Witches beaten by Stars for second time in four days

Ipswich Witches finished their league cup campaign with a narrow defeat at the hands of group winners the King's Lynn Stars tonight.

It was a close run contest with both teams locked together for much of the match, just days after the Stars had thrashed the Witches 56-34 in Norfolk on Monday.

Trailing by two points with three heats to go, Jason Doyle was penalised after breaking the tapes in the 13th and had to start from a 15 metre handicap.

He battled his way past Josh Pickering for a point, behind teammate King, but with Niels-Kristian Iversen winning, the visitors still held a narrow lead.

Batchelor then won the penultimate heat, but with the Stars riders packing the minor places, the Witches had it all to do in the final race and although Doyle fought his way to the front, teammate Danny King could make no impression.

Danyon Hume pictured ahead of the league cup clash against King's Lynn. (Image: © Copyright Stephen Waller)

Doyle and Riss flew from the tapes to record an opening heat 5-1, although this was soon cancelled out by a Stars’ maximum in the next.

Troy Batchelor then won a shared heat three before Danny King pulled off a tremendous pass on Josh Pickering to take the chequered flag in another share of the spoils in the next.

Heat five saw Batchelor fight his way past Jorgensen to lead, but he overcooked it on the fourth bend and was re-passed and with Iversen soon joining his partner, the Stars had opened up a four point advantage.

The Witches hit straight back with their own maximum in the next, to level the scores and then skipper Danny King won the seventh and Riss the eighth, as it stayed all square.

A Stars 5-1 in the ninth saw them back in front with a four point lead, before a dramatic crash in heat 10. Riss was leading from a battling Lawson, when the Stars rider lost control and demolished a number of sections of fence, coming off the fourth bend.

King won the 11th and a battling third place for Hume meant the teams were all square again, but Lynn were soon back in front with Richie Worrall winning the 12th, from Heeps and Lawson, and with the final three heats shared it was the Stars heading back to Norfolk with victory.

IPSWICH: Jason Doyle 13+1; Erik Riss 8+2; Cameron Heeps 2; Troy Batchelor 8; Danny King 11; Danyon Hume 1; James Shanes (Guest) 1

KING'S LYNN: Niels-Kristian Iversen 8+2; Thomas Jorgensen 6; Richard Lawson 3+2; Lewis Kerr 7+1; Josh Pickering 4+2; Richie Worrall 11; Jack Thomas 7+2