SUPER Aaron Summers salvaged a point for Glasgow at Newcastle as he racked up 17 points on Bank Holiday Monday for the Tigers’ first Premier League spoils on the road.
The shaggy-haired skipper was beaten only once in five races, and his total included a six-point tactical ride to keep his side in the running after they’d fallen 10 points behind.
The meeting was almost completely lost for the Ashfield men but Summers and No 1 Richard Lawson popped out the gate in heat 13 for a 5-1 to offer a glimmer of hope of taking something up the road.
And although two 3-3s to end the match meant that Newcastle took victory, the Tigers received a consolation point for losing by fewer than seven points – the final score being 49-44.
Team boss Stewart Dickson described it as a “frustrating” night, given the Diamonds were without No 1 Robert Lambert and in-form reserve Lewis Rose – but singled out Summers for praise.
He said: “Going there tonight, without them having Lambert and Rose, our plan was to go for three points. I thought we could win the match – I’ve got to be honest.
“But we found ourselves quite quickly behind with throwing points away again, unfortunately. There are a couple of wee issues needing ironed out in the team – mechanical issues and suchlike – it’s not really happening.
“It’s one point but I feel it was two points lost, because we had an opportunity tonight to get a win – normally, Newcastle will be very hard to beat around their own place.
“We got the black and white with Aaron and the 7-2 out of it, and in our next two races we had mechanical issues with Nike Lunna and Ben Barker. I felt they were there for the taking then and we lost all the momentum we got with the 7-2.
“But we got a point – it’s our first point on the road – and I don’t know how many teams will get a point.
“A special mention to Aaron Summers getting 17 points – he was outstanding. Two or three of the top boys are a wee bit disheartened that we’re not getting more.
“It’s not ideal but it’s something we can take up the road with us.”
Glasgow face Plymouth on Sunday looking to keep their undefeated home run going.
Tigers scorers: Aaron Summers 17, Richard Lawson 9+1, Richie Worrall 6, Ben Barker 4, Danny Ayres 3+2, Coty Garcia 3, Nike Lunna 2.