A busy July in the Travel Plus National League continues for the Kent SLYDE Kings with four matches in just nine days – starting today with the visit of reigning champions Birmingham Brummies.

The side from the Second City top the current divisional standings too, but a win by seven points or more for the Sittingbourne Greyhound Stadium-based Kings in this home encounter between the two in-form sides of this campaign would see them draw level on match points and go top of the TPNL table  on points difference.

Kent are boosted considerably by the return from injury of both Lukes in their side: Luke Clifton who injured his knee versus Buxton two weeks ago and so missed out on all rides in that match and was unfit to travel to King’s Lynn or take part in the home win last Monday against Rye House Raiders; and Luke Bowen, the club’s influential skipper.

Bowen who rides at number one for the SLYDE Kings, crashed in the final heat of the first leg defeat (the first of the season) up at Perry Barr in the National Trophy [NT} Final against Monday’s opponents last month and has been out since with a broken ankle (including the four point home defeat suffered at the hands of the Brummies three weeks ago).

Indeed, considering that David Mason had had to withdraw injured from that NT Final first leg, it’s accurate to say that when the SLYDE Kings’ full septet have been all together and able to race a full quota of rides in a match the side haven’t yet suffered defeat.

That ‘Magnificent Seven’ being all back on Monday then is a major fillip for the club.

And they’ll have to be at their best because there’s no doubt that the West Midlanders side that experienced team boss Graham Drury is bringing to Central Park is a formidable line-up – hugely talented even though the youngest averaged aged side in any of British Speedway’s three divisions.

The Brummies had a disappointment last week when their home match versus Coventry Storm was rained off after just eight heats.  Tom Bacon will be especially disappointed as the young man who’s joined the Birmingham club this year after a debut season in 2015 with Mildenhall, was unbeaten with three wins out of three when the rain termination happened.

A surprise on the eve of Monday’s match is that Drury has announced that skipper Tom Perry will not be appearing for the Brummies at Central Park and they intend to utilise Rider Replacement for him.  It’s not clear at this juncture what the reason for Perry’s absence is.

Meanwhile, for the Kent SLYDE Kings the ever-busy Danny Ayres and James Shanes have had no respite in their packed racing & travelling itinerary.  Ayres rode in the ‘Stars Of Tomorrow’ individual meeting at Berwick Speedway in the Borders on Saturday evening – finishing in second place behind home rider Liam Carr.

Meanwhile, all the way over in the Czech Republic on Saturday also, Shanes was competing for his nation as part of the Great Britain quartet seeking to defend the World Longtrack Team Cup title on the 1000m circuit in Marianske Lazne.  Shanes scored five points in what was ultimately an unsuccessful evening for the GB team: finishing in overall fourth place.

Undaunted though, the next day saw a change of country and a change of result with Kent’s ‘Boy Wizard Of Balance’ taking victory in Germany at Osnabrück – his 23 points winning haul (ahead of Team GB team mate Andrew Appleton) meaning a first-ever individual international meeting victory for the plucky 19-year-old.

Teams for Monday (18/7) in alphabetical order:

Kent SLYDE Kings:

Danny Ayres; Luke Bowen; Luke Clifton; David Mason; James Shanes; Jack Thomas; Danno Verge

Birmingham Brummies:

Tom Bacon; Danyon Hume; Jack Parkinson-Blackburn; Darryl Ritchings; Jack Smith; Zach Watjknecht; Rider Replacement for Tom Perry

Following Monday’s (18/7) home match vs. Birmingham (which gets underway at the normal starting time of 6.30pm), the SLYDE Kings travel to the side currently third in the TPNL table, Eastbourne on Saturday 23^rd.; before reconvening at Central Park on Monday 25^th. to take on the Stoke Potters; and then the next day (26/7) completing the hectic programme of four matches in just nine days, away on the Isle of Wight against the Ryde-based Warriors.