Tony Jackson reports from Derwent Park

Last updated 08:20, Wednesday, 09 April 2008

Workington Comets 48 Edinburgh Monarchs 45: The Comets kept their chances of qualifying for the Premier Trophy semi-finals alive by defeating group leaders Edinburgh at a bitterly cold Derwent Park on Saturday.

• Video: Match action

And they’re off: Workington's Daniel Nermark, red helmet, leads Edinburgh's Ryan Fisher, green, and Derek Sneddon, yellow, along with Workington's Scott Smith, blue, into the first corner of heat one during Comets’ victory over Edinburgh at Derwent Park on Saturday night

Nermark, who has been nothing short of sensational since joining the Comets, proved just why he will be the man to beat in the Premier League this season with five more unbeaten rides against the Monarchs.

The Comets went into the final heat with a slender one-point advantage over the visitors and needing at least a share of the spoils to seal victory.

And when Nermark led coming out of turn two on the opening lap and headed for the chequered flag it was all over.

Meanwhile, behind him, Matthew Wethers and Ryan Fisher gave chase in vain for the Monarchs cause.

However, there was still some drama to come when Fisher's machine failed on the back straight of the last lap and the closely following Carl Stonehewer, who had been squeezed out of the action on the first turn, was fortunate to miss the stricken Monarch as he moved into third place while Fisher coasted around the final two corners to the finish.

This match had originally been scheduled for a week previously however a waterlogged track had led to its postponement.

And, at one stage on Saturday it appeared that the weather might intervene yet again when, after heat five, a shower of hail and sleet interrupted proceedings but following a 30 minute delay and some track grading, the match was able to continue.

Before the enforced break the Comets had held a two-point advantage, which they had gained in the opening heat through Nermark and Scott Smith.

Heat two saw Joe Haines record a stylish victory in a time just 0.1 of a second slower than Nermark's opening race win while John Branney fell on the final lap when attempting to gain third place.

And with the next three heats also being shared the Comets led 16-14 after five heats.

However things could have been different as the Monarchs suffered bad luck in heat four when

Aaron Summers and Mathew Wethers seemed set for a surprise 5-1 over KaukoNieminen and John Branney until race leader Summers shed a chain on turn two of thefinal lap.

Following the break the Comets doubled their advantage through Nermark and Smith while Nieminen won the seventh from Fisher, with Haines having fallen entering turn three of the opening lap when lying in third and chasing the American.

Derek Sneddon led a shared heat eight from tape to flag before the Comets claimed their only maximum heat advantage of the match, through Charles Wright and Carl Stonehewer, in the next, which was the race of the night.

This saw Wright lead from the gate with Wethers chasing him throughout and Stonehewer closely behind him. But, on the back straight of the final lap, Stonehewer used all his experience to drive up the inside and narrowly head Wethers into turn three to take second place, much to the delight of another large and enthusiastic home crowd.

Nermark registered his third race win of the night in the tenth while Nieminen got the better of Fisher on the back straight of the opening lap in heat 11, and with Haines holding off Sneddon the Comets extended their lead to 10 points.

This gave the Monarchs the opportunity to give William Lawson, who was having a rider replacement outing for the injured Thomas Jonasson, a tactical ride in the next.

It was now the Monarchs turn to have some good fortune when Stonehewer shed a rear chain as he left the gate, and although Branney rode an excellent first two laps to keep Lawson back in third place his machine developed a problem allowing Lawson through into second place before rounding team-mate Andrew Tully to record an 8-1 for the Monarchs and bring them to within three points of the Comets.

A hard-fought first turn in heat 13 saw Nermark emerge in front as Nieminen got squeezed out by Fisher and Wethers and, despite giving chase the Comets skipper was unable to score.

Lawson took his second successive victory by leading all the way in the penultimate heat ahead of Wright, who held off the ever-pressing Tully for the first three laps before Tully himself came under pressure from Haines, as the Comets lead was cut to a single point going into the last heat decider.

Afterwards, Comets Team manager Ian Thomas was relieved to have overcome both the weather and the Monarchs: "We knew it was going to be a hard match and, without question, they were stronger without their injured Swede Thomas Jonasson.

“They managed 13 points, including the tactical ride, from his programmed outings and going by the form he had shown before his injury I doubt if he would have scored half of that.”