SPEEDWAY: Swindon Robins rally after stuttering start to the season with win at Rye House

SWINDON Robins fans on social media were already seeking changes after Thursday’s first home defeat of the season, so it came as a surprise to many that Alun Rossiter's side won their first-leg cup match at Rye House against a team fancied to become league champions this season.

The rider replacement facility was used for the injured Adam Ellis and this proved an excellent tool with all but Jason Doyle able to take one of his four rides.

The tactic yielded 10+1 points and few would have expected Ellis, with little experience of the tight circuit, to have scored that well.

Swindon finished a good night's work with an eight-point lead going into the second leg at the Abbey on Thursday.

Rossiter was full of praise for his side after they overcame the top flight's newcomers.

“It was a great all-around team performance, everyone chipped in and it was great to get that first win of the season," he said.

"Even Zach (Wajtknecht) was right on the pace, things just didn’t go his way, but I’m sure he’ll learn from it.

"It’s a good win at a tough track, so we’re pleased with the result. We’ll just have to keep focused and finish the job in the second leg at home.”

Top two Jason Doyle and Nick Morris led by example, recording five wins between them to both score double figures.

Reserve Emil Grondal showed his potential with two race wins, while flying Frenchman David Bellego was involved in two 5-1s with a strong showing.

Bradley Wilson-Dean also added paid double figures.

The side took the lead for the first time in heat five but nine points from the last two races, including a 5-1 from Grondal and Bellego, wrapped up the victory.

RYE HOUSE 41: Scott Nicholls 12, Edward Kennett 8, Chris Harris 7+1, Ellis Perks 5, Stuart Robson 3+2, Davey Watt 3, Ben Morley 3.

SWINDON 49: Nick Morris 14+1, Jason Doyle 11, Bradley Wilson-Dean 9+1, Emil Grondal 8, David Bellego 7+2, Zach Wajtknecht 0, Adam Ellis r/r.

SGB Premiership
Swindon 44
Belle Vue 46
A LATE Swindon rally with two 5-1s and a 4-2 in the last three races, could not prevent much-tipped Belle Vue Aces leaving with all three points.

The Robins handed home debuts to Bradley Wilson-Dean, Adam Ellis, David Bellego, Emil Grondal and Zach Wajtknecht.

Heat one saw former Robin Steve Worrall surprisingly outpace Jason Doyle and with World Under-21 champion Max Fricke ahead of Wilson-Dean the scene was set for a tough evening.

It was a night to forget for Ellis who flipped his bike over at the start of heat five, had four pointless rides, and finished with a fall and a broken wrist that will rule him out for a month.

It was heat five before the home team had a race winner in promising Frenchman Bellego.

The Aces soon built a six-point lead and surprisingly extended it to eight in a titanic Heat 10 when Kenneth Bjerre and former Robin Justin Sedgmen enjoyed a 4-2 over Doyle and faller Wilson-Dean.

Doyle’s erratic racing line in this heat was later explained by a rear tyre which was losing grip.

Then Bjerre and Bewley took a 5-1 in Heat 12 as Ellis fell when in second.

The hoped for 5-1 for Swindon in race 13 came about as Doyle raced into the distance leaving man of the match Morris to successfully fight off the early challenge from Cook and Fricke.

And the Robins gained an unexpected 4-2 in the penultimate race as Bellego pinned down Sedgmen, while Grondal beat Jack Smith. Nonetheless it was enough to secure a match victory for the visitors.

A 5-1 for the Robins in the final race meant they went down 44-46 to at least salvage some respectability.

The difference between the teams seemed to be that the Aces' top five had only one last place between them – a real formula for success.

SWINDON 44: Nick Morris 13+1, Jason Doyle 12+1, David Bellego 9, Zach Wajtknecht 4+3, Bradley Wilson-Dean 3, Emil Grondal 3, Adam Ellis 0 BELLE VUE 46: Kenneth Bjerre 10+2, Steve Worrall 9+1, Craig Cook 9, Justin Sedgmen 8, Max Fricke 4+1, Dan Bewley 3+1, Jack Smith 3.

AFTER Thursday's return cup match with Rye House, Poole visit the Abbey on Easter Sunday with a 5pm start.

The Pirates don’t seem quite the force this season with no big-hitter like Chris Holder leading the side.

But a big 56-34 win for them at Leicester on Saturday should remove any feelings of complacency.

Led by the enigmatic duo of Krzysztof Kasprzak and Hans Andersen and with Brady Kurtz to the fore, this will be a tough test.

The Pirates are cleverly able to field Nicolai Klindt at reserve and the meeting could be determined by his performance.

LAST week, the Robins' majority shareholder Terry Russell announced that he expects his side to be riding on the existing Blunsdon track for the whole season.

Hold-ups to the building of the new stadium have seen the proposed move date pushed back time and time again.

And now Russell has admitted that the highly-anticipated switch in the summer has been postponed due to delays with the building phases of the associated housing development.