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SPEEDWAY: Batchelor boy outshines even Adams
THE ROBINS nailed the Lakeside Hammers at the Abbey on Thursday night, comprehensively ending the visitors' five-match winning run.
That sequence had taken in away defeats at Wolverhampton and last year's champions Coventry.
But the Hammers could hardly have suffered a more fearful drubbing as Swindon won 13 of the 15 heats to take the match 53-39, with Lakeside's Grand Prix reserve Lubos Tomicek going home pointless.
There is something about this Lakeside team which brings out the best in Troy Batchelor and Mads Korneliussen as they produced a collective 26 points on the night.
In fact, Batchelor's five-from-five maximum means that Swindon's No 1 Leigh Adams, with 13 points, was outscored by a fellow Robins rider for only the second time this season.
The other occasion was when Batchelor and Korneliussen both registered paid 14s in the equally comprehensive home defeat of the Hammers last month.
Batchelor's maximum was a terrific reaction from the young Aussie, who has had a couple of disappointing away fixtures when luck and questionable refereeing decisions have gone against him.
He was understandably bullish about Thursday night's efforts which gave the Robins a three-point cushion at the top of the Sky Sports Elite League table.
"Leigh Adams won't admit it, but, I was showing him the way round in Heat 15," said Batchelor.
"He provided me with the slingshot in turn one and from that point on Leigh couldn't catch me!
"That's four man-of-the-match awards for me which is even more than Leigh. I'm stoked!"
Korneliussen was only denied a maximum by mechanical problems before Heat 12.
A dash back to the pits led to a two-minute exclusion and consequently a 15-metre starting handicap and, though he made it into second, he couldn't catch Hammers captain Adam Shields.
"I had a really good meeting but am a touch disappointed I wasn't able to grab a maximum," he said.
"My Fork shock broke before the start of Heat 12 which ruined my chances.
"Troy was on fire tonight. If he keeps going that well he'll replace me at number two in the averages, I'll have to be careful!"
After Aussie pair Batchelor and Adams blasted to a 5-1 in Heat 13, the Hammers were reduced to going for a tactical double-points ride in Heat 14, as they tried to claw back the ten-point deficit.
Finn Joonas Kylmakorpi could earn only four points for his second-place finish, which effectively ended the contest.
But there was still time for a glorious Swindon 5-1 in the finale to give the Batchelor boy his first Robins maximum.
THURSDAY, MAY 15
Elite League B.
Swindon Robins 53 Lakeside Hammers 49
Swindon: Leigh Adams (capt) 13 (2), James Wright 3, Mads Korneliussen 11, Travis McGowan 6 (1), Troy Batchelor 15, Theo Pijper 1, Seb Alden 4.
Lakeside: Andreas Jonsson 7 (1), Leigh Lanham 7 (2), Adam Shields (capt) 8, Lubos Tomicek 0, Jonas Davidsson 6, Ricky Kling 2 (1), Joonas Kylmakorpi 9 (2).
10:27am Friday 16th May 2008
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