Coventry Crusaders - Diamond League

News Page

All the news from the Crusaders from Season 12 ........

Part 4 (Quarter Season)

Two league wins was enough to pull the club into second in Division One although B'ham have a healthy lead at the top and should be crowned champions soon. Rustem took the 'Crusader Champion Chase' at Diamond Park to add to his impressive season and the juniors once again fired on all cylinders to take two more wins in their competition.
A last heat win at Springfield was little consolation after only managing a draw at home to leaders B'ham which hands them the title even though mathematically they can still be caught. A good away win at Welling in the first leg of the European Cup final puts the team in a good position but the average change hasn't been kind and the team will have a different look next week. The juniors Crusaders picked up two more wins and now lead Workington by twelve points so it's looks like another trophy for the youngsters.
A reasonable week although there was a highlight with the second piece of silverware reaching Diamond Park - none other than the European Cup with an eight point aggregate win over Welling. The league saw a narrow away defeat at Pitsea and a home win over Beverley to leave us five points ahead of Sheffield but 10 behind B'ham so congratulations to them and their title. The juniors again managed two wins and now lead by fourteen ahead of new second placed team Boston.
More silverware to the Coventry camp as the juniors storm to two more wins and their 6th title in nine seasons - well done to them. The balance of the senior side is lacking at present and it's just a case of getting to the end of the season with just two more matches after this week. Hopefully we can do enough to keep the second place in the table which is no mean feat after some poor results along the way, not to mention injuries which included long spells on the sidelines for top riders Rustem and Sami. This week saw a home win and an away defeat which is something of the norm in recent weeks - we must now look forward to the new campaign and see what that brings.
Not a bad season in the end - second in Division One and winning trophies in the European Cup, Divisional Cup and Junior League. Some changes will be forced upon us for the new season with some comings and goings but that's the same as usual.

Part 3 (Quarter Season)

It was great to win away in the league at Newcastle but we were well and truly brought back down to earth with a home defeat to Brookwood. Guest Edo Bevc was useless and had we had Rustem available it would have been a different story. This was also the case for the KOC match at Pitsea as a twelve point defeat will probably be too much to pull back at home next week, even with the fit again Russian. The junior side won both home and away again although face a tough test against Boston next week.
A very poor week for the club all round. A home win against Sheffield in the league was marred by missing the bonus point although the away win at Tibthorpe was a bonus. The Crusaders won the home leg of the KOC but lose out to Pitsea on aggregate thanks to a very poor show by supposed number one Rustem. The first leg of the European Cup was also a disaster with just a six point home win over Horsens with the away leg next week. Finally, the juniors were beat on their travels at Boston but did win on aggregate over the two legs. Let's hope for better next week.
What a fantastic week for the club this time around. The news first broke that the club had captured Finish prospect Sami Hagert for a Ł900,000 part exchange deal meaning Andy Outrum and Timo Viitikko (loan) leaving the club. The results just meant the week got even better - a draw away at Horsens in the European cup means progression through to the semi finals and then an away draw at B'ham in the first leg of the Divisional Cup Final, the home leg comes next week. The league results weren't quite as good as the team again rode at B'ham, this time losing by two points and at home we thrashed sister club Springfield 64-26 although they have now made moves to strengthen their squad. The juniors completed a double over Hove and host bottom club Norwich next week with changes due to that side also with the capture of Darren Atkinson from Westcliff for Ł100,000.
A good week for the Crusaders winning their first piece of silverware defeating B'ham in the Division One Cup final by ten points at home. Sami made a quiet start to his Coventry career but with Rustem improving by the week and Alvaro in flying mood things look bright. Pitsea were demolished at home although we did lose by ten at Welling. The juniors continue to win with two more against Norwich this week - without top averaged rider Jim Morris as new asset Darren Atkinson rode his debut meetings for the junior side. European Cup semi final action next week at home to Prague.
Good and bad news for the Crusaders this week - another huge home win, this time 60-30 over Newcastle and a narrow defeat away at Brookwood. The home tie in the European Cup semi final resulted in a twelve point win over Prague so it's off to Poland for the second leg next week. The averages have not been kind to us but worse than that is the loss of Sami Hagert to injury for the next eight weeks - typically the 4TT is next week and with no facility allowed in that competition the 4TT will be gone for another year. Sami also misses out on the GP Play Off and ends any hopes he had of lifting the World Title. Paul Reynolds has been loaned to Poole due to the team exceeding the upper 51 point limit and we wish him well on the South coast. The juniors again roared to two more wins but must now do without Simon Wright who has attained an average higher than three in the senior team.
The 4TT was a disaster as predicted without the services of number one Hagert. The league saw a narrow two point defeat at Sheffield after a comfortable home win over Tibthorpe. A narrow two point loss at Prague in the European Cup was enough to see the Crusaders into the final where they will meet Welling over two legs - can this be the second trophy of the year, only time will tell. The juniors again cruised to two wins and almost enough to take the title now being nine points clear of Workington.

Part 2 (Quarter Season)

A good start to the second part of the season with home and away wins in the Divisional Cup - giving us a winners slot for the semi finals and a clash with Sheffield who were runners up to B'ham in the other group. The junior team continued on their merry way with two more victories and Timo Viitikko picked up a win in Tibthorpe's Individual meeting this week. Timo also made it through to the Scandinavian final after finishing 5th in his semi final in Denmark this week.
A disappointing week in more ways than one. A narrow home win over Tibthorpe was followed by another narrow loss at Sheffield, who take over at the top of the Division One table. The disaster came in heat 15 at Sheffield where Rustem fell awkwardly and will miss the next eight weeks of action with a damaged arm and shoulder. Guests will be used to cover his absence but it means the rider will miss his World Championship round and many vital matches for the club. We will just have to struggle on without our Ł1m+ asset.
A reasonable week with a narrow home win over last seasons champions Welling while a six point away defeat at Beverley is nothing to be disgraced about. The team are struggling without number one Rustem as the available guests just aren't up to the job at present. The juniors continue to do well but it was bad news for Alvaro in the World Championship as he missed out on qualification by just one point and one place - there's always next year though.
Two points was all that separated the Crusaders and their league opponents this week - a two point defeat at the Powerplant of Springfield and a two point home victory over current leaders B'ham. The biggest surprise came in the semi final of the Division One cup; it looked a really difficult tie on paper (a trip to Sheffield) but the boys came away with an eighteen point win. Special mentions must go to Alvaro (14) and Rik Dakin (9+1).
The demolition of Sheffield was completed this week to set up a Division One Cup Final against Midland rivals B'ham. The home leg was won by twenty eight points and the team really made it look easy. The Junior Crusaders continued with two more wins, twenty point wins at that home and away against York. Just a couple more matches until Rustem returns to lead the side with the team now third in the top division.

Part 1 (Quarter Season)

A reasonable start to the season for the Crusaders this year with a home win over sister club Springfield and an away draw at title favourites the B'ham City Slickers. In top form was Alvaro Tatti and he was well backed by Rustem and Timo with some signs of improvement also from Andy Outrum who has been suffering of late. Rustem and Timo also managed to negotiate the first round of the Pairs competition although Timo will be replaced in the second round next week by Alvaro. The juniors started off well with two wins and head the table on points difference only - very early days.
An average round that could have been oh so much better if the team had managed to hold on at last years champions Welling. The Crusaders led by two points with two races left but two 1-5's left the team with a six point defeat. There was a good sixteen point home win over Pitsea and the duo of Rustem and Alvaro managed to reach the final of the Pairs Competition by finishing fourth at Border. We have lost the services of Andy Outrum for two matches but luckily they are in the Divisional Cup and he will be fit for the next league match. The Juniors continued on with two more wins and still head the table.
Considering the injury to Andy Outrum it was pleasing to see that we pushed Welling all the way on our travels and hammered Newcastle at home in the first set of matches in the Divisional Cup. The Juniors also did well with two more wins but next week face the other club with maximum points, Border.
Mixed fortunes this week although the good results were where it really mattered. The Pairs final was a disaster with Rustem and Alvaro finishing last, just behind sister club Springfield. However, two wins in the league mean the Crusaders head the pile as we take yet another break from league action for the next group matches in the Divisional Cup. An away match at Springfield gives us hope for a win although it will be tough at home to Beverley. This week we also welcome a new signing in the shape of Matthew Austin from the unattached list. The 26 year old cost the club Ł136,000 but we believe it is money well spent in an effort to keep the club at the top of the table. The junior side remained unbeaten this week although away from home they did only manage a draw at Border (although they were previously unbeaten and so now lead the table by four points. Coventry's first Individual of the season took place involving past and present riders. It was great to see that Timo, Rustem and Alvaro took the top three spots on the evening.

Pre Season

After another season of relatively poor form for the Crusaders it was back into the transfer market for another big name signing. This time it was 27 year old Rustem Fakhrutdinov from the unattached list for a fee of around Ł1.4 million. He comes in on an average of 10.39 and should add some top end power whilst former Crusader Mark Sherwood returned to take his place in the reserve berth.
The first set of challenge matches against Leamington saw the team off to a reasonable start. Rustem was unbeaten by an opponent, Alvaro Tatti dropped just two points and Timo Viitikko held his average over the two legs despite a fall in his third ride away from home. The home match was won by fourteen points and away it was a two point defeat but we elected not to use any tactical substitute rides to allow the riders to settle in.
Another big win at home, this time against the Earley Tigers. No maximums though as Rustem and Alvaro both dropped one point each and Timo dropped two. The away match ended in a one point defeat but of course no tactical moves were made in order for all riders to have a run out. The really pleasing outcome from both matches was the form of Paul Reynolds who scored paid nineteen from both the fixtures (out of 24). Next week will see a small change at reserve as Matthew Oates will be tried out in the away match.
A disappointing end to pre season with a home draw and an away defeat - the heat leaders seem to be doing the business but we seem to be struggling outside of that. This week we received a positive sponsorship boost from our long term backers 'Worldwide TV' who have ploughed more funds into the club; in fact the biggest sponsorship deal for any club this season. Next week sees the beginning of the real season so watch this space....