Speedway: Glasgow Tigers slump to defeat against Comets as club's debts are revealed

Apr 16 2012 By Fraser Wilson

PREMIER League champions Glasgow Tigers endured a miserable weekend as they lost both home and away to Workington - then revealed they are £30,000 in the red.

Tigers team boss Stewart Dickson addressed supporters at Ashfield on Sunday and made a personal plea to help them out of a financial hole.

As the Glaswegian revealed on Friday, the club faces a £30,000 bill for work carried out last year to upgrade the track at the Possilpark arena.

A business plan to pay off the debt, which involved the sale of prize assets Josh Grajczonek and Nick Morris, fell apart when the club failed to sell either rider and poor home attendances this year have added to the problem.

Dickson said: "We're asking our supporters to bail us out. We have to make a sizeable payment within the next four weeks or the club could be in a lot of trouble."

There was little to celebrate on the track too for Glasgow as the Comets raced to a 52-43 League Cup win at Ashfield to follow up their 53-40 win at Derwent Park a day earlier.

James Grieves top-scored for Tigers in Sunday's home leg with 14 points while skipper Joe Screen notched 12 and Grajczonek nine.

Screen followed up his magnificent five-ride 15 point maximum on Saturday by winning heat one but the race was shared before Kyle Howarth passed Robert Ksiezak on lap two of the second heat to ensure a heat advantage for the visitors.

Ashfield track record holder Richard Lawson won heat three but the Tigers shared the heat thanks to Grieves and Ksiezak.

The visitors recorded their first 5-1 of the match in heat four to extend their lead with Rusty Harrison racing home in 59.5secs.

Then in heat six Screen shed a chain pulling away from the tapes and retired before the first bend allowing the visitors to record their second 5-1.

Josh Grajczonek on a Tactical Ride in heat seven could only finish second to fast starting Lawson to share the heat 4-4.

The Comets piled-on the pressure by recording another 5-1 in heat eight with replacement Harrison again winning.

Grieves was used as the Tigers second and final Tactical Ride in heat nine winning the race for six points but with Ksiezak at the back the heat advantage was only 6-3.

The Comets manage to maintain their lead for the rest of the meeting although the Tigers manage to provide the heat winner in each of the last three races.

Skipper Screen and Grieves did give the home fans something to cheer with Tigers' only 5-1 of the night in the last heat. But it was little consolation for the worried Tigers faithful.

Glasgow Tigers 43 Joe Screen 12 Mason Campton 2+1 James Grieves 14+1 Jayden O`malley R/R Josh Grajczonek 9 Jade Mudgway 1Robert Ksiezak 5+2

Workington Comets 52 Rene Bach 9+1 Kenny Ingalls R/R Richard Lawson 11+1 Adam Roynon 7 Rusty Harrison 11+2 Gary Irving 2+1 Kyle Howarth 12+3

Glasgow are in action this week with an away League Cup match at Scunthorpe on Friday night. Sheffield Tigers are the visitors to Ashfield on Sunday in the same competition with 4pm start time.