Ipswich Witches 52 Workington Comets 41
Workington Comets ran title hopefuls Ipswich Witches closer than most in a 52-41 defeat at Foxhall last night.
Star guest Chris Harris started his night with a warning to stay still in the opening heat but he made no mistake in the rerun, cruising to victory ahead of Danny King while Mason Campton came agonisingly close to making it a Comets heat advantage until Kyle Newman rounded him on the final lap for third.
James Sarjeant failed to make the desired impact on his old track in heat two, being warned for moving at the start before finishing third in an Ipswich 5-1 through Connor Mountain and Nathan Greaves.
Comets responded with a 4-2 in heat three, gating at the front before Cameron Heeps split Ty Proctor and Matt Williamson. Again the visitor gated strongly in heat four but Tom Woolley couldn’t put up much of a fight against Rory Schlein and Connor Mountain, with Schlein sneaking past Thomas Jorgensen for another Ipswich 4-2.
Harris showed his typical determination to pass Heeps for the win in heat five, while Campton capitalised to take third as Greaves fell to peg the Witches back again.
Jorgensen became the third Comet to be warned for movement at the start in heat six but there was no question who nailed the start in the rerun, with King racing away from the pack and soon joined by Newman for a home 5-1.
Schlein and Greaves, who was in for Sedgmen, almost hit another 5-1 in heat seven but Proctor stood firm in second as a 4-2 made it 25-17 to the hosts.
Campton battled hard to an impressive victory in heat eight but it couldn’t dent Ipswich’s lead as Sarjeant wound up last on what was quickly becoming a night to forget at his former home track.
Sarjeant continued to frustrate as he started from 15 metres back in heat nine after destroying the tapes, almost catching Sedgmen while Jorgensen followed Heeps in a home 4-2 as the Witches went 10 points up.
The Witches have lost just once in the league at Foxhall this season and they continued to show why with another 5-1 in heat 10, though Proctor kept King and Newman on their toes throughout as Williamson fell at the back.
Harris was the obvious choice for a tactical ride and he showed why with a stunning win in heat 11, closely followed by Campton for a huge 8-1 which made the last four races interesting.
Heeps and Proctor traded blows in heat 12 with the Witch coming out on top but Sarjeant was third as Mountain’s engine failed to share the points and make it 41-34.
A thrilling heat 13 saw King and Schlein squeeze out Harris, who was unbeaten until then, for a 5-1 which gave the home side some breathing room. But a Comets 4-2 from Williamson and Sarjeant in the penultimate race left them in with a slim chance of taking a point from the meeting.
It was short-lived as Proctor hit the deck and was excluded from heat 15 but was thankfully quickly on his feet.
Harris had a thankless task in the rerun but he gave it everything to nudge his way between the home duo.
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