LEICESTER’S target is 47 points to reach another ROWE Motor Oil Premiership Grand Final as they host Sheffield in a huge play-off meeting at the Hydroscand Arena, Beaumont Park on Monday (7.30pm).
The Watling JCB Lions produced a stirring comeback in the closing stages of the first leg of the semi-final at Owlerton last week – and having trailed 43-29 with three races remaining, they brought the deficit down to a far more manageable 46-43.
It was an incident-packed meeting with both sides feeling hard done by on occasions, and those last three races featured a Lions 5-0 in Heat 14 and, just as significantly, a 5-1 from Sam Masters and skipper Max Fricke in Heat 13 over Sheffield’s top duo of Jack Holder and Josh Pickering, and a 4-2 from the same combination in Heat 15.
That left the Tigers somewhat deflated at the end of the night but nobody of a Leicester persuasion will believe in any way that the South Yorkshire side are defeated, and a mighty battle still lies ahead on Monday.
Sheffield’s last away performance of the regular league campaign saw then win at league leaders Ipswich, who have already booked their place in the Grand Final – and the Tigers have further bolstered their line-up with the inclusion of former World No.3 Maciej Janowski.
Ex-Leicester rider Nick Morris has been ruled out after his crash in Heat 14 on Thursday so Sheffield have moved for the classy Pole, whose average remarkably is under six points after a tough season with Oxford Spires.
Janowski has had mixed results on his visits to Beaumont Park with scores of 5+1 and then an impressive 15 last season, whilst this year he struggled on his first appearance with 2+2 before collecting 10 from six rides last month.
Other than that, the sides are unchanged from the first leg and Leicester know they need to win the match by at least four points – something they have achieved on all three of Sheffield’s previous visits this season.
Manager Stewart Dickson said: “I was obviously a lot more relieved at the end of the meeting on Thursday compared to what I was, but I don’t think this tie is finished by any means.
“Sheffield can do what Leicester did and run us really, really close, or turn us over, so my boys need to be on their game.
“I mean all seven, not just four or five. I need all seven on it. There were a couple of boys who were disappointed with their performances on Thursday, but I said to them, ‘you now have a chance to put it right on Monday night, and give us an even better chance of getting through.’
“If we can get seven scorers rather than what we had on Thursday, I think we’ve got a really good chance – but my final words will be, it’s not over yet!”
Supporters are reminded that normal admission and programme prices apply on Monday, with season tickets not valid for this meeting.
LEICESTER: Max Fricke, Luke Becker, Ryan Douglas, Kyle Howarth, Sam Masters, Drew Kemp, Joe Thompson.
SHEFFIELD: Jack Holder, Leon Flint, Chris Holder, Maciej Janowski, Josh Pickering, Anders Rowe, Jye Etheridge.
