Tough
Task Ahead at Sheffield
Posted 06/04/05
Sheffield are the hosts on Thursday for the
second of Tigers three away meetings in four days.
True to form Sheffield have so far won all their
home meetings this season whilst they have still to record an away
win. Their victories have not been as emphatic as in previous seasons
however and the Owlerton track has come in for quite a bit of criticism
this season from home and away fans.
Sean Wilson's return is a major plus point for Sheffield
and far from being cautious he has returned in tremendous form-his
lowest score at home so far has been 12+2! Andre Compton is also very
much a home track rider with a ruthless streak and these two could
provide the Glasgow top two with their toughest test this season away
from home. Richard Hall had a poor showing in the last home meeting
and will be keen to make amends whilst Ricky Ashworth is the perfect
example of a home track rider so far this season. Riding at no 2 Ben
Wilson will be facing Glasgow for the second time in two days but
should find it harder tonight in the main body of the team. At reserve,
Paul Cooper is the hot prospect from grass track that many clubs wanted
to sign this season. He is very much at home on the Sheffield track
however and has consistently scored 6 or 7 points in the opening home
meetings. By comparison, very little is known of Kyle Legault, Sheffield's
Canadian import, but he is still be settling in at this stage.
This is a big meeting for Tigers James Birkinshaw.
He has a lot to prove both to the club that dropped him and also to
a lesser extent he will want to prove to Glasgow that he is beginning
to find form. George Stancl tends to do well round Sheffield and Shane
Parker scored well there on his last visit. There is no doubting however
that they are up against strong opposition. Away Rider of the year
last season Paul Bentley has struggled so far this year and Sheffield
is not one of his favourite tracks. Glasgow really need him to be
on form for this one, especially as Matthew Wethers only scored two
points from two meetings at Sheffield last season. Unfortunately Trent
does not have a good record at Sheffield either although when he rode
there last season it was not long after his heavy crash at Ashfield
with Carrillo. Our replacement for James Cockle is Mark Thomson and
whilst Sheffield is a track he knows well it is unrealistic to expect
much from him.
A lot could depend on the track itself as in recent
weeks its condition has prevented passing and that could hinder Glasgow
further. It will be a very difficult task for the Tigers and realistically
it may well be a case of limiting damage to obtain the bonus point
in the return leg.
