James Sarjeant is determined to grab his chance with the Ipswich Witches and show the Foxhall management his worth.

The 23-year-old missed out on a 2017 team place with the Foxhall outfit despite impressing with his attitude and racing skills last year as the Witches season improved as it went on.

However, with a points limit to adhere to for 2017, Sarjeant was one of the riders the Witches had to sacrifice in the winter. But, he is back in Witches colours again, as an injury replacement for Kyle Newman, who has a damaged shoulder.

Sarjeant is determined to grab his opportunity.

“It’s been annoying over the winter, it has been on and off with Coventry,” he said.

“We got told everything was going to go ahead so we got all my bikes built up and ready to go and two weeks before the season starts I was told I was without a team. It was disheartening but I have been trying to do as many individual meetings as I can and I’m happy to be league racing again.

“I’m only at Ipswich temporarily but I’m looking to go and score as many points as I can and show I should be in the team.

“I know it’s not a permanent deal, I only got a call on Monday asking if I would fill in for Kyle for however long he is out and I’m happy to be back at Ipswich and I’m looking forward to Thursday.”

The Sheffield-born racer took a while to get going for the Witches in 2016, but when he did he proved a valuable member of a Witches team that made a late bid for the play-offs.

Popular with the Foxhall crowd, it was known genuinely that Ritchie Hawkins and Chris Louis - the management team who put the 2017 Witches together - wanted to try to keep Sarjeant on board this year.

The injury to Newman has rather clouded what was a terrific start to the campaign by the Suffolk side on Saturday when they put Sheffield to the sword in front of a bumper home crowd.

On Thursday night they entertain Berwick in the knock-out cup and there is no doubt that if Sarjeant can replicate some of the excellent form he showed at Foxhall particuarly last season, then the loss of Newman won’t be felt as deeply as many fear.