Hammers boss hits out

Lakeside #1 Andreas Jonsson Fotospeedway.pl

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Lakeside Hammers boss Stuart Douglas bemoaned his side's shock home defeat to Ipswich on Good Friday but also slammed the decision to race in March.

Douglas admitted his side were way below par as they went down to The Witches after just hours earlier recording victory at Foxhall in their Craven Shield double-header.

But the Hammers chief was furious with the fact that his side were even riding in March.

"Not only is it absurd to ask riders to put on a show at this time of the year, in totally unpredictable conditions, I am astonished that we are supposed to expect a bumper crowd on a miserable night in March where the wind chill is -3C," Douglas told the club's website.

"Speedway is a summer sport. You cannot expect people to enjoy themselves in sub arctic conditions. This ridiculous early start to the season must be addressed for next year. I feel for the fans out there."

Poor display

Douglas also admitted he does not expect his side to put in displays such as that during their league campaign.

"Maybe a wake up call like this is a good thing," he said.

"We're all gutted that the fantastic away performance in the afternoon has been rendered inconsequential by the turnover here, but maybe everyone was starting to believe the hype surrounding the club having been touted as bookies favourites.

"Ipswich are a very useful team this year and to win at their place is a tremendous achievement, but credit where it's due, they rode a very good return leg at the Arena and deserved their victory.

"I'm just glad it is out of the way early in the season and gives us a chance to learn some lessons before the Elite League points are on the table.

"We as a team need to look at our performance and ask some questions of ourselves. I don't expect to have to say this again this season.

"We shall regroup, stick together, look at the positives, eradicate the negatives, and continue to quietly make the forward progress that we have been achieving for over a year now."