Newport 58 Ipswich 32 (agg 106-74)
IPSWICH Witches KO Cup hopes were dashed at Newport on Saturday night, after they were left with just four fit riders.
Already using the rider replacement facility for Lasse Bjerre, who was racing in Denmark, the Witches lost both Chris Mills and Taylor Poole after a frightening heat four crash.
It was Mills who slammed into his partner as the riders exited the second turn, and although Poole stayed on his bike, scraping the fence, Mills thudded into it.
Initial concerns were for Essex racer Mills, as he hit the fence hard.
But it was Poole who came off worse, suffering a broken hand, that saw him go off to hospital, while Mills also withdrew from the meeting.
It left the Suffolk side with just four fit riders which meant they were never going to pull back a six-point deficit from the first leg.
Indeed such was the desperation of the situation for the Witches, in three races, they only had one rider competing.
Latest on Mills and Poole injuries, plus management reaction to the defeat in Monday’s EADT and Evening Star
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