probably tiring man & machine, so that wasn't clever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheWellBehavedWorrall 305 Posted April 26 That was a great win, but it felt closer than a twelve points swing. I thought Masters and Nicholls looked untouchable at times. Masters had mechanical issues at Ashfield towards the end of last season too. Nightmare for him. That Flint and Starke pairing is doing exactly what is expected in terms of points, but I don’t know what it is; Flint doesn’t look comfortable around Ashfield and Starke appears to lack pace, rendering neither a threat to the rider ahead of them. Pijper versus Boughen in heat two was outstanding. 17 and 16 years-old respectively and they’re weaving in and out of one another. We’ll be watching them go toe-to-toe at a much higher level in the future, I’m sure. Best wishes to Pijper. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MB723 10 Posted April 27 2 hours ago, Gazc said: Leon scored paid 10 from 4 rides which for your 3rd heat leader is more than acceptable. I agree he is still lacking speed but with our injury/suspension issues he is the least of our worries. I only mentioned Flint because if Lee is banned we may be forced into very early team changes and him or Starke could be in danger of losing a spot (don't think it'd be fair on either), both need to be on their A game. Hope Lee is back and we can focus on getting all the riders comfortable instead of making any changes. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paulco 7,101 Posted April 27 Turned into a terrific meeting after a slow start . We were helped by Masters' engine failure in heat 11 as he had looked untouchable until that point . But a 12 point lead , which looked unlikely after 7 heats , is in the fun zone . A decent lead to defend , but not unassailable. What can you say about Jack Smith that hasn't already been said ? Best I've ever seen him ride , and boy did we need it . Wishing young Ace a speedy recovery and the second leg should be a cracker . 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
szkocjasid 3,116 Posted April 27 (edited) 7 hours ago, MB723 said: I only mentioned Flint because if Lee is banned we may be forced into very early team changes and him or Starke could be in danger of losing a spot (don't think it'd be fair on either), both need to be on their A game. Hope Lee is back and we can focus on getting all the riders comfortable instead of making any changes. Sign Smith if Complin gets banned, no need to drop anyone else (yet) Edited April 27 by szkocjasid 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Toady 231 Posted April 27 12 hours ago, lisa-colette said: Seriously? Oxford are short of a HL atm. Really??? The same JJ that has struggled a lot so far that Oxford fans want him replaced by Riss. That JJ? Who wants him replaced ? As someone said you don’t go from a good rider to bad overnight and I am sure JJ will ride this out. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
