Coventry Storm were beaten 50-40 tonight at Stoke.
In a meeting of seven 3-3's the Storm only won two heats - a 4-2 win in heat three which saw a victory for Martin Knuckey and a 5-1 in heat five with a win for Rob Shuttleworth and Dan Greenwood.
Manager Laurence Rogers said: “It was so close to a point for us, and it’s a shame we just missed out.
“Obviously Stoke’s strength at reserve told with 12 (paid 15) for them compared to one for our two kids there, but they both battled hard and are riders for the future.
“Rob was outstanding in his first three rides and it gave me a dilemma for Heat 15, I went with Marty along with Dan because he’d come from the back to win Heat 14 and looked very fast, but unfortunately he got a tough first turn from Lee Payne and the referee judged him to be at fault and disqualified him.
“Mark Baseby was a big plus as well, he led his first race and then he came from the back to win his last one, so he got better as the night went on and he’s now gone home to work on his machinery ready for Sunday.
“It’s disappointing to miss out on a point but now we must make the most of our home matches starting tomorrow, it’s onwards and upwards for that and we hope for plenty of support.”
STOKE 50: Lee Payne 15, Jon Armstrong 10+1, Shaun Tedham 7+1, Paul Burnett 5+2, Danny Phillips 5+1, Chris Widman 4+1, Ryan Terry-Daley 4+1.
COVENTRY 40: Martin Knuckey 10, Rob Shuttleworth 9, Darryl Ritchings 8+1, Dan Greenwood 7+1, Mark Baseby 5+1, Callum Walker 1, Jamie Halder 0.