MATTHEW WETHERS and Ryan Fisher are not winning enough races at the moment, according to Edinburgh Scotwaste Monarchs boss John Campbell.
Speaking ahead of the Capital speedway side's Premier League visit to Somerset Rebels tonight, Campbell says his two most experienced riders must step up a gear if Monarchs are to successfully defend their championship crown.
After Monarchs labou
red to defeat Glasgow Tigers in the Premier Trophy at Armadale on Friday, Wethers observed: "The whole team needs to click together at the same time."
However Campbell said: "Matthew is the one I hoped would have been doing better than he is at present. He is the only one, other than Sean Stoddart, who has reduced his average.
"Apart from an extraordinary heat-13 race at Sheffield on Thursday, I don't think Matthew has performed as well as he should have done.
"He is capable of more but is losing some really bad rides on occasions. We need everyone to be at their best this evening and we need Ryan to be winning races.
"He is not winning many races at the moment and this is hindering us a little.
"Ryan is concerned about it but doesn't know the cause. Obviously as his frustration grows he does stupid things like falling off for no good reason. If he would just sit tight sometimes he would pick up two points instead of nothing at all when he falls off."
With the expected return from injury of Thomas Jonasson, Monarchs will be at full strength against the Rebels and are keen to make up for their 49-44 reverse at Scunthorpe last week despite still picking up a point.
Campbell reflected: "It wasn't one of our target matches but it would have been nice had we won. If Ryan had been on top form and, if Thomas had done as well as he did there last season, we would have won for sure. Coming away with a point was quite satisfactory." But King's Lynn's big win at Redcar on Thursday, which earned them four points, was a clear warning that the Norfolk side are determined to dethrone Monarchs.
Campbell was unconcerned by the result, pointing out: "Redcar are one of the poorest teams in the league and have too many old men in their side. And they are always going to have problems against sides like King's Lynn who are wound up and wanting to win." Although Somerset pursued Monarchs to the death in a two-horse race for the league title in 2008, the Rebels are considered a weaker outfit this term. Yet, their hefty triumph over Berwick Bandits on Friday indicates they are not cannon fodder either.
"Quite clearly they are going well round their own track," said Campbell. "And, while we haven't targeted this either, who knows what might happen if all our team pull together."
It's crucial that Monarchs' under-fire reserve Stoddart can find points from somewhere.
"It would be nice if Sean could pick up one or two points away from home," said Campbell. "He failed to score at Sheffield and we had a brief chat about that particular situation after the match. Sean is putting pressure on himself because he is worried about not scoring, but he is doing his best."
Team-mate Michal Rajkowski, who almost single-handedly tamed Glasgow with 16 points from six starts, says he is aiming for another solid return because Somerset is a circuit he favours.
"I like the track and I'm hoping to get a good score which would help my average. Now that I've moved into the top five of the team I want to stay there and that means scoring points everywhere."
Meanwhile, Fisher and Jonasson miss Monarchs' home clash against Rye House on Friday, as both men are riding in a GP qualifier in Italy.
Rider replacement will operate for Jonasson while Jason Lyons guests for Fisher.
The full article contains 659 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
