BEES boss Gary Havelock believes the crowd got their money’s worth at Brandon on Friday night after his side bounced back from a six-point deficit to beat King’s Lynn 48-42 in the Elite League, writes Observer speedway reporter Robin Allen.
Back-to-back 5-1s for the hosts in heats ten and 11 turned the meeting on its head and put Havelock’s side into a 36-30 lead.
And from that point on the Bees never looked back and secured their fourth consecutive victory on home soil to remain five points clear of second-placed Poole.
“It was really good to see a big crowd on a Friday night with nice weather, and I think everyone who’s been here will go home thinking they’ve had their money’s worth,” said Havelock.
“Some people were panicking a little bit but I wasn’t too worried. We’ve proved on several occasions that we’re a team who won’t fold under pressure, and we proved it again tonight.
“Sometimes people can forget that we’re in the entertainment business, but the biggest thing in speedway always has been and always will be the fans.
“They work hard all week and come here on a Friday paying their hard-earned money to watch the team, and I do think we’re a team who are worth the entrance fee – we never know when we’re beaten.”
The meeting did not start well for the hosts, as they conceded back-to-back heat advantages in the opening two heats.
Their position was not helped by fast-track duo James Sarjeant and Jason Garrity both falling in the tricky conditions in heat two, resulting in Garrity pushing his bike home for a point.
Bees then hit back with a 4-2 in the following heat, as Danny King made an excellent pass on the Stars duo to take the lead while Hans Andersen was gifted third place after Vaclav Milik fell on turn two.
And the visitors lead was cut to just two points in heat five, with Garrity grabbing the win ahead of Lewis Kerr on the line, while Aaron Summers secured third place for a 4-2.
But the Stars responded with a 5-1 as Grand Prix rider Neils-Kristian Iversen got his second win of the night to leave the score 15-21.
Bees slashed the lead back to two points in heat seven thanks to a stunning 5-1 with Joonas Kylmakorpi taking the win with a great cut back on turn one, while Garrity charged his way between Nicholas Porsing and Kerr on the back-straight to secure second place.
The meeting was then turned on its head as Bees recorded back-to-back 5-1’s in heats ten and 11 to put them in the lead for the first time to the delight of the big home crowd.
And despite the Stars responding with a 4-2 in the second reserves race, Bees secured the win on the night with a 4-2 of their own in heat 14, with Kylmakorpi showing his class with another win.
Stars rider of the night Iversen then secured his side a losing point in heat 15 with a 3-3 after losing by six points.
Havelock added: “We’ve proved on several occasions that we’re a team who won’t fold under pressure, and we proved it again.
“Jason Garrity was sensational again for us, he blew the engine on his first bike after about his fourth ride and had to jump on his spare bike, and he just epitomises the spirit in the camp and the never-say-die attitude.”
