A LACK of consistency is costing Coventry Bees this season according the skipper Chris Harris after slumping to their second home defeat of the season against Swindon on Monday night, writes Observer speedway reporter Robin Allen.
Despite a bright start, Gary Havelock’s side struggled in the middle of the meeting and they eventually went down 42-50 at Brandon.
Jason Garrity got the better of Grand Prix star James Doyle in heat one while Krzysztof Kasprzak eventually passed Charles Wright securing third place in an opening 4-2 for the Bees.
But that was as good as it got as Swindon showed their gating skills with five straight race wins although this still only gave them a two point lead.
Bees skipper Harris finally broke the run of Robins race wins in heat seven with two superb passes on Aussie duo Josh Grajzonek and Justin Sedgmen.
However, the Robins then stamped their authority on the meeting with three-straight heat advantages which put them 12 points up with five heats remaining.
Havelock put number one Kasprzak on a tactical rider in heat 11 in a last ditch attempt to claw his side back into the meeting, But it seemed the slick conditions caught out the Pole who tried to ride the outside line which failed, allowing former Bees rider Nick Morris to take the lead on the second turn and he was untroubled from there.
Despite the home side getting back-to-back heat advantages in heats 13 and 14, it was not enough to prevent Swindon from securing all four away points.
“I feel for the fans because it is just as frustrating for them as it is for us,” Harris told the Observer. “The team really are trying but were just not riding good enough at the moment.
“Like I have said before, some of us get going and then the rest are struggling and we are just not consistent.
“We will have to regroup and get the boys together because we need to try and figure out what is going on. We have been slow from the gate which showed against Swindon because they were a lot quicker than us.”
Bees promotor, Mick Horton, felt it was a disappointing performance, adding: “We just didn’t perform. I think the reserves did their jobs, but as for the rest of the team I don’t know what the answer is, but it’s not good enough.
“The crowd turn-out again was great, and they deserve more. Riders of the calibre we need are not available, they’ve got commitments in other leagues and the Grand Prix, so we’ve got to decide whether we need to have a fresh outlook on this.
“We won’t give up, we’ll keep on fighting, but it’s just really, really frustrating at the moment for everyone.”