STARTING today (Friday) the Workington Comets enter what is without question the most important ten day spell in their history as they compete for silverware on three fronts.
In a stellar end to the season the Comets have qualified for the three finals open to them and have now reached the final of the Championship Shield and the Knock-out Cup along with the Championship Play-off Grand Final itself.
All three finals are to be raced over two legs and will be completed in the next ten days!
The first to be competed for is the Championship Shield, which sees the Comets take on Lakeside, with the first leg taking place this evening at Lakeside’s adopted temporary home of Rye House before the two sides head north for the second leg at Derwent Park tomorrow night when the winners will be determined.
Saturday’s home leg gets underway at the slightly earlier time of 6:30pm because the Comets will be racing Lakeside twice at Derwent Park that evening.
Following the conclusion of the Championship Shield the two clubs will then face each other a second time in the outstanding regular Championship fixture. This is a re-arranged fixture after the original league clash between the two sides was abandoned in late August following the crash that seriously injured the Comets local star Dan Bewley.
Then, after facing Lakeside three times in just over 24 hours the Comets head to Scunthorpe on Sunday for the first leg of their Knock-out Cup Final against the Scunthorpe Scorpions, which has a 5:00pm start time.
The second leg of that Knock-out Cup Final will take place at Derwent Park next Thursday (25th October) at 7:30pm.
Then, the league title play-offs will take place next weekend against either Lakeside or Peterborough, with the Comets facing one of them over two legs for the right to be crowned the 2018 Championship winners.
Comets team manager Tony Jackson said: “Everyone involved with the team has worked so hard all season to get in this position and we are determined to finish the job off.
“But, having said that, our opponents will obviously have the same mind-set, and they all promise to be really tough matches. Nevertheless, the fighting spirit that this Comets side has shown in recent weeks to reach these finals illustrates perfectly the determination and the will to win that exists within the side.
“This is a special group of riders who have become a very resilient unit to get us to where we are right now. We will continue to do what we have done all season; simply take it one match at a time and see where it gets us.
“Obviously, this weekend promises to be a tough one, with four matches in three days, but if we can perform to the best of our capabilities away from home then it will make the task on our home circuit that much easier!”
Meanwhile, Workington club owner Laura Morgan wants the efforts made by the riders on the track to be well supported off it in these vitally important end of season fixtures.
“The more people we have down at Derwent Park for these finals the better the atmosphere and the more encouragement it gives our riders,” she said.
“There are obviously a lot of people out there that aren’t regular supporters or maybe have not been to Derwent Park to support the Comets for quite a while and we would love to see them back there again. Every one of our supporters knows someone that used to go to speedway on a regular basis and if we could get them back again for these finals then what an atmosphere it would be.
“With three finals taking place within the next ten days there has never been a better time to be a Comets fan and I urge everyone to come along and back the team right now as they aim to bring some silverware to Derwent Park.
“The effort the whole team put in to get us into these finals was incredible, while the atmosphere and excitement generated in our recent semi-final victories over Edinburgh and Glasgow was fantastic and left everyone talking about it for days afterwards; and who knows what will happen in the next week or so!
“These really are special times for everyone connected with the club right now and we aim to make the most of this opportunity to try and bring some success to the club and to the town,” concluded Morgan.
There are still sponsorship packages for all budgets available for these high profile end of season fixtures on request from Laura or Dan on 01900 813999 or, for more information, email [email protected]
COMETS CONFIRMED UPCOMING FIXTURES:
- Friday 19th October at 8:00pm: Lakeside v Workington (Championship Shield Final, 1st leg)
- Saturday 20th October at 6:30pm: Workington v Lakeside (Championship Shield Final, 2nd leg)
- Saturday 20th October (follows Shield fixture): Workington v Lakeside (SGB Championship)
- Sunday 21st October at 5:00pm: Scunthorpe v Workington (Knock-out Cup Final, 1st leg)
- Thursday 25th October at 7:30pm: Workington v Scunthorpe (Knock-out Cup Final, 2nd leg)
Play-off Grand Final (both legs) – Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th October: times, venues and opposition still TBC
