SUPER guest Kenneth Hansen led Peterborough to a vital victory today.
The Danish star, standing in for injured countryman Nikolaj Busk Jakobsen, roared to a 15-point haul as the ‘T Balfe Construction’ Panthers saw off Sheffield 50-40.
In the process they snapped a run of three successive Premier League defeats and also exacted revenge for a home League Cup loss at the hands of the Tigers earlier in the season.
Hansen led the way with a hat-trick of heat wins and three second places in a sterling six-ride shift while he benefitted from plenty of fine support as Peterborough eased clear in the second half of the meeting after twice being behind early on.
Simon Lambert stepped up on recent performances with a hard-working paid 12 at reserve while Emil Grondal delivered a confidence-boosting 9+2 haul from the tough number two berth.
Michael Palm Toft also produced one of his best performances of the campaign with paid nine while captain Ulrich Ostergaard added the same tally despite suffering from engine problems and finding himself on the deck.
It all added up to a winning home debut for new team boss Jason Attwood, who was quick to heap praise onto a patched-up team.
Attwood said: “A home win was all I could ask for today and I’m delighted to get it against a strong Sheffield side who turned us over on our own track earlier in the season.
“Sometimes you can call on a guest and they end up having an absolute shocker, and the fans end up asking questions.
"But it worked out really well for us today. Bringing Kenneth in was down to Ged (promoter Rathbone) and it was a pleasure to work with him.
“We had a lot of riders scoring well and even Tom Perry, who had one of those nights where he couldn’t quite get things right and was always chasing the set-up, put in plenty of effort for the team.
“I’ve tried to get the boys going since coming on board, but it is the riders who should take all the credit. They’re the ones who put their backsides over the bike and do the business out on the track.
“It was a performance with plenty of encouraging signs and a result which gives us something to build on.”
Hansen pushed Tigers number one Simon Stead hard for star individual billing.
Stead, who started his career at the Showground almost two decades ago, led the visitors with a fine five-ride paid maximum, but he lacked the necessary support from his team-mates.
Dimitri Berge, Kyle Howarth and Jason Garrity were the only other visiting riders to win races although Howarth blotted his copybook by riding Ostergaard into the fence on the final lap of heat 15.
He was duly excluded by referee Dave Robinson with Ostergaard awarded third place behind partner Hansen as Panthers denied Sheffield a consolation point.
Sheffield had earlier taken full advantage as Peterborough endured a nightmare start. Problems with a new engine forced Ostergaard to slow from second place in heat one, gifting the visitors a 5-1 in the process.
Hansen roared round the outside in a re-run third heat to inspire the first of two back-to-back 4-2s that pulled Peterborough back onto level terms.
His effort was impressive, but it was nowhere near as spectacular as that of Lambert in the next race as he emerged victorious from a titanic battle with Jason Garrity.
But Peterborough were behind against when Josh Bates eased past Lambert leaving the final corner of heat seven to secure a 4-2 for the visitors, but that was the cue for hosts to up the ante with three successive gains.
Grondal took the flag in a 4-2 in a re-run eighth contest to restore parity before Peterborough hit the front for the first time when Hansen zoomed away from Garrity for another advantage in heat nine.
And their cushion quickly grew as Ostergaard roared to the front in heat 10 with Grondal in tow for a 5-1.
The gap remained at six points during a series of shared races before Peterborough clinched an overdue success in fine style as Palm Toft and Lambert powered to a 5-1 in heat 14.
And while Stead completed his unblemished record in the finale, it wasn’t enough to earn his side a league point.
Peterborough return to action next Sunday (7.30pm) when aiming to complete a Premier League double over Rye House.
SCORES
PETERBOROUGH ‘T BALFE CONSTRUCTION’ PANTHERS: Kenneth Hansen (guest) 15, Simon Lambert 10+2, Emil Grondal 9+2, Michael Palm Toft 8+1, Ulrich Ostergaard 7+2, Tom Perry 1, rider replacement for Nicklas Porsing.
SHEFFIELD: Simon Stead 14+1 (paid max), Kyle Howarth 8, Jason Garrity 7, Dimitri Berge 5, Richard Hall 4+1, Nathan Greaves 1+1, Josh Bates 1.
