Berwick Bullets face double injury blow as they hit the road again this weekend

Rider Mason Watson got caught in a big heat nine crash in Saurday’s race, ending up in the polyoam barrier after laying down his bike to avoid the carnage caused by Danny Phillips’ inside dive on Kent’s Nathan Ablitt.

Mason suffered a hand injury in the crash and the swelling has not reduced quickly enough to enable him to take his place in the return fixture at The Old gun Site on Sunday at noon.

Josh Embleton will also miss the trip to Sittingbourne after opening up burn scarring on his leg suffered in a Good Friday crash at Belle Vue.

In their absence the Bullets have booked two currently unattached riders as guests – Chris Watts, an Ashford-based 2022 Royals rider, and Jason Garrad.

Jamie Halder moves into the main body of the team after a series of fine performances at number seven.

He was riding for the Royals when they beat Berwick by two points in the corresponding 2022 fixture.

Once again the Bullets will rely heavily on Connor Coles and Danny Phillips on the tight Kent raceway after both recorded double figure scores for their 2022 clubs Leicester and Armadale respectively.

Kent’s only home outing this season so far is a Knockout cup defeat at the hands of Mildenhall.

As well as points for a win the Bullets are also chasing their first aggregate point of the season, their 20-point home victory putting them very much in the driving seat.

Gary Flint, Berwick promoter, said: “Being without Mason and Josh is far from ideal preparation but it is what it is.”

“Iwade is a tricky track to get to grips with, but in Chris Watts and Jason Garrad we have been able to bring in guests who have quite a lot of experience of the circuit.

“Jamie’s promotion into the main team is a reflection of just how well he has gone this season, especially on the away tracks.

“We will miss his firepower from reserve but, especially with his season as a Royal last year, he can have a big influence on Sunday both on track and with his advice to the rest of the team on set-ups and racing lines.

“With the exception of the disastrous Belle Vue opener, the Bullets have been impressive in all of their outings and we are confident of another good showing on Sunday.”