WOLVERHAMPTON saw their nine-match winning run ended with a 49-41 defeat in a thriller at Peterborough.

Their table-topping hopes are still high, but after holding the lead with four heats to go at Alwalton they were undone by veterans Hans Andersen and Chris Harris in the closing stages.

Wolves’ performance undoubtedly deserved at least a league point, but some strong riding from the home side saw them take the spoils as the Monmore men suffered their first loss since being beaten at the same venue in mid-June.

But whilst skipper Rory Schlein and No.1 Sam Masters both had quiet evenings, the latter suffering mechanical problems in his first two rides, there was plenty of encouragement elsewhere with Wolves especially impressive at reserve.

The visitors initially went behind to a Panthers 5-1 in Heat 3 which was headed by Scott Nicholls, whilst Michael Palm Toft re-passed Nick Morris for second place.

But Wolves quickly dug in with Leon Flint nearly taking the double scalp of Andersen and Harris in Heat 4 before Andersen forced his way through.

And after Broc Nicol won Heat 5 with Masters stopping for a second time, the visitors cut the gap to two points with a good ride by Morris to defeat Harris in Heat 7 whilst Luke Becker supplied third spot.

Flint then went one step further by holding off Andersen throughout Heat 8 for another win to underline his rapid progress, although Nicol was squeezed to the back by a brutal ride from Bjarne Pedersen.

And the Wolves turned things around completely when Morris and Luke Becker gated swiftly for a big Heat 10 5-1 as they inflicted the first defeat of the night on Panthers guest Danny King.

Wolves held their lead for one more race but they were overturned by a forceful move by Andersen in Heat 12 as he forced Ryan Douglas wide on turn four to create a gap for team-mate Palm Toft to follow him through.

Boss Peter Adams replaced Schlein with Douglas in Heat 13, but Harris stormed through on the first lap just when Wolves appeared to have gated on a 5-1.

Peterborough held a match-winning position in Heat 14 but Becker battled on to pass Nicholls to give Wolves the chance of taking something from the meeting.

But another strong move from Andersen saw him come through at the expense of Morris, with Harris also surging around the outside to send the home fans away happy.

Morris said: “It was a good meeting and it didn’t end the way we would have liked – we would have liked to at least got something.

“But there’s definitely room for improvement. Sam had two breakdowns, but I think we’ve got a lot of positives to take from it and next time we come back we’re only going to be better.”

Wolves still hold a four-point lead the top of the table and will be confident of getting back on the winning trail when they visit King’s Lynn on Thursday.

PETERBOROUGH 49: Hans Andersen 16, Chris Harris 10+1, Scott Nicholls 9, Danny King 7, Michael Palm Toft 5+2, Bjarne Pedersen 2+1, Jordan Palin 0.
WOLVERHAMPTON 41: Ryan Douglas 9, Nick Morris 8+1, Broc Nicol 6+1, Luke Becker 6, Leon Flint 6, Rory Schlein 3+3, Sam Masters 3+1.