The Kent CTA Fire Kings suffered their second defeat in as many days as they lost away to Stoke on Saturday evening.

Going into the meeting without their talisman Ben Morley (on Elite League duty for Lakeside), it transpired that the Kings were tracking two riders carrying what turned out to be catastrophic injuries.  Trailing by just a point after nine completed races, after a ding-dong succession of lead-changing heats (the Central Park-based side holding and then relinquishing the lead five times up to that point), the loss of those two team members to injury then saw themselves only able to track one rider in two of the following heats as they finally succumbed by nine points to their hosts.

Injury victims were Benji Compton who had to withdraw after aggravating his injured hand in a first ride crash and the immensely unlucky Brandon Freemantle who ultimately had failed to recover from a bad crash suffered the evening before at Coventry, as his 2014 away track voodoo continued to plague the young Sussex-based speedster.

These woes seemed a long way off when skipper Simon Lambert and never-say-die, vice-captain David Mason literally led from the front in heat one, relegating the League’s top averaged rider Ben Wilson into third place and posting a perfect start to the meeting. Youngster Freemantle despite still suffering badly from his travails of the night before and Luke Harris (the latter in the first of what was to be an energy-sapping seven rides) kept the visitors four points ahead by tying up heat two, but then came part one of the calamities which were to blight the Sittingbourne-based side’s night.

Benji Compton, said: “I had crashed out while guesting for Swindon at Lakeside the previous Friday and hurt my hand but thought it was just muscle damage.  So I rode up at Coventry this Friday because I didn’t want to let the boys down in such a hard match; but the truth is my hand was in complete agony there.

“Up at Stoke last night it was just as bad and then when I fell in my opening ride I knew I needed to seek a medical opinion. I got myself to hospital and they’ve diagnosed a broken scaphoid.  It looks like I’m out of action for up to five weeks – I am completely gutted that this has happened”.

The bravery of the King’s former League individual Riders Champion really demonstrates the amazing spirit in the camp and this was put to the test when just after Compton confirmed his withdrawal from the meeting after being replaced by the busy Harris in heat seven, the Kent no. 7, Freemantle was himself diagnosed with concussion from his crash at Coventry the evening before and he too was withdrawn from proceedings.

Luke Chessell, returning to his home track of last year, was meanwhile fighting a rear-guard action with race wins in heats 3 and 7 and by that point the skipper Lambert, also known as a Loomer Road track specialist, was unbeaten as the visitors held a slender one point advantage.

Heats eight to ten marked an unhappy mid-point though, as the lead was lost and was not to be regained: with the Potters’ Chris Widman inflicting the most unlikely of defeats on otherwise unbeaten in the match Lambert and Chessell also failing to prevent Wilson getting back to winning ways, sandwiched between a win for one time Hackney Hawk Ben Hopwood and suddenly the gap was three points.

Heat 12 was a catastrophe – with no further options as Compton’s absence could not now be covered by Freemantle, young Harris was pitched alone against the home side’s Hopwood and McBain and the 5-1 which ensued all but guaranteed the points for Stoke.

Tough luck on all of the side but especially on Chessell who recorded eight points and particularly Lambert, with a magnificent five heat wins and 17 out of a possible 18 points from his six rides including more wins over Wilson in heats 13 and 15.

That the skipper seemed to have the beating of the Stoke number one so comprehensively in the match made it all the more gut-wrenching for the traveling Kings’ fans when Simon finally lost his grip on the Bronze Helmet to the Yorkshireman Wilson in the match race championship race which following the completion of the match.

A need for a speedy regrouping now with Compton sidelined for the duration and Freemantle a definite non-starter also today for the opening home League match vs. title contenders Mildenhall at Central Park.

Final score: Stoke Potters 49 Kent CTA Fire Kings 40 (Lambert 17; Chessell 8; Mason 7+1; Harris 5+1; Freemantle 1+1; Compton 0)