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Search forDevils need win at Saints to guarantee play-off place
Monday, August 25, 2008, 01:00
DEVILS' defeat away to Buxton means the city side must now win at Scunthorpe Saints tonight (5pm) to guarantee a place in the Conference League play-offs.
Three points off Saints – Devils' final away meet of the 2008 term – would be enough to secure the current Conference League leaders a top-four finish.
The title-hunting visitors had hoped to achieve that at the Hi-Edge Raceway yesterday but trailed the Derbyshire outfit for the final eight heats.
Veterans Mark Simmonds and Seemond Stephens were the city's sides top scorers in their penultimate away meet of the season.
Simmonds amassed 16 points from six heats, with skipper Stephens adding another 13 points to the visitors' cause.
Tom Brown and Paul Starke chipped in with six points apiece, with Jaimie Pickard contributing a further three.
Buxton, who were meeting Mike Bowden's outfit for the first time this year, outscored the Devils thanks to hefty hauls from Gareth Isherwood (17pts), John Branney (12) and Ben Taylor (12).
Devils' began brightly and competitively with Simmonds winning the first and third heats and Stephens coming second in the fourth as the visitors held a 13-11 lead go into the fifth round.
The two rivals were neck and neck until heat eight when Isherwood and Burnett combined to outscore Devils' Starke (2) to take a slender 25-23 which they improved, despite Stephens holding off Ben Taylor to claim first place in heat nine.
Branney, who had been tipped to miss the meet, stretched the hosts' advantage with victories in heats 10 and 11.
Isherwood then maintained the 10-point buffer with a maximum in the next race before Simmonds cut the deficit to 44-36 with a tactical ride in the 13th.
With the hosts now assured of victory Isherwood passed Brown in the penultimate heat only for Stephens and Simmonds to end the meet on a high for Plymouth with a first and second in the last.
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