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| |  | BIRMINGHAM’S winless run continues but they could take plenty of credit from a 48-42 defeat at Leicester on Thursday.
The Curtis Sport Brummies put up the best display of any visiting side to Beaumont Park in over three months in another demonstration of the fact that they are not far from being a force at this level.
Whilst an away win was never quite on the cards as it had been at Oxford last week, the Brummies clung to the Lions’ coat tails throughout the evening and weren’t far from taking the meeting into a last-heat decider.
Heat leaders Freddie Lindgren and Tom Brennan were great value, adding much to the entertainment level of the meeting, and the visitors’ reserves also did well with Michael Palm Toft winning two races and Leon Flint beating opponents in all four of his outings.
Ultimately it was a pair of 5-1s in Heats 3 and 6 which gave Leicester something to defend, first when Sam Masters and Luke Becker moved inside a fast-starting Wiktor Lampart in the third, and then when Max Fricke and Richard Lawson both shot inside Brennan off the second bend in the sixth.
Lindgren had raced to a fast win over Fricke in Heat 1 with Palm Toft taking control of the reserves’ race, and the Dane headed up a useful 4-2 to the Brummies in Heat 8 with Flint third to reduce the deficit to six points.
Team boss Sam Ermolenko handed Lindgren a tactical substitute ride in Heat 9, but he and Brennan were edged out by a fine first lap by Masters to share the race for the hosts.
Lawson moved inside Lampart for third place in Heat 10 to extend the Lions’ lead to eight, but the Brummies hit straight back with their own 4-2 in Heat 11 with an excellent move by Brennan to get the better of Ryan Douglas, whilst Lindgren passed Lewis Kerr for third.
The home side looked to have locked up the points when Masters and Kerr raced to a 5-1 in Heat 12, but remarkably that result was cancelled out in the next thanks to a touch of fortune, Brummies benefiting from an engine failure for Fricke which allowed Brennan to join Lindgren for maximum points.
The visitors required another advantage from Heat 14 to set up a last heat decider, and it looked possible when Flint and Zach Cook both gated – but a burst of pace from Luke Becker took him from third to first heading into turn three, and that secured the win for Leicester.
A tremendous Heat 15 wrapped things up with all four riders having the opportunity to lead over the first two laps, and whilst Lindgren and Brennan fought with Becker, it was Masters who came through at the end of lap one to take the advantage, with the Brummies duo holding Becker back for a 3-3.
The aggregate point will be up for grabs when the sides meet again at Perry Barr on Monday (August 12).
LEICESTER 48: Sam Masters 13, Ryan Douglas 9, Luke Becker 8+1, Max Fricke 7+1, Richard Lawson 7+1, Lewis Kerr 4+1, Sam Hagon 0.
BIRMINGHAM 42: Fredrik Lindgren 11+2, Tom Brennan 11+2, Michael Palm Toft 7, Leon Flint 6, Zach Cook 4+2, Wiktor Lampart 3, Piotr Pawlicki r/r.
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