Ipswich Eagles 92
Leon Mower 17+1 (5) , Adam Peck 14+1 (5) , Josh Brooke 14 (5) , Jamie Chittock 13 +2 (5) , Charlie Rumbold 11 (5) , Matt Hil 9+1 (3), Ashley Hill 9 (5) , Richard Fellgett 5+1 (3 ) .
Sheffield Stars 86
Pawel Idziorek 18 (5) , Radek Handke 14+1 (5), Gavin Parr 14 (5), Damian Zareba 13 (5), Bobby McMillan 12+2 (5) , Dan Chambers 7 (5), Adam Watson 5+2 (3), Kyle Holland 3 (3).
Referee Terry Ashford (Suffolk ) .
The sun shone over Whitton raceway where the Elite league surprise leaders were looking to continue their great start to the season and make it three wins on the bounce, equalling their most wins in a season since they joined four years ago. Ipswich are proving to be the emerging force in this season’s race for the title though team manager Bill Brooke will keep telling us that it might be just off our radar this season.
Sheffield were today’s opponents and in the past these have been very tight encounters with both sides enjoying success and it was no different this time round. Sheffield took the spoils in the opening heat with Polish pairing Handke and Idziorek securing a 6-4 , Ipswich hit back straight away with Mower and Rumbold 7-3 seeing off Zareba and Chambers ,the first half continued to be a well contested affair with the home team able to pick the right moments to strike and just kept edging themselves away and were starting to take control of the match but the Yorkshire side came fighting back in heat eight taking advantage of the home team mistakes and took a 7-3 to haul themselves back into contention and with a shared heat in nine it was Ipswich who went into the break five points up .
The second half was even more tense than the first half with the first six heats all being shared as both teams tried to wrestle the advantaged away from one another ,but it was the home team who finally broke Sheffield’s resistance in heat sixteen with Chittock and Peck edging out Idziorek and Chambers 6-4 , this was followed by an exclusion to Zareba in seventeen allowing Mower and Brooke to gain a 6-3 and finally give the points to the Suffolk outfit ,heat eighteen saw Sheffield restore some pride with a 7-3 to make the final score 92- 86 .
Ipswich weren’t at their best at times but dug in and gave a gritty performance in which they can be proud and a win that keeps them top of the table tonight ,Wednesfield await the Eagles next in what will be a bench mark to see how far this young side has progress and Mr.Ellis will surely wil have taken notice of the Suffolk side rise this season .
Combination League
Ipswich Eagles( 65+8 pp) 73.
Richie Fellgett 20 (5), Pierce Bacon 11+1(4), Olly Buxton 11 (5), Ben Harvey 9+2 (4), Fraser Harris 7+2 (4), Lauren Jacobs 7 (4) .
Sheffield Stars (62+5pp) 67 .
Richard Hudson 15 (4), Kyle Holland 13 (5), Adam Watson 11+2 (5), Niall Morton 10+1(4), Matt Parrot 10(4), James Bunting 3 (4) .
Just like the first team Ipswich were looking to continue their great start to the season and pick up win number three and having gone so close on several occasion is this the year the combination side finally secure that elusive title . Ipswich had to dig deep today with key members not available and against a strong Sheffield side would have to call upon all their local knowledge of the track ,the match itself was nip and tuck all the way with Ipswich only winning three heats to Sheffield’s two in a tight and competive match ,Richie Fellgett lead the fight to the visitors with a 20 point haul and was ably supported from his team mates ,for Sheffield Richard Hudson was the brightest Star for the Stars with an impressive 15 points .
Ipswich are back in action next week with the Eagles home to Great Blakenham and the Whirlwinds away at Kesgrave .