COVENTRY pulled off one of their most remarkable results in recent seasons with a 52-38 win over Elite League leaders King’s Lynn – despite starting the meeting with just five riders.
Already using two guests plus rider-replacement for the injured Ben Barker, the Buildbase Bees were dealt a further blow when guest reserve Luke Priest was deemed ineligible (see separate story).
But their remaining riders stepped up to secure a dramatic victory, headlined by a thrilling 18-point maximum from skipper Chris Harris, who won all six of his races.
Harris is reviving memories of his 2010 form with his current displays, and is driving Bees towards the play-offs along with No.1 Hans Andersen – with the duo again securing massive points when racing as a pairing.
Former favourite Stuart Robson rolled back the years with a paid-13 score as he replaced Kyle Howarth, Max Fricke added a hard-fought paid-8 on his first Brandon appearance and battling reserve James Sarjeant more than played his part with 6+1, including a vital Heat 9 win.
The result keeps Bees third in the table, and still with a chance of going higher – but more crucially they now have a seven-point margin to the teams just outside the play-off places, with Eastbourne and Lakeside both on 44.
There was little sign of the drama to come when the Stars raced into a 14-10 lead after four races, although Sarjeant had headed visiting captain Rory Schlein for three laps in Heat 3, whilst Harris had been the Bees’ sole winner.
But the Andersen/Harris partnersip combined to squeeze out Scott Nicholls in Heat 5 to level the scores, and Bees then received a major stroke of luck when race leader Schlein fell on the final bend of the next race, handing Harris and Fricke a 5-1.
The momentum of the meeting changed entirely, with the Stars hitting further trouble when Lewis Kerr ran out of room on turn two in Heat 7 and fell, and then Robson got the better of Nicholls in Heat 8 with Robert Lambert coming to a halt as the Bees went six-up.
Sarjeant rode solo in Heat 9 and held his nerve for a great win over Kerr, and then came the decisive events of Heat 10 when neither of the Stars’ strong pairing finished the race.
First Schlein picked up unwanted drive and crashed on turn two, and then in the re-run Nicholls suffered engine failure on the run to the first bend, leaving Andersen and Robson unchallenged for a 5-0.
Eleven points down, King’s Lynn attempted to cut the deficit by deploying Kenneth Bjerre for a tactical ride in Heat 11 – but it was his team-mate Nicklas Porsing who hit the front, only to be reeled in and overtaken by the inspired Harris, with the visiting duo then costing themselves a point by not switching positions to allow the double-points man through for second.
Robson took Bees closer to their win target by again beating Lambert in Heat 12 – the duo having battled nip-and-tuck to the line in Robson’s favour in the first race of the night – and Heat 13 produced more brilliance from Harris, who found the narrowest of gaps around Bjerre exiting the second bend on lap four to grab his fifth win.
With an unlikely match victory in the bag, Bees now looking for all three points, and although the Stars kept their hopes of a consolation alive when Kerr won an entertaining three-way scrap in Heat 14, Fricke’s second place kept Coventry in control.
Bees had to avoid conceding a 5-1 in Heat 15 but with confidence sky-high they were always favourites, and in fact they took their own maximum with Harris making the start and running Bjerre wide, as Andersen cut back to join him ahead of Schlein.
It was an incredible night, and one enjoyed by an excellent Thursday attendance who gave the home riders noisy support, and a string of well-deserved standing ovations as they closed in on the result of the season.
Boss Gary Havelock said: “All season, we’ve ridden better in adversity – there’s no doubt about it. When the chips are down, these boys are right up for it.
“To beat King’s Lynn is an achievement in itself, but to beat King’s Lynn with five riders by 14 points is incredible. It was unbelievable – I could run out of words to describe it!
“King’s Lynn actually did us a favour because it galvanised the team, the response was just sensational and I’m very proud of them all.â€
BUILDBASE BEES 52: Chris Harris 18, Stuart Robson 11+2, Hans Andersen 10+2, Max Fricke 7+1, James Sarjeant 6+1, Ben Barker r/r KING’S LYNN 38: Lewis Kerr 9+1, Kenneth Bjerre 8+1, Nicklas Porsing 6, Robert Lambert 5, Scott Nicholls 5, Tom Stokes 3+1, Rory Schlein 2+1 Elite League points: Coventry 3 King’s Lynn 0
BUILDBASE BEES 52 Hans Andersen 2 2* 3 1 2* = 10+2 Stuart Robson 1* 2 3 2* 3 = 11+2 Ben Barker Rider Replacement Max Fricke 2 2* 1 0 2 = 7+1 Chris Harris 3 3 3 3 3 3 = 18 No rider James Sarjeant 2 0 1* 3 0 0 = 6+1
KING’S LYNN 38 Kenneth Bjerre 3 1 2*^ 2 R = 8+1 Robert Lambert 0 3 R 2 = 5 Scott Nicholls 2 1 2 R = 5 Nicklas Porsing 0 3 2 1 = 6 Rory Schlein 1* X X 0 1 = 2+1 Lewis Kerr 3 X 2 1* 3 = 9+1 Tom Stokes 1 1 1* = 3+1