Eager Monarchs bid to tame Bears

HIGH-FLYING Edinburgh Scotwaste Monarchs stand on the brink of reaching the last four of this year's speedway Knockout Cup competition if they can put the squeeze on their quarter-final opponents Redcar Bears.

The first leg takes place on Teesside tonight and Monarchs host the deciding tie at Armadale tomorrow night. The Capital outfit haven't tasted success against Redcar for two years and are keen to end the jinx.

With William Lawson and Thomas Jonasson missing tonight and Andrew Tully and Jonasson both absent tomorrow, Monarchs must ensure they keep the score close at Redcar. They don't want to be chasing a big deficit at home.

Monarchs promoter John Campbell is acutely aware of the danger Redcar duo James Grieves and Gary Havelock will pose in both matches. He said: "Both men are capable of scoring a lot of points, we will have to run Redcar pretty close tonight to make sure we progress.

"Their reserve Arlo Bugeja could also be a danger. He rode in our recent Jubilee meeting and was a nobody. But he is not a nobody around Redcar. He is hard into the first corner and a good points scorer."

Monarchs have booked in King's Lynn's Tomas Topinka as a guest for Lawson, who is riding in the British Final at Swindon, and will use the rider replacement facility to cover for Jonasson, who badly needs a break from his foreign commitments, in order to get to grips with the Armadale track which he is still trying to figure out.

But the Swede's absence is a big blow for Campbell. "Thomas doesn't show the form round Armadale that he does at away tracks," he said. "Had he shown his away form at Armadale on Friday, we would have scored 75 against Scunthorpe. But it's a real blow that he is missing because he is capable of scoring a maximum at Redcar, it's a big loss".

At least Monarchs, who picked up their second away league win at Scunthorpe on Monday, will track Tully for the opening leg, but he's taking part in a World under-21 qualifier on Friday.

The Bathgate rider is in sensational form right now and is by far the most potent reserve performer in the Premier League. He has racked up 41 points from his last three away trips and his performance could have a huge bearing on the contest.

"We will get a guest for Andrew on Friday," said Campbell, "But whoever we find cannot hope to match his current scoring rate."

Skipper Derek Sneddon and Aaron Summers didn't score too heavily at Scunthorpe this week – yet Monarchs still had enough in their tank to win a difficult test.

It's this resolve which Campbell thinks will prevail against Redcar. He said: "The team is in the same frame of mind as myself – they can't wait to get out on the track because they are doing so well.

"You can tell that the whole team will go that extra yard to get to the front, whereas lesser riders, like Scunthorpe's Richard Hall for instance, backed off against us last Friday. That's what happens when your team is so full of confidence – as we are right now. But these are going to be two big matches for us."

Redcar won at Glasgow on Sunday, but their form round their own Teesside base has been a bit up and down. Monarchs were only two behind when their league encounter was abandoned there in April. If this was the gap at the end of this evening's 15 heats, Monarchs would feel they had one foot in the semi finals.