PETERBOROUGH staged a remarkable second half turnaround to secure a 50-40 win over Swindon in another pulsating East of England Arena encounter.
The Crendon Panthers looked to be seriously up against it when they trailed by eight points after Heat 6 – but they roared back to take victory in thrilling fashion.
Australian star Rohan Tungate ran a last in his opening ride but hit back to win his remaining four, including a brilliant pass on former World Champion Jason Doyle –and at reserve, Ricky Wells proved to be an inspired guest as he matched Tungate’s 12-point total.
And the win moves Panthers back into third place in the Premiership table, and firmly in the play-off race in their first season back at this level.
Peterborough provided three of the first six heat winners – but the other three races were all Swindon 5-1s, with Heat 6 particularly disastrous as both Hans Andersen and Josh Bates suffered mechanical trouble.
But there had already been encouraging signs from Wells, whilst Scott Nicholls pulled off a fine win over Doyle in Heat 5.
The meeting began to turn, though, in Heat 9 when Charles Wright hit the front and Nicholls switched inside Troy Batchelor on the second bend to narrow the gap to just two points.
And it was level pegging after an epic Heat 10, won by Wells, in which skipper Hans Andersen fought out a no-holds-barred battle with countryman Rasmus Jensen, with Wells and backmarker Adam Ellis also very much involved.
Tungate was under pressure from David Bellego in Heat 11 but simply turned on the power and roared past race leader Doyle – and that seemed to give Panthers the impetus to go on.
Wells and Nicholls got the better of Jensen for a 5-1 in Heat 12 to put them in front for the first time, and then there was high drama in the next with Doyle falling on turn four in the midst of a scrap with Andersen and Tungate, as Panthers moved eight points up.
With the Robins not deploying a tactical substitute in Heat 14, Wright took advantage to use the inside and pass Ellis for victory, and it was then left to Tungate to leave Swindon point-less from the meeting by seeing off Jensen and Doyle in the finale.
Peterborough boss Carl Johnson said: “We’ve struggled at the start of meetings and come good towards the end, and we’ve done it again.
“I’m really pleased – from being eight points down to winning by ten, it’s a fantastic meeting for us.
“We knew we had to do something, change things that weren’t working, and all of a sudden it was like flicking a light switch. The boys performed, they showed the aggression and this is what we’re all about.
“Ricky was a fantastic guest, I couldn’t have asked for any more. A lot of people questioned me bringing him in, but it was justified. There was no pressure on him, I told him to go out and enjoy his racing, and the lad rode well.”
Panthers now have ten days off prior to hosting Ipswich on Monday July 1, but all roads lead to the East of England Arena this Sunday as the club stages the Championship Fours, starting at 2pm.
PETERBOROUGH 50: Rohan Tungate 12, Ricky Wells 12, Charles Wright 8, Scott Nicholls 7+2, Hans Andersen 5+1, Aaron Summers 5, Josh Bates 1+1. SWINDON 40: Rasmus Jensen 10, Jason Doyle 8+1, David Bellego 6+2, Troy Batchelor 5+1, Ellis Perks 5+1, Adam Ellis 4+1, Paul Starke 2.