Last season the SLYDE-backed Kings took on fierce local rivals the Eagles six times and six times had to concede defeat, so it was sweet revenge that the 2016 campaign began with a thumping two leg victory over their adversaries.

Indeed the Kings’ visit down at Eastbourne’s Arlington circuit having been billed as a High Noon challenge turned out to a shoot-out with only one side carrying the ammunition needed for the job: a crushing 56-34 victory for the visitors: Kent’s second biggest ever away victory in all competitions and a first home reverse for the Cup & Trophy holders since 2013.

Finishing the job in front of a packed to the rafters home crowd was no less convincing: sweeping to an aggregate score of 108-71: as decisive as any two legged speedway match is likely to be.

There were so many stand-outs within the Kings’ ranks it’s difficult to mention them all but considering the problems with the tail end of the side last term it is right to concentrate firstly on the reserves. Last year no Kings’ pair in the no. 6 & no. 7 race jackets ever recorded a maximum 5-1 in the heat 2 meeting with their counterparts; on this memorable day the pairing of Danno Verge and new boy Jack Thomas did it in both matches.

Setting the team up for consistent points scoring throughout. Indeed of the 26 heats, Kent riders finished first in 21 of them (a remarkable 12 out of 15 in the away leg); claiming point victories in 18 heats; and with all seven team members recording at least two paid heat wins, it was all in all a hugely satisfying day’s work.

The 5-1 in heat 2 at Arlington with Verge heading home new partner Thomas was the first of a run of seven consecutive heats where a Kings rider got to the chequered flag first, breaking the resolve of the shell-shocked hosts. A break of a more unfortunate nature occurred in heat six when leading-at-the-time Eastbourne number one Kyle Hughes unaccountably looped on the home straight crashing heavily and out of the meeting: sadly a broken leg just above his ankle suggests that the Bath-based racer’s Eagles’ career may have had the most premature of endings.

The long delay clearly confused the referee who omitted to take account that the Kings’ flying reserve Thomas had long since passed an out of sorts’ home skipper Richard Andrews by the time the race was stopped. The incorrect award of second place to Andrews was though the only bit of good fortune he and his charges got all day. Andrews too was to end the night in hospital after a heat 11 crash in the second leg.

Undeterred by being denied a second paid win of a sparkling debut in the Invicta race jacket, the plucky Norfolk teenager Thomas headed home his fellow debutant Luke Clifton in heat eight to move the visitors into a 16 points lead.

Danny Ayres was in determined, dogged mood and his brilliantly controlled inside passing of Andrews in heat 10 was a racing highlight; just about eclipsing James Shanes’ pursuit of Eastbourne’s Maidstone based rider Georgie Wood in the previous race – one of several titanic struggles between Britain’s two best young grasstrackers which was a side attraction throughout the day.

The only downer on an otherwise perfect early afternoon’s effort (especially when David Mason got in on the act with a brilliant heat 14 victory over Wood) was the 1-5 suffered in the final race of the first leg: skipper Luke Bowen crashing out leaving the previously unbeaten Ayres in a third place he had no time to better.

No matter, the Kings’ triumphant procession back through the lanes of Sussex and the Weald back to Sittingbourne saw them holding a 22 points first leg advantage!

The start had to be delayed at Central Park with the crowds thronging to get in, queuing back to the car park entrance and when the tapes went up on the 2016 home season again it was heat 2 setting the standard: Verge a winner again, Thomas tucked in behind.

Further heat wins for Ayres and Shanes meant that going into heat 5 the Kings held a mammoth 30 points advantage over the hapless Sussex side. There was a recovery of sorts led by three times a heat winner on the night, Joe Jacobs: that cracker of a rider at this level drafted in as a quick replacement for the stricken Hughes but when Ayres and Mason combined to maximum effect again in heat 9 it was all over as a contest and it was left to Verge (celebrating his birthday a day early) to complete a hat-trick of heat wins on the day, to bring up the century of points by winning heat 14. Bowen and Ayres then got their own revenge back by this time taking a 5-1 in heat 15.

Co-promoter Len Silver was understandably exuberant in the wake of such a great showing, he said: “To be honest when I woke up on the Saturday I had to look again at the match day programmes from Eastbourne and Central Park just to convince myself that the dream start to our season was actually true!

“Although I have known how hard every one of our riders have worked during the winter in order to ‘hit the ground running’, the fact that it all came together for us still leaves me feeling a bit dazed!

“It was a blistering all round performance such as we have never seen before since we opened – and in front of one of biggest ever home crowds too”

For the Shorne-based Danno Verge it was a great last day as a teenager and ample reward for his hard work over the winter. The day after and celebrating his 20th birthday, Danno was keen to emphasise how a new team spirit had been the key to such a successful season’s start,

“It was good day all in all for the team, we all worked well together and we have good team spirit and we all have a laugh together which is nice! We have a new number one, Luke Bowen which is great – Luke helps us out a lot and he is by far the best number one I have had in any team I’ve ridden for. Then there’s David Mason giving us advice and confidence before and during the meeting. The day was good for me and all I have to do now is keep working hard and building on what we have started with”

Image courtesy of Elizabeth Leslie