PETERBOROUGH were beaten 56-40 in their final away meeting of the Premier League season last night (Friday) – but their hopes of snatching a play-off spot remain alive.
Another high-scoring display from in-form skipper Ulrich Ostergaard, who racked up a tactical ride-boosted haul of 14 points, was not enough to prevent the ‘TC Harrison’ Panthers from being beaten at Plymouth for the second time in three weeks.
Panthers arrived at the St Boniface Arena operating rider replacement for departed Richard Hall and were dealt a blow when guest Gino Manzares – taking the place of the retired Ales Dryml - withdrew with a leg injury following spills in his opening two rides.
Fellow Witches man Morten Risager – in for Lasse Bjerre at number one – came home at the rear in his opening two rides before getting among the points later in the contest. He successfully completed a tactical ride in heat 11.
Ostergaard, who has now scored 40 points in three meetings, and Risager were involved in all three of Panthers’ race advantages, two of which arrived during the double-points missions ahead of a 4-2 in the finale.
There was also a steady stream of points at reserve, especially from Nicki Barrett who was paid for 10 in a gruelling seven-ride shift, but Panthers were never in contention for the victory that team boss Carl Johnson felt they required.
He admitted: “We’ve had bad luck with injuries, we’ve had two riders retire and we’ve had team changes not go to plan.
"Even last night we brought in a guest who ended up on the deck twice in a couple of nasty crashes. Things just haven't gone our way, but you have to make your own luck in speedway.
“We’ve been relying on two or three riders to score big points in too many meetings lately and it has taken its toll.
“Mathematically the play-offs are still a possibility, but realistically I don’t now expect us to get there.
“Regardless of whether or not we are still in contention, we need to make sure we finish the league season in style against Rye House tomorrow.
“And we need plenty of fans to come out and get behind us. Hopefully we can all make it a good day with a good result.”
Panthers entertain the Rockets at the East of England Showground (2.30pm) in a meeting followed by the British 150cc Final.
For now they remain two points off the final play-off spot currently occupied by Newcastle, who finish their season at Edinburgh on Saturday.
Fellow play-off hopefuls Workington, who sit level with Panthers in the standings, were bashed 64-28 at Somerset last night but have a home double-header against bottom side Sheffield to look forward to on Saturday.
Glasgow dropped out of contention after losing 65-29 at Scottish rivals Edinburgh on Friday.
SCORES
PLYMOUTH: Rasmus Jensen 12+1, Edward Kennett 11+1 (guest), Kyle Newman 9+2, James Wright 8+2, Sam Simota 7, Roland Benko 5, Josef Franc 4+1
‘TC HARRISON’ PANTHERS: Ulrich Ostergaard 14, Nicki Barrett 9+1, Morten Risager (guest) 9, Adam Roynon 5+1, Max Dilger 3+1, Gino Manzares (guest) 0 - withdrawn, Rider replacement for Richard Hall.